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Crushers GC captain Bryson DeChambeau and teammate Charles Howell III battled for the individual title during LIV Golf’s first visit to Korea last year outside of Seoul, with DeChambeau finishing with two late birdies for the victory.
The course and venue are different this week at Asiad Country Club, but the two find themselves at the top of the LIV Golf Korea leaderboard again after Thursday’s first round – but this time they have company.
DeChambeau and Howell share the first-round lead with Scott Vincent of HyFlyers GC after each shooting a 5-under 65. Three players are tied for fourth, one shot back – Torque GC captain Joaquin Niemann, Majesticks GC co-captain Ian Poulter (who is playing with a torn meniscus) and Thomas Pieters of 4Aces GC.
Four other players are tied for seventh at 3 under – Ripper GC captain Cameron Smith, Fireballs GC captain Sergio Garcia, Southern Guards GC’s Charl Schwartzel and Majesticks’ Laurie Canter.
Meanwhile, local favorite Korean Golf Club had arguably its best performance of the season. Younghan Song and new addition Doyeob Mun each shot 68 to join a large group tied for 11th while the team is tied for fifth at 3 under.
For DeChambeau, he’s happy that he and Howell were able to revive their efforts from last year, when they shared the lead heading into the final three holes in what proved to be a gripping battle between teammates.
“I guess Charles and I love Korea,” he said.
Howell was happy, too, even though he knows DeChambeau — already a two-time winner this season on LIV Golf and second to Jon Rahm in the points race all season — will be tough to dethrone.
“On a team level, it’s wonderful. On an individual level, it’s terrible,” Howell said. “Team-wise, I like him up there at the top. Individually, I wish he was at the bottom. Obviously, Bryson, more weeks than not, he’s playing extremely well, and if my name is near his, I’m usually doing something pretty well.”
DeChambeau led solo for most of Thursday’s round, making six birdies over his first 10 holes. But he fell back into the pack with bogeys at the 13th when he three-putted after his approach flew 12 yards too far, and the par-5 15th when he found the water.
“Being 6-10, it felt like something special was happening,” DeChambeau said. “I simmered but still played good golf. Surprised I didn’t go further.”
Howell’s round was sparked by a 108-yard eagle 2 at the par-4 second. “When the ball disappeared, I thought I skipped it in one shot over the green, but obviously the cheers said otherwise,” he said. “I’ll take them. It doesn’t happen often.”
Vincent recorded the only bogey-free round of the day, a continuation of a recent surge that began when he moved from an independent Wild Card to the HyFlyers roster replacing captain Phil Mickelson. He finished 4th solo in Mexico and tied for 8th in Virginia, the team’s two best individual performances this season.
He now shares the lead for the first time after any round in his LIV Golf career.
“I don’t know what it is, but as soon as I joined them, my game improved,” said Vincent, who earned his spot this season after winning the 2025 International Series season title. “It’s been incredible.”
The Crushers won the team title last year in Korea and are atop the team standings after shooting a cumulative 10 under. The team is playing without one of its regular members, Paul Casey, injured and replaced by reserve Travis Smyth. Smyth shot a 2-over 72 while Anirban Lahiri shot a 68.
The recently renamed OKGC are solo second at 7 under, with the HyFlyers and Fireballs tied for third at 5 under.
TOP OF RANKINGS
Individual top 10
T1 (-5) – Bryson DeChambeau, Crushers (65); Charles Howell III, crushers (65); Scott Vincent, HyFlyers (65)
T4 (-4) – Ian Poulter, Majesticks (66); Joaquin Niemann, Couple (66); Thomas Pieters, 4A (66)
T7 (-3) – Cameron Smith, ripper (67 years old); Sergio Garcia, Balls of Fire (67); Charl Schwartzel, Southern Guardsmen (67); Laurie Canter, Majesticks (67)
Top 3 by team
1 (-10) – GC crushers (DeChambeau 65, Howell III 65, Lahiri 68, Smyth 72)
2 (-7) – OKGC (Kokrak 68, McDowell 68, Varner III 68, Gooch 69)
T3 (-5) – HyFlyers GC (Vincent 65, La Sasso 68, Steele 70, Tringale 72)
T3 (-5) – GC Fireballs (Garcia 67, Masaveu 68, Puig 70, Ballester 70)
1ST ROUND NOTES
THE FAN-POWERED KOREAN GC: After a recent run of disappointing results, Korean GC were hoping to use a roster shake-up and the support of their home fans to turn things around. So far, so good.
Newcomer Doyeob Mun, who currently leads the KPGA Tour in points this season, shot a 2-under 68 in his first round of LIV golf to grab 11th place. He was joined by teammate Younghan Song, while captain Byeong Hun An shot a par 70 and Minkyu Kim a 71 as the team found themselves tied for fifth place – their best position after a first round this season.
“The fact that I played my first LIV Golf tournament here on home soil was truly a true honor,” Mun said. “Looking at the fans, I definitely felt less nervous, more comfortable. I really want to thank them for coming today.
“Over the next three days, I’m really going to bring my A-game and also have a lot of fun.”
Considering Korean GC has struggled in the first round this season, this was a great start to a very important week for the club. The team will be hoping to deliver a victory to their supporters, just as the all-Australian Ripper GC did earlier this year in front of 115,000 fans in Adelaide.
“I remember how huge the oceans of galleries were at the Adelaide tournament,” Song said. “Since we are in Busan where people are known to be very passionate, not only am I interested in playing a good match with my team members at KGC, but I am looking forward to seeing all these passionate people from Busan come and cheer us on.”
TORN POULTER MENISCUS: Majesticks GC co-captain Ian Poulter produced a 4-under 66 despite a torn meniscus in his left leg he suffered at the previous LIV golf tournament in Virginia.
Poulter said he had just finished a gym session before the first round and was about to climb a six-step staircase. He chose to go up two steps at a time, and as he climbed up, he felt something burst.
“As soon as it happened, I didn’t think I was going to play an hour before the start,” Poulter said. “So it was so crazy.”
Surprisingly, he completed his best T18 of the season in Virginia, then had an MRI when he returned home. That’s when he was diagnosed with a tear and told he would need surgery after the season. He took a week off before preparing for Korea.
Even so, Poulter said the injury didn’t impact his actual swing.
“Strangely, I don’t have any feeling during the whole golf swing that there’s anything wrong,” said Poulter, who also began using a new set of high-performance McLaren irons. “I feel it when I walk downhills, steep downhills. I just do it a little bit. But look, I’m going to have to strengthen this leg. It doesn’t affect my golf, its shape or form in any way.
“I just have to remember that I can’t go play paddle tennis, do something stupid or climb steps like I did a few weeks ago. Walking in a straight line and being super reasonable is not something I’m used to doing.
“Look, I feel good. I feel good. Body feels good. We’ll sort that out at some point.”
DIFFERENT TYPES OF COURSES: While Crushers teammates Bryson DeChambeau and Charles Howell III are in familiar territory atop the LIV Golf Korea rankings, they agreed that this year’s course at Asiad Country Club bears few similarities to last year’s Jack Nicklaus Korea Golf Course in Incheon.
“This course is a little shorter, with a little more position,” Howell said. “Last year it was a little more open off the tee. You could hit a lot of drivers. This spot, it’s a little more thought. If you drive the ball into the rough here, it’s really hard to get it close to the flags. The green complexes are big, but with all the massive slopes in them, if you miss the fairway, it’s either a tough 60-foot two-putt or kind of a tricky chip.
Added DeChambeau: “It’s actually completely different. It’s funny, we just happen to play good golf here. Yes, Jack Nicklaus Golf Course was a different test, and this one is quite different than last year.
“It’s just a golf course for ball strikers, and that’s what Charles thrives on and that’s what I’ve worked to get better at, and it paid off today.”
RAHM CONTINUES HIS SERIES: Legion XIII captain Jon Rahm, the two-time reigning LIV Golf individual champion and current points leader, entered Thursday on a streak of 38 consecutive rounds of par or better in LIV Golf.
That streak was in jeopardy for most of the day, as he had 3 points through 13 holes and had yet to make a birdie. But he finished his round with three birdies in his final five holes, including a 14-foot birdie putt on his final hole, to shoot an even par 70.
Rahm, who has never finished lower than 11th in any LIV golf tournament he has played, is part of an 11-way tie for 27th place.
LEADERS IN STATISTICS
Round 1
Driving distance: Josele Ballester, averaged 317.3 yards.
Longest drive: Doyeob Mun, 363.7 yards (11th hole). Officially measured drives made only on holes 11 and 12.
Driving precision: Charles Howell III, Tom McKibbin, 86.71% (12 of 14)
Greens in the regulations: Harold Varner III, 88.89% (16 of 18)
Jamming: Scott Vincent (7 of 7), Josele Ballester (5 of 5), 100%
Fewest putts: Scott Vincent, Thomas Pieters, 24 years old
Bogey-free rounds: Scott Vincent (65)
This piece is courtesy of Mike McAllister in partnership with LIVGolf.
