File photo of Anirban Lahiri who missed out on qualifying for The Open in a playoff on Tuesday that sent fellow LIV Golf member Abraham Ancer through to Royal Troon. Image courtesy HIO.
By Rahul Banerji
Two more LIV Golf members – Abraham Ancer and Sam Horsefield – came through Final Qualifying for The Open Championship on Tuesday to make it 16 in all from the league at the year’s final major.
Missing out though were Anirban Lahiri and Sergio Garcia, the Indian star in particular denied on the threshold in a three-for-two playoff at Burnham & Berrow that saw Ancer make the grade.
Tuesday’s 36-hole qualifier was the final round in four venues with 16 slots available at Royal Troon, and Lahiri came closest of those falling short.
Ancer of Fireballs GC shot rounds of 65 and 72 to finish on 5 under alongside Lahiri of Crushers GC and Charlie Lindh.
Ancer and Lindh advanced with pars on the first playoff hole while Lahiri was eliminated with a bogey. Rio Olympic champion Justin Rose topped the event with an 8 under par 134 aggregate.
The play-off lasted just a single hole as Lahiri paid for going right off the first tee. His approach was 20 yards short of the green, which Ancer and Lindh were already on, and he was unable to get up and down to save par.
Ancer had triple-bogeyed on the back nine to put his qualifying hopes in danger but immediately responded with a birdie.
“It feels amazing. I’m extremely happy,” Ancer said on the LIV Golf website. “I managed to make it really tough on myself but bounced back and played a good hole in the playoff to get through.”
The 33-year-old, LIV Golf Hong Kong winner earlier this season, will be making his sixth Open start where his best result is aT11 in 2022.
Solid presence
Other LIV Golf players set for The Open include Dean Burmester, Bryson DeChambeau, Tyrrell Hatton, Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka, Adrian Meronk, Phil Mickelson, Joaquin Niemann, Andy Ogletree, Louis Oosthuizen, David Puig, Jon Rahm, Cameron Smith and Henrik Stenson.
Of them, Mickelson, Oosthuizen, Smith and Stenson are past Open winners.
Four qualifying venues across the UK hosted a total of 288 players vying for the 16 available slots, with 11 LIV Golf players in action during the gruelling 36-hole day.
The Open at Royal Troon will be played from July 18 to 21.
At West Lancashire, Horsfield shot consecutive 3-under 69s to tie for honours with English amateur Matthew Dodd-Berry on 6 under par.
It continued Horsfield’s recent upsurge in performance. At last month’s LIV Golf Nashville, the Majesticks GC player was solo second for his best result in the league.
“I am looking forward to it,” Horsfield was later quoted as saying.
Turnaround
“I’ve turned my game around in the last few weeks, made a few changes. I feel like my brain is the right place with everything, and then obviously that leads to good golf.”
The 27-year-old Englishman will make his third Open appearance; having tied for 67th in 2021 and missing the cut the following year.
Fireballs GC captain Garcia and Torque GC’s Carlos Ortiz were both at 3 under to miss a playoff by two shots. Garcia, twice runner-up in 25 Open starts, was seeking to make his 100th career start in a major.
“It would be nice to make The Open my 100th major, but it was tough conditions and sometimes things don’t go your way,” Garcia said. “I tried all I could and that’s all I can ask myself for.”
Crushers reserve player John Catlin, who has played in the last two LIV Golf tournaments for the injured Charles Howell III, is also in the Open field.
Also read: DeChambeau seals epic win at Pinehurst as McIlroy falters
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