LIV Golf Chicago: Round 1 Highlights | LIV on FOX

Perhaps he can pull off a miracle, but it has to start with a victory here at Bolingbroke. Starting holes not easy at all, one and two, both difficult par fours for the players. Next to the second tee and Phil Mickelson. 20th in the point standing. It's remarkable when you think of it, isn't it David? It really is, he's shown some flashes of brilliance this year. Short game settled just. Kevin Smith, I mean 16th in points and having a really off year by his standards. That's just the quality of player he is. Five Live Golf League titles to his name and he tees off at three. 13 team who lead the team standings and they're seeking a third consecutive event win to lock up that number one seeding going into the team. Portillo's, you've got Pequod's, Pizzola, Malnati's, Giordano's, all the deep dish that you can possibly eat. Second shot here for Bryson, wow he did good to get it to there out of that nasty gnarly rough. Third in Hong Kong, 6th in Miami, tied for thrillingly in Virginia. But just kind of showing everybody he's not willing to put down the sticks and pick up a microphone just yet. Here's DJ, he's due a decent weekend to say the least. This is for Birdie at 17. Oh what a shot. Pretty stiff breeze straight into them here at the first. It's a long par four, but that's a beautiful tee shot and even into the wind he gets 25-30 yards of run. Small greens here at Bowling Brook. Oh now Rahm. A picture of consistency so far this season. John Rahm only finishing outside the top 10. One victory has proved elusive. Here's Bryson's third at the first. Little fighting cut. Yeah, flared it out to the left. My bad. Yeah, there's not a lot of green to work with there. All right, pulled it. Might have enough on it. All right, flanks. Kind of floating on a little bit, looks like. He's asking it to go. This is a four. Came out a lot lower than it normally does. Low bullet there. Well, he switched that new ball that's trumped into 18. He has in recent years and, you know, that's the sort of thing that spreads to the rest of your game. If you're not confident you can get it up and done. It puts more pressure on the longer shots. There's some beauty though. He didn't have the meat. He said to me, you won't really notice it with the wedges. This has got to go. The wind just caught that. Straight up with it. The wind will help him. Well, he almost played that too well. Come on. Heal there. Heal up in the air. Everything he does is unusual. Tom McKibben on the tee at four. 234 yards today. Oh, that'll work. Oh, that's a fabulous shot. For Chanel Square here in Bowling Brook, Sebastian Munoz is having a very good season. Seventh overall in the standings. That was his third shot of the par 5 14th. He converted that three. An opening birdie to a nice start in Chicago for Munoz. Big weekend again for Andy Ogletree. Needs all the points he can muster to a point. Here's Jason Kokrak. He's off to a good start at six. Oh, that's a great way to start an 18 for birdie. Jones, who's started playing some real golf lately when he needed it most. He was looking at relegation square in the eyes and started turning it around. Well, we saw Bryson come up short at the second. This is his third shot. Delightful touch. Not the most accurate driver, but he never has been, even when he played great. His putting never lets him down. He's always a great putter. It's been the approach play, the short approach play. The scoring clubs have been well below his standard this season. Reboot here. You can really push it as far down as you want to. I think it's better to get all the way down there. Got plenty of wind to stop with a short club. It's just straight as an arrow. Penetrating flight again. Brooks to open his account with back-to-back birdies. This is at the fourth. It's got this left. It's going to need to cut a little bit. Gets a nice kick to the right. That's way down there. Brooks hit it in the left corner. He's in the middle of the lake. I've never seen anybody hit this shot today, in the middle of the lake, all the way to the other side of the fairway. Through the fairway. That is a lower flight than we're used to seeing from him. Should be good. Lucas in ninth place overall. He had a tight second finish. And the green runs through the hole, so you should expect a good shot out of him here. That's a good shot from the rough for sure. Wind is no problem for him. A little left of where he wants a bet. It's a perfect flight for that shot. Came out nice though. Take you to the tier four and Patrick Reed is two under par already today. Fabulous shot. Turned that corner so slowly. Time here in the 2025 season. He tied fourth in Andalusia. He was in the points in the UK and that's got him up to 36th place. And this is a five iron straight into the breeze. It's looking pretty good if it has enough. No mistake there. Around the greens. It's an astonishing part of his game considering the length and weight of the clubs he uses. Yeah, he's pulled it. Looks like he's going to be in between the bunkers, which isn't bad. I saw guys get to the green two from there last year. Everybody three men still in with a mathematical shout at taking the lift. Potential to guess he's the only player with that walk-up song today. Over at 16, this is Charles Schwartzel for birdie. Up the hill. Just collapses in the left edge. Beautiful. Doesn't make it the easiest to get at, but it is a wedge and these guys have their name on their bags. He didn't like that one. That's a bad wedge. Yubin Jang from Korea is in the relegation zone. He needs a couple of very good weeks to take his live golf career beyond this. His only season so far. Of course, he made birdie there, but he then bogeyed the ninth. So he's level pass. Sam Horsfield for birdie at seven. He would make this and then sadly for Sam bogeyed the eighth. He's the highest. This was Lee Westwood for birdie at 10. Try not to get in his own way. It's so difficult to do though. Yeah, so easy to say and so hard to do. Try your hardest not to try so hard. Yeah. Next to the green at six. Ann Brooks another birdie opportunity. Left edge. That's the way to clean up after a... Martin Keimer has joined three others on two under par in the early going after this birdie at eight. He's got that wiry strength. Oh, this is... Keimer, it's four. Depending on the line, he'll be able to get to the green from there. That's amazing. Just have the strength to get that far. But a moment to go for birdie at 18. Beautifully done. And then there were five players in the early going on two under par here at bowling. Oh! Complicates this. Oh, no rotation there. Just a little stab at it. Needs to get going. He's going to have a long one left for par. Should have been there. This is on the pylon on the left-hand side of your screen. Charles Schwartzel has hit the front on three under par. He teed off at 14. He birdied that. That was followed by a par at 15. Well, that's okay. He's got a chance to get that up and down for par. That's Wanko Niemann's fourth shot at the third. Got a little above the starting point as per our live line. Played a second shot at the first. Chopping that up with a hybrid or something. What a great shot from a difficult line. The rough right out of the flag. It's a great little par three. Only 138 yards. The crowd's going to see a lot of good shots. Really good shots. This looks like one-two. A bunch of these guys. Here's Niemann for par. He nearly made it to use the tee. Well, that's not a perfect golf shot. That's way left. Oh, my goodness. Was that in the water? No. Brooks has this for par. Nicely done. Stays at 100. This place. That's the same shot that Patrick Reid struggles with. Here are playing for their careers. Mito Pereira. He's languishing down in 53rd place. His only points finish all year was a tie for 20th in Hong Kong. That was early at 14. So he's one under par. His average finish elsewhere, though, in the mid-40s. Freddie Ketrell. He's staring at relegation. Oh, my goodness. It's incredible. Straight downwind. Came that far right and hit straight. Incredible. It's a very difficult long putt. Great line. It's got the weight. Oh, it's going to be. Teed off earlier at 15. He birdied 17 and 18. This for birdie at one, which narrowly misses. That was to get him level with early leader. Just a fraction left where Douglas is. Oh, good kick. Yeah, that's what he was looking for. In the standings, he's 25th. He slips out of the top 24 after the last event. He's only 1.33 points. That's why the club won't even touch the ball. He's got to hit it all grass to get it to come out. Played that like a mini bunker shot almost. But you expect that. He didn't even hit the sides of the hole. He's on billboards. His face. He's in commercials. He's on a federal commission for physical fitness. Yeah. That's the straightest shot he's ever hit. All right. I didn't see his bounce. It doesn't change anything, right? John lay back a little farther. Make sure you can get some spin for that downwind wedge shot. Well, Lucas Herbert has tied for the individual lead. This was for birdie and two for the Australian baseball ripper GC. Birdies at 17 at 18. And then, yeah, it's a junior club. Yep. I don't really see that ever. It's the downhill part, but back into the breeze. Bryson will drop back to level par. He's gone up, but it looks like he's going to land the right spot. Yep. Very simple apart from there. Try this out to the right. He just flicked that up in the air. Yeah, just going to be dead. No spin. Yeah. Good shot from there. You get a free read, though. Patrick Reid here. Only about 13 feet away. That's a very good shot. It didn't look. Now, Charles Schwartzel, yeah, had the early lead, didn't he? A three under par. He birdied his opening hole, which was 14. He also birdied 16 at 7. That 2 is going to come up short. He held in the UK last time out, finishing in third place. That's a live golf best for him behind Neiman and Bubba Waltz. And that was a birdie at 15. It's not been an easy start here for Caleb. Maybe he's back to over par because he's also then bogeyed 16. Jake O'Lea. Is water down one side or another a lot here at Bolingbroke? Fortunately, there was some thickish rough there. It's hard to get yourself to actually hit it harder downhill. Yeah, we saw that with Joaquin. Looks like he got it there. Get a good putt. Just compared to other wins, non-majors. But he's never had an entire down season like this without it. Yeah, that lands on the wrong side of the slope, in the middle of the green. And that's exactly the... Well, you never practice it. No, no. Oh boy, that's a vent. Yeah, that's a good shot. Ron came up short here at six. Had to play a little punch chip. Hard to hit it that hard uphill when you know it's going downhill in the second part. Yeah, he's done pretty well. O'Lea is a wild card. He birdied the 12. He had this for birdie at 13, which he drained very nicely. He's in 49th place. That's the first relegation spot. But he's less than a point from climbing out. And he started well on two under par. Peter Ulyne, that was for his birdie. He's opening six. Terrible lap. Yes. That positive stroke. I'm not sure what he had on the last hole. Downhill but in the wind. It doesn't move much. For birdie at seven. JCB, I believe he was top 10 in that metric. This is just moving a little farther left than he wants it to. Oh no, piss off. He wanted a kick to the right. Ladder with this new golf ball. I mean, this ball does fly a lot straight. So it takes a huge punch. I was gonna say he can reach that bunker. I don't see any problem here. Remarkably straight for him. Not the usual 40-yard cut. That's perfect in the center of the fairway. And he has been terrific with the short irons today. Turned that one a little. Watko's lead is substantial. A little bit more than it was with three events remaining last year. And that's when John Robb in the last three events came first, second and first to win in the end by 16 points in what was his first Live Golf League season. His team, Legion 13, in the early stages here. And this was a few moments ago. The smash GC captain. That's Hen has just ended a run of pars for Brooks Koepka, who is two under. Of the four aces. And this got him back to level par. It was a birdie. He hit his three-wood off the tee. 360 yards. That looks a pretty good second, too. Sunday, last time out of JCB. I cannot get the speed right. Gosh, dog it. It's a lovely second at the par three. Fourth. A little fairway wood. Taps it out there. He came off with a bobble there. Top athletes call the zone, I guess. I've heard about it. Me too. What a good putt that is. He either wins or he's absent. John Robb has only finished outside the top ten once. He's had five top fives. And that is beautifully done. That was Phil for birdie. Koepka with his second shot into 11. Very nice. He loved that. Got to go towards that left one. He's unconcerned. Yeah, that's a bit rough. Ah, he knew that was going to happen, Bubba. Come on, man. With the modern ball, it's so much harder to make it turn as well. Yeah, I'll be fine, though. Yeah, that's all right. Slightly, but there's wind and the heat. It's taking bigger bounces. That's straight. That ball didn't move at all. See, man, that's straight where he started it. Finished there. It's about sideways. He has no play. He's only about 80 yards. Yeah, it hurts to have to do that. Big pin is going to work this out on that left side and hook it into that wind. Ah, it didn't get the hook. Left it out there. Yeah, he turned it a little, but not as much as he wanted. And fighting that wind, it comes up a little short. Pipe or flyer into the wind. And you got to keep it away from the water. Ah, it didn't come out at all. He was expecting it to come jumping out of that lie. For all he's got some work to do to catch Bryce and DeChambeau, however. Cameron Smith, you're bellying a wedge. That's one of the things we'll see quite a lot of. Had a fun shot into the green. Off the golf course, he's dry, he's funny. He's scrambling for par, trying to. He outbirded two holes and had four pars over those six holes. But Bubba made a real go of it, eventually finishing second by three. Brooks Koepke, his second at the par 5, 12. Trying to manufacture an eagle of his own right there. Can you remember it, Ben? Sergio and with Brooks Koepke, he's on the tier 6. It's only a matter of time before he stands atop the podium out here on lift golf. Could be this week, you never know. Tough two putt for par. We've seen a lot of putts hit it with a three iron. Means that in theory, John Rahm could win the lift golf league title this season with no wins over a man who's won five times. That is amazing. Yeah, it's extraordinary. And it's not like... Moments ago, Brooks Koepke to get to four under. That was for a third straight 11, 12. And he's in the lead by one. But for how long? Lucas Herbert for birdie at six. At seven, excuse me. Oh, that is six. It's no longer in production. He bought one and started lighting it up with that putter. Now, Terrell Hatton. He might on Sunday, if he's lifting that trophy. Seems to like it. He wants on the greens. That one's just thrown up high in the air. Herbert and Sergio. That's TJ at eight. Well, Penn's only on eight yards. Oh boy, does this look good if it's the right distance? You have to get something going here. It just has not been on today. Everything has just been way from the hole. There's another error. Ferrell Koepke appears to be continuing his bubba. Phantom wedge on the way. Just not hitting those wedges the way it needs to. Yeah, it just gets dry. Mid-time coach Dennis McDade walking along in the gallery. That's good pace on this one. That's good, back to one under. Back to nine and bubba. Didn't get the pace right on that one yet again. Weiss runs down the grip. Needs to break. Yeah, Peter Ellis used to call out the after four. John's just not giving himself enough good looks. He's just hit it too far away from the hole all day. He's got to get something going here in the next nine holes. Weiss close. Intense sooner than usual. Brooks tees off at 14. Individual leader by a shot over Tyrell Hatton and Lucas Herbert. Griffin's overrated. Overwhelming favorite to get it done at the end of next week. But like David said, he's determined to make it interesting. That's not good. He will drop into the relegation zone as it stands. Joining his fellow captain of the Majestics, Ian Poulter. So it's a real potential crisis for the Majestics. Lee Westwood is in 45th place. Is it the team out of four being relegated? It's Dean Burr, mister. The par 5, 12th. Dean, one of the longest hitters out here. And that's a magnificent shot. He'll have that for eagle. This guy's is into the wind, so it won't get too far away from him. This is not what I was looking for. He drives it so well on the tightest fairways. He's on the widest fairways and can't hit them. This looks pretty good though here. Maybe a new start. Well, he does not on Sunday. Taylor Gooch in the individual standings. Brooks, second shot away at the par 5. Yeah, 5-iron, Jerry. And no future going for the pin, and rightly so. He's gone left of it. Yeah, fine. Maybe he didn't want to go that far left. Big John. Chopping it out at 10. 18, Tyrell Hatton. This to tie with Brooks Koepka on four under par. Sealed Singapore, Sentosa. A first visit to the continent of Africa, South Africa. We can't wait for that one. Mexico City for a second time. Trump, D.C. Yesterday, Arlo tried to arrange some sightseeing, I guess. Oh, yes. Clipped it. Did he win it? Oh, just a touch. Just a touch. And the high flyers. There you go. Oh, early call. Gave it plenty of air. Oh, it should release a little more. Judge. Great touch. Completely frustrated if he can't take advantage of it and close that gap heading into Indianapolis. That's just hugging that right side. Here's Bubba for par. This new ball into this breeze. 186 ball speed. That's not the clobbered tee shot, but it's good. Right over the top of the flag. Good swing. Missed a hole by half a ball in itself. Setting up for a high cut. Not quite cutting enough, I don't think. I gave it the one handed finish. Didn't like how it felt. It's a nice bounce though. Aim it to the right bunker on the green side bunker. It's exactly what he's done. Another par. Another flyer in the wind. Hard to judge. I don't want to be too far right of this hole. I can't see. It looks to be all right though. Yeah, all in all. But it's going to just. A low flighted shot. Bubba. Oh, he gets nothing. So disastrous today. He knows he's got his window ahead of him. He's got to get something going again. Just another one snacking me near the hole. Yeah, he turned it over a touch. Really not a bad shot. Three bogeys. And one of those came when he knew he had a nice cushion at the JCB. Last time around on 18. Many times in the future. Look who's one off the lead. Phil Mickelson. EJ out at 10 to get it to two under par. Little bit of go. Oh, big guns are waking up here. Back to the green at 11. And Bubba for Birdie. Been struggling the last couple of holes with his speed. Let's see if he can get this one right. Oh, Hutton. His third at the 12. Oh boy, he just overdid it. Points twice all season he is staring. Relegation squarely in the eye. That was his second shot of five. Which led to his only birdie so far. Henrik is three over par for his round. Way out of the points. By contrast, Mito Pereira would leap emphatically out of the drop zone if he keeps this. So that was for birdie at four. He's two under par. Barely beats the slope. Phil on the 14th tee. Perfect. He's looking for a kick left. Didn't get it. Well done. Yeah, he just saw Mark Leishman's ball take a little big bounce. Who played just a few paces from behind and he landed on the downslope there. Yeah. So is Phil Mickelson. John Rahm doing well. He's had it. He's having a day. He's gone 12 rounds without carding an under par score. It was round three in Korea. In Spain. And I'll tell you what, it is so impressive how good he is. This too is looking pretty good. Third shot. He did really well to get it to that front bunker from the rough after this tee shot. A little high of the start point. It's 30-12. Well played. This was just before Phil at 14. So is Dean. Howling wind behind. He's got to get a big first bounce. Well, it's back into the wind for the chip shot. But that's the only thing he's got going for him. Oh no. Teed it way up in the air. Well, that remains to be seen. That may be a bird. This is one of the longest hitters, Dean Burmester. Boy, that might have got up around the front edge. That's a huge tee shot. There you go. A little off of the top 24 and to avoid relegation as well. This should be five feet max right here. A little more than that. Right in Patrick Reed's wheel. This is a few moments ago for Brooks Koepka. Who drops a shot. That's at 16. A first bogey of the day. So Brooks back to three under. And that leaves Phil Mickelson with the outright lead here on day one on four under par. McKibben hit eight iron to this. Oh. Oh, I bottomed it. Don, when you would have thought that might have got a little more out of it. Here's Burmester at 15. Oh, very nice. Thank you. Huge tee shot. Takes advantage of it. He is lead by two and he's got a chance here for a fourth consecutive birdie. This is at 15. Wow. Four birdies in a row to get to five under. That's a shot clear of Dean Burmester. Yeah, Phil. That's a good miss right there. Wow. Really good miss. Got the pile on as well. He got to three under par with this. To play for the win. But it's all about distance here. Two putt. He'll be happy to walk to the next tee with a par. Oh, hold on. Now, lovely putt. Now, while that was going on, Bryson at 14 for birdie. And that'll feel like a drop shot. Yeah. Well, Beth Page is not easy either. No, you just sleep in your car there. That's right. The other courses aren't hard. Just the black course is tough. Oh, there's a slope there. And Junichiro Kazuma missed the opening five events with a back injury. So he's given himself just eight tournaments to crack the top 24, which would guarantee a return in 2026. Now, that was his second shot at 15. It led to a second straight birdie. And he's in the points here in Chicago. Caleb Surak came third in the UK last time out. His best. Live Golf League finished that for birdie at six. The party hole. He then birdied seven. That's well done. Lands it on the correct side of the slope. Goes down on his back too. First here. Didn't. It's marching uphill into the green. Should hit a low one. Good to check. Yeah, that was not far off. It's for a fifth consecutive birdie at 16. And to retake the lead. Oh, it needs to. It needs to go. Oh, it got a big bounce forwards off the back of it. He landed a bit shorter than we wanted it to. Yeah, he got away with one. The gap with Neyman's birdie. Oh, well. Bryson, that's his third shot at 15. I'm not sure what he did off the tee, but it couldn't have been good. A little bit harder to judge the distance. Not a great shot there. We're going to find out. Big kick left. That should be fine. Now, this is the third one he's hit so far to the right. I've never seen him hit these shots. And he's obviously not quite comfortable with the draw. And that's where that one comes from. Now, this hole suits Bubba's shape. He didn't move. It's dead straight in that bunker. Yeah. Oh, he didn't get his cut. Weird. We've seen, well, that's the third one we've seen in that bunker. That's a very difficult bunker shot. Just skirting the edge of that collar right there with the putter. Got through it nicely. A little too nicely, perhaps. Snap of the fingers means. Zitty, par five. And he's seeking a fourth consecutive birdie, or maybe even better. He didn't get a great tee shot. And that was his third shot. So he'll have to get that up and gone. Playing close to the 600 today in this wind. This has had a little. John Rahm at 15. Try to hoist that one way up in the air and land it softly. That's a fantastic shot from there. He might actually try to. Yeah, he did. He tried to play the explosion shot with a straight face club and. Just cut way too much. Just cut too much of it. Yeah. So hard. There's always a little push. First bogey of the day for Phil, who has 18. At the first still to play. Behind the green at 14, the par five. Skip and then stop. Oh yeah, that's what Rahm was trying to do earlier. This is George Koepke, his second shot at the first. That'll be a very difficult bunker shot. Flying on three under par not so long ago, but this was for bogey at eight. So he drops back to two under. That would still be well enough, though, to earn enough points to escape relegation here. Henrik Stenson, on the other hand, would replace him in the drop zone. He's way off the pace here in Chicago. That was a par miss. He's yet to be relegated from the Live Golf League. That was Bubba's third out of 15. Par at 17. Oh. Straight downwind. It is picking up back hole location. This is going to be difficult to gauge and get it right. They aired on the short side there, which is the right thing to do. Marko Nieman at 15. This is a birdie putt to claw another one back. He stays at 2-0. How much straighter than that? Well, it's early and it could well go down to a showdown in Indianapolis next weekend. For the Live Golf League title. Great shot out of Brooks right there. He starts it over the water. Not sure. That may be wet. How about a rear to hole? Swings a lot better than he did at the start of the round. That's for sure. But even that one runs out and that's that just makes it. Should stay on the fairway. Shot at 14 the path 5. Which would lead to birdie. Brooks played a beautiful bunker shot to here. This is his 50 degree wedge downwind in the middle off the right. Got good contact. If you get it out of the penalty area, but it's far better than it was. Got away from him. He have not seen too many balls get close to this hole. Such a shallow target that green is. The twang. Oh my. He made a hard kick right and forward. Oh, he kind of got it. Yeah, dude. Wow. My luck was not a yard away. Sergio in trouble. It will conclude. Second shot into the path 4. Just because he was fourth. Can I knock too much down? He doesn't want to miss this one. Surprising from off the edge. This birdie. At 17. Maybe six or seven behind it. Difficult part as well. Yeah, we didn't see that either. Narrow the gap to around 20 points going into Indianapolis. A lot of golf to be played here in Chicago between now and then, of course. Good shot in there. He'll be playing from the fairway. You're getting your steps up today, Dom. That's your third group, isn't it? It is. I'm getting a little dizzy out here. That's not new. Well, that's reflective of today. Definitely an adjustment with this new golf ball. First time putting it to the test. Yeah, that's perfect. We've seen a lot of great players miss this fairway with a 4 or a 5 iron. Yeah, it's easy to fall asleep on. It's such a simple shot and same length. He made it the previous hole for the bar. Yeah, that's it. Feel like you can pee right out of that hole. Ah, it's gotta go. It didn't kind of lift it. Nah, he left it out in the wind. There it is. He's gonna get with this club. Low one. He's gonna try and skip it up. Yeah, that's well done. Can he judge the buns? Yes. Awkward spot at the first. Great swing out of there, Patrick. Wow, that's a great shot. That's just a great shot from there. That's well done. Down the slope at 17. Phil for birdie at one, his final hole of the day. Fell in love with the line in his first Live Golf League season for the Fireballs. That was a birdie at nine. Bryson to end with a birdie. Boy, what a weekend we are set for here in Chicago. One ahead. So both Garcia and Mickelson faltering. Patrick Riefer didn't leave any of that back in the tee either. Sue Anhang will send it out to you. Bryson, really solid round today. About four over par down in 47th. It remains close. That's his second shot into 18. So a chance today will be putting back into the wind. Struck it nicely. Big skip. Oh, that is the fourth one today that has not spun on him. Well, Brendan Steele is having a rough day. This was his sixth shot at the 11th. So the way things are going, Brendan Steele would just be hovering above the relegation zone, heading in to the final event of the season. That was Mito Pereira for him. Wanko having a birdie putt. Less than a point per tournament. This is for birdie. Nicely done. However, I mean, you could be upset about 71. That's a shame.