By Rahul Banerji
In the end, it was one slippery putt that stood between Anirban Lahiri and a maiden LIV Golf Invitational Series title in Boston on Sunday.
Lahiri forced a shootout with 2020 Augusta Masters winner Dustin Johnson and fellow LIV debutant Joaquín Niemann of Chile, which the American sealed with an eagle-three on the first playoff hole.
Minutes earlier, the Indian ace had held a chance to end the chase in regulation, but saw his own eagle putt on the par-5 18th hole slip in and out of the cup after a brilliant approach had him within six feet.
Had the ball dropped, it would have given Lahiri a 16-under total with Johnson scrambling to make par for a 15-under par 195 and Niemann also having finished on the same score.
He instead converted for a closing birdie and a six-under 64 for the day to follow earlier rounds of 66 and 65 that had two bogeys, six birdies and an eagle-3.
That break was enough for Johnson (67-63-65) to power his winning putt home, the ball thumping into the edge of the cup and in from 60 feet, even as Lahiri waited to convert his birdie opportunity.
Rich pickings
It handed the American a $4 million purse as individual winner and an additional three-quarters of a million dollars in shared prize money as Johnson’s 4 Aces took the team title for a third straight time.
Lahiri’s display, matched by teammate Paul Casey of England however, took the Crushers to second place in the team event on 30-under par to 32-under by the Aces.
It also ensured the 35-year-old would walk away with $1.8 million for shared second in the individual event and a further $375,000 as his one-fourth share from the team competition.
Lahiri, the 2015 Asian Tour topped opened with a bogey on the tough first hole on the International course that was to claim many a scalp through Sunday.
Another dropped shot saw him fall behind further but riding vocal crowd support, Lahiri fought back steadily before the birdie-birdie finish.
He was later quoted as saying on the Asian Tour website, “We have a saying back in India that every grain of food has the name of the person who will eventually eat it.
“DJ’s name was written on this particular grain. I did the best I could, and it wasn’t enough.
No regrets
“I am happy and have no regrets as far as my effort, commitment and focus are concerned.
“That eagle putt on 18 was pretty much perfect. It was exactly on line, and then just dived right in the last few inches and did not drop.
“And then you had DJ making that eagle putt in the playoff hole. I was completely prepared for a second playoff hole, because the chances of making that putt was almost miniscule.
“He did it, and I am very happy for him and the tournament and the thousands of people who turned up to support us in Boston.
“Dustin is a popular winner, and I cannot complain about a second-place start to my LIV career. I would have taken it if you had offered this at the start of the week.
“I am now hoping that I can take my form to Chicago in a couple of weeks and finish the job there.”
It was the best finish by an Asian player in the newly-spawned series, bettering the sixth place by Japan’s Jinichiro Kozuma at the second Invitational in Portland.
livgolf.com adds: Incidentally, the playoff was the first in either the individual or team competition in this inaugural season.
Johnson, a former world no. 1 had chances to win previous LIV Golf events – he has finished inside the top five in the previous two events and was playing in the final group for the third straight time.
He was happy to finally get the job done individually in Boston while also moving to the top of the individual season-long point standings.
“I wanted to finally get my first victory out here,” said Johnson.
“I feel like I’ve had a really good chance to win every single week, just haven’t played as well on Sunday as I’d like to. But played really nicely today.”
Pacy putt
Johnson’s winning putt had plenty of pace on it, and would’ve rolled well past the hole had it not bounced into the cup. Lahiri was in position to make a birdie, while Niemann had already made par.
“Felt like we had a really good read on it,” Johnson said.
“Might have hit it a little harder than I wanted to, but as soon as I hit it, I’m like, whoa, and then it was on a good line, and I’m like, hit the hole, hit the hole, hit the hole, and it went in somehow.
“I think the hole is indented for sure.”
Johnson, who finished eighth in London, fourth in Portland and third in Bedminster, was over the moon with the outcome.
“It means a lot. Obviously, with the calibre of players that are playing now on LIV, we’ve got great fields every week.
“We’re going to continue to have great fields. It’s probably going to even get better starting next year. But even right now our fields are unbelievable.”
Johnson’s final-round 5-under 65 was one of three counting scores for 4 Aces GC to go along with Patrick Reed’s 66 and Gooch’s 69.
Team cause
“I knew I had to come in hot, both in terms of trying to contend and also for the team,” Lahiri said later.
“It was really nice to just buckle down on that back nine and play some golf. Really proud of the shots I hit. A little unlucky but sometimes it goes that way.”
Two big names fell just short in making the playoff at 14 under.
Former world no. 1 Lee Westwood shot the lowest round in any of the first four events with an 8-under 62 but bogeyed two of his last three holes and finished at 14 under.
“It’s a sickening way to finish, but I played good all day,” said the Majesticks GC captain, whose team finished in the top three for the third time this season.
New LIV Golf member Cameron Smith, the world no. 2 and reigning Open champion, shot 64 but also suffered a late bogey.
“Really thought I was out of it after yesterday, but I played really solid today,” the Punch GC captain said. “Gave myself plenty of looks, which I needed to do.”
Team leaderboard
| Team | Counting total |
| 1. 4 Aces GC, 32 under | Dustin Johnson 65 Patrick Reed 66 Talor Gooch 69 |
| 2. Crushers GC, 30 under | Anirban Lahiri 64 Paul Casey 64 Charles Howell III 66 |
| 3. Majesticks GC, 27 under | Lee Westwood 62 Sam Horsfield 65 Shergo al Kurdi 66 |
| 4. Iron Heads GC, 26 under | Phachara Khongwatmai 66 Kevin Na 67 Sadom Kaewkanjana 69 |
| 5. Torque GC, 25 under | Jediah Morgan, 65 Joaquin Niemann 66 Scott Vincent 69 |
| 6. Fireballs GC, 23 under | Abraham Ancer 65 Sergio Garcia 66 Carlos Ortiz 70 |
| 7. Punch GC, 23 under | Cameron Smith 63 Matt Jones 70 Wade Ormsby 70 |
| 8. Hy Flyers GC, 22 under | Cameron Tringale 68 Phil Mickelson 69 Matthew Wolff 70 |
| 9. Smash GC, 20 under | Jason Kokrak 66 Chase Koepka 66 Peter Uihlein 69 |
| 10. Stinger GC, 18 under | Louis Oosthuizen 67 Branden Grace 68 Charl Schwartzel 71 |
| 11. Cleeks GC, 16 under | Laurie Canter 65 Richard Bland 66 Martin Kaymer 70 |
| 12. Niblicks GC, 2 under | Harold Varner III 70 Hudson Swafford 71 Turk Pettit 72 |
Also read: Lahiri continues impressive run at LIV Golf’s Boston Invitational
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