Five-way tie for lead on truncated first day at LIV Golf Andalucia

Talor Gooch of Smash GC in action during the first round of LIV Golf Andalucía at Real Club Valderrama on Friday. Image courtesy LIV Golf.

From a Correspondent

San Roque, Spain: With his Australian heritage and Open Championship pedigree, Ripper GC captain Cameron Smith knows a thing or two about playing golf in blustery conditions.

Rarely, though, would he have experienced an afternoon like Friday’s first round of LIV Golf Andalucía at Real Club Valderrama.

Severe winds reduced scoring opportunities and eventually forced a suspension of play due to unplayable conditions – the first time in LIV Golf that a round could not be completed on the day.

“You can play this golf course with no wind and it’s brutal,” Smith said. “When you get 30 mile-an-hour gusts, it’s definitely not an easy place to get around.”

Play resumed early on Saturday with players having between three and five holes remaining in their opening rounds.

Smith was one of just five players under par when the horn blew to suspend play. 

He shared the lead on 1 under with Smash GC’s Talor Gooch, Majesticks GC co-captain Lee Westwood; Stinger GC’s Branden Grace and Torque GC captain Joaquin Niemann, the current standings leader.

Small group

Crushers GC captain Bryson DeChambeau and Legion XIII skipper Jon Rahm were one stroke back – the only other players who did not leave the course Friday over par.

The Crushers, seeking their fourth consecutive team title, were tied for first with Legion XIII and Brooks Koepka’s Smash GC on the team leaderboard on 5 over.

Friday’s round started under breezy but manageable conditions, but the wind speed increased throughout the afternoon as the direction changed. 

At 5:07 p.m. local time, just over four hours after the shotgun start, the horn blew. Tournament officials were hopeful for a resumption, but the forecast was not favourable.

“Terribly unfortunate situation to be in for anybody out here,” said Brad Ullman, LIV Golf vice-president, Rules. “These Poniente winds of southern Spain are no joke.”

The biggest issues came on the greens. A combination of dry putting surfaces and high-impact wind gusts prevented putts from stopping and golf balls from remaining still at address. 

Impossible conditions

At the most exposed parts of the course, particularly the greens on the 11th and 14th holes, putting was near-impossible.

“Ultimately the balls were moving a little bit too much for our liking,” Ullman said. “It was the right thing to bring them off the golf course.”

No surprise that Niemann, who has won every event this season on even-numbered weeks, was among the leaders on the 10th event of the 2025 schedule. 

He birdied his third hole of the day, the par-5 fourth, and made par on his other 14 holes – the only player without a bogey Friday.

Westwood, who last week won a final qualifying tournament to earn exemption into next week’s Open, was the early leader after birdies in four of his first seven holes. 

A double bogey derailed his momentum, but he finished the day with four consecutive pars.

Good record

Gooch has good vibes at Valderrama, having won LIV Golf Andalucía in 2023 en route to the individual championship. 

He endured a rollercoaster seven-hole stretch that included three birdies and three bogeys, then ended his round by knocking his approach shot to 2 feet at the par-4 10th to end with a birdie.

Grace, battling the potential of relegation for the second consecutive season, was on pace for his best first-round position this season. He was a bogey-free 1 under through his first 10 holes and then responded to his two bogeys with two birdies.

Smith was bogey-free through his first 13 holes and leading by three shots at 4 under. It was one of his best stretches of golf this year, but it ended with a double bogey and bogey before play ended.

“It’s easy to feel frustrated, particularly when I doubled 15 and then bogeyed 16 as well,” Smith said. “I was trotting along pretty good before that.

“But it’s golf. Golf isn’t fair, at the end of the day. Were the conditions fair? Probably not for a little bit, but it is what it is. We’ll get on with it. I’m sure we’ll make a good tournament out of it.” (courtesy LIV Golf)

Round one scores

T1. Smash GC +5 (Gooch -1, Kokrak +1, McDowell +2, Koepka +3)

T1. Crushers GC +5 (DeChambeau E, Casey +1, Howell III +2, Lahiri +2)

T1. Legion XIII +5 (Rahm E, Hatton +1, Surratt +1, McKibbin +3)

4. 4Aces GC +8 (Reed +1, Johnson +2, Pieters +2, Varner III +3)

T5. HyFlyers GC +9 (Mickelson +1, Tringale +2, Ogletree +3, Steele +3)

T5. Majesticks GC +9 (Westwood -1, Poulter +1, Horsfield +4, Stenson +5)

7. Cleeks GC +10 (Bland +1, Meronk +1, Kaymer +4, Kjettrup +4)

T8. Ripper GC +11 (Smith -1, Jones +2, Leishman +4, Herbert +6)

T8. RangeGoats GC +11 (Watson +1, Campbell +2, Uihlein +3, Masaveu +5)

T8. Fireballs GC +11 (Ancer +2, Garcia +2, Ballester +3, Puig +4)

11. Torque GC +14 (Niemann +1, Muñoz +3, Pereira +4, Ortiz +8)

12. Stinger GC +15 (Grace -1, Oosthuizen +5, Schwartzel +5, Burmester +6)

13. Iron Heads GC +16 (Kozuma +2, Na +2, Jang +5, Lee +7)

Wild cards: C. Lee +2, Kim +6

Also read: Lahiri returns to Valderrama hoping to end long barren run