Dustin Johnson pulls into a tie with Sebastian Munoz at LIV Golf Indianapolis

Indianapolis Star

a day ago

WESTFIELD – All eyes were on Sebastian Munoz at The Club at Chatham Hills after he shot a historic opening round the day prior, but as Saturday's LIV Golf Indianapolis second round unfolded, the attention shifted.
Trailing Munoz (Torque GC) by three strokes to start, 4Aces GC captain Dustin Johnson evened things up with a 7-under par 64 to pull into a two-way tie atop the leaderboard at 16 under 126 through 36 holes.
Munoz finished the second day 4-under 67 and 16 under 126 overall to remain in first, but the Columbian struggled to replicate the magic he showcased by sinking 13 birdies in his final 14 holes played on Friday for 12 under 59.
Johnson, however, played the course with precision, once again, nearly matching his 9 under 62 carded during the first round.
'It was a really solid round. Got off to a little bit of a shaky start there at the very beginning. Just drove in the bunker on one and hit over the green,' Johnson said. 'Then, you know, hit some good shots after that.'
Johnson opened in the same group as Munoz on the course's first hole, and the two-time Majors winner systematically logged five pars to start before recording two of his seven birdies in the round.
Four of his birdies fell in on the back nine paired with five pars, which gave the American 11 for the day.
'Just took me a little while to get going, but once I did, I felt like I played really solid,' Johnson said. 'You just have to hit the fairways. If you hit the fairways, you're going to attack the course, but you still got to hit quality golf shots to get close to the hole.'
Munoz held the early advantage, as he continued his birdie barrage with four to begin the second round and six through the course's front nine. Three pars kept his round score at 29, one stroke off his lowest nine-hole total from Friday when he became the third sub-60 golfer in LIV history.
Yet, a bogey on the 10th hole and another par-4 bogey on 15 opened the door for Johnson and the 4Aces.
Torque GC leads the team leaderboard at 39 under ahead of 4Aces GC at 36 under. Torque GC held a four-stroke advantage prior to Saturday's round.
'Obviously, yeah, he got off to a great start, and I got off to a slow start,' Johnson said. 'But, you know, you just got to keep trying to make birdies. You know, get in the fairway, just get looks, and that's what I did. I did that from about six on end. Played really well.'
Munoz was hit with a double-bogey on the 18th hole to end his day, following a provisional ball after back-to-back slices off the tee that hooked into the gallery.
The bogeys chipped away the 32-year-old's attempt to carry a potential lead after two rounds heading to the final 18 holes on Sunday morning.
Behind the duo is a six-way tie for third entering Sunday's make-or-break final round.
Thomas Pieters and Patrick Reed of 4Aces GC, Henrik Stenson of Majesticks GC, Adrian Meronk of Cleeks GC, David Puig of Fireballs GC and Torque GC captain Joaquin Niemann each finished the second day at 12 under 130.
Johnson has 31 career wins and three in LIV Golf with the 41-year-old's last tournament victory at LIV Golf Las Vegas on Feb. 10, 2024, with a 12 under 198.
On Sunday, Johnson, who is ranked 28th in the season standings, will aim to win his fourth LIV Golf tournament event in as many years. He was also victorious at the LIV Golf Invitational Boston in 2022 and LIV Golf Tulsa in 2023.
'You just got to play from the fairway here. If you can play out of the fairway, you get a lot of good chances. Just as long as I drive well tomorrow, I think I'll contend,' Johnson said. 'I'm playing really solid. I'm really comfortable, so hopefully, it will be a good day and a good fight. Get a chance to win coming down to the last few holes.'
Niemann finished Friday locked in a four-way tie for third. After Saturday, he maintained his position by shooting a 5 under 66 to follow up his 7 under 64, but now he's caught in a six-way deadlock.
The Chilean logged consecutive bogeys on the fourth and fifth holes to start his day, but four birdies on the next five kept him on pace. Niemann had seven straight pars on the back nine and a birdie on 18 to put him at 12 under 130.
Defending LIV Individual Champion Jon Rahm (Legion XIII) jumped from 12th to ninth on the leaderboard. After a 4 under 67 on Friday, the Spaniard finished 7 under 64 in the second round behind eight birdies and nine pars.
Rahm is 11 under 131, entering Sunday in a three-way tie for ninth with Stinger GC's Branden Grace and Range Goats GC captain Bubba Watson.
If Niemann remains in third or fourth, then Rahm must win the tournament to overtake his competitor for the league's individual title. If Niemann drops to as low as eighth, then Rahm can win the individual crown with a tournament runner-up finish.