Marc Leishman slams loud LIV critic as he prepares for a Major return at the US Open

Daily Record

2 days ago

The Aussie star has slapped down outspoken snipers as he gets set for Oakmont and Portrush
Defiant Marc Leishman has slapped down LIV critics as he prepares to make his Major return in Open season.
The Australian has been out of the picture at the big events since opting to join compatriots such as Cameron Smith on the Saudi-backed series.
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Leishman has been unable to get back into a Majors since 2022, but that will all change when he makes a comeback at Oakmont for the US Open having battled through qualifying.
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The 41-year-old is also set for next month's Open Championship at Royal Portush and has snapped back at talk his LIV participation is a bad preparation. Outspoken golf analyst Brandel Chamblee reckons the late failures of Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau in recent Majors has been down their set-up on LIV.
But Leishman barked: 'I'm happy with the way the schedule is and the way you can lead into majors. I'd probably disagree with Brandel Chamblee a lot. We're playing against great fields every single week on tough golf courses. Yes, it's 54 holes. But it puts a bit of pressure on that first round to get off to a good start because [LIV events] are a little bit more of a sprint.
'We're still playing a lot of golf away from tournaments, enjoying golf more and I think when you are enjoying your golf and it's not so much of a grind, that lends itself to better play. I've got a tournament this week [LIV Virginia]. It's not a US Open course, but the greens are going to be extremely quick, hilly. I think it's going to be really good preparation for next week at Oakmont.
'The way our schedule is set up actually lends itself to being able to prepared very well for the majors. I prepared for the US Open qualifier which I normally wouldn't have been able to do, I'd be preparing for other tournaments. I want to test myself against the best players and we do that in the LIV events. Yes, there are no cuts, but once you get to the end of the tournament and it's I win or you win. You're not even thinking about that, all that stuff.
'You want to get yourself into that pressure cooker and test yourself under the most immense pressure and see if you can handle it. 'That's why I do it. Whether I'm playing the Victorian PGA or LIV Miami, I want to try to win.'
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Leishman is excited for the Open double and added: 'Golf's a funny game, and you need a lot of stuff to go right on the right weeks, particularly the major weeks. I've never treated them any different to the event I'm playing this week, or the Australian PGA, or whatever it might be,
'I just prepare the way I prepare, and hope that I've got my good stuff on the right week and sometimes even if you do have your good stuff and you make the putts and you get a couple of lucky breaks, someone can still go crazy and beat you.
'You need a lot of stuff to go right, but definitely I feel like my game is probably as good as it's ever been, my mindset is as good as it's ever been, and hopefully I can get the breaks and come out on top.
'It's a long tournament, there are a lot of unbelievable players, and I just hope I can give myself a chance to be in contention and test myself.'