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Tyrrell Hatton looks to make a statement in his first start since becoming a father. The Englishman carded a 2-under 69 on day two to move to 6-under for the week and take sole lead at the halfway point of the 2026 LIV Golf Andalucía.
The Legion XIII star, who missed last week’s event in Korea following the birth of his first child, came out on 36 ahead of a more productive back nine on 33. He is two shots ahead of Thomas Detry heading into the weekend at Real Club Valderrama.
“If you had told me on Wednesday that I would have a two-shot lead going into the weekend, I probably wouldn’t have believed you, to be honest,” Hatton said. “Like I said yesterday, I feel like I had a good warm-up…I simplified a few things and kind of came out feeling like that.”
It was a day that belonged, in large part, to Legion XIII. While Hatton consolidated his lead at the top, his teammate and captain Jon Rahm produced one of the most eye-catching rounds on the course. The Spaniard, who was frustrated after a first round of 2 over 73 in front of his home crowd, came out strong on Friday with a 4 under 67, good for a tie for the low round of the day. Rahm moved to 2 under for the tournament and sits in T7, in first place for a weekend charge.
The reigning champion also announced himself emphatically. OKGC captain Talor Gooch, who has won two of the last three LIV golf tournaments at Valderrama, made his move Friday with a 4-under 67 that featured four birdies on the back nine and moved him into a tie for third place at 3 under. Gooch has a habit of finding his best golf when it matters most at this venue, and the course would be wise to watch him closely this weekend.
Harold Varner III matched Rahm and Gooch with a 67 of his own, making it three players sharing the lowest round of the day. It was a quietly impressive round from a player who also opened with a 2-over 73 on Thursday.
The qualifying picture for the Open Championship improved significantly on Friday. Detry followed his opening 3-under 68 with a steady 1-under 70 to sit alone in second at 4 under, two behind Hatton. The Belgian continues to widen the gap on Joaquin Niemann in the race for this coveted exemption, and two more rounds in this form could make it very difficult for Niemann to hold on.
Cameron Smith, Sergio Garcia and Scott Vincent share third place with Gooch, who are minus-3 after two days. Smith’s continued solidity keeps the Ripper GC captain firmly in the conversation as he gains momentum under new swing coach Claude Harmon III. Garcia, meanwhile, is looking to add another chapter to his remarkable Valderrama story. Three Spanish players are now among the top seven: Garcia, Rahm and David Puig in T7.
The day also featured a moment of genius from Lucas Herbert. The Ripper GC man aced the 15th hole – the first hole-in-one in Andalusia in LIV Golf’s four visits to the venue. It was the 17th ace in league history, the fifth of 2026 and the second longest in LIV Golf history, behind John Catlin’s 220-yard ace at LIV Golf UK in 2024.
In the team competition, the Crushers GC, fresh off their victory in Korea last week, attempt to come back to back-to-back and hold the team lead into the weekend. However, for the second day in a row, no team managed to finish the round under cumulative par, reminding us that Real Club Valderrama demands everything from every player, on every hole. With two rounds remaining, that is unlikely to change.
LIV Golf Andalucía ranking after the second round
1. Tyrrell Hatton (-6)
2. Thomas Détry (-4)
T-3. Scott Vincent (-3)
T-3. Sergio Garcia (-3)
T-3. Talor Gooch (-3)
T-3. Cameron Smith (-3)
T-7. Harold Varner III (-2)
T-7. Branden Grace (-2)
T-7. Louis Oosthuizen (-2)
T-7. David Puig (-2)
T-7. Jon Rahm (-2)
This piece is courtesy of Mike McAllister in partnership with LIVGolf.
