Joaquín Niemann set the tone at a brutal Trump National Golf Club Bedminster, carding a bogey-free 7-under 64 to take the outright opening round lead of LIV Golf New York 2026.
Related: Lucas Herbert, Ripper GC make it an Aussie win in Britain
The last time the Chilean held the solo first-round lead in LIV Golf was two-and-a-half years ago, when he opened with a 59 at Mayakoba in February of 2024. He shared the Round 1 lead twice last season but never held it alone until Thursday, when he turned in 30 on the front en route to his two-shot cushion.
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Right behind him, Ian Poulter continued the best stretch of golf he’s played all year. The Englishman carded a 5-under 66 to sit tied for second, extending a run that’s seen him post a fourth-place finish at the U.S. Senior Open and a T15 at LIV Golf UK Presented by JCB 2026 — his best LIV result of the season.
Poulter birdied his first two holes of the day and leaned on a gritty par save late to keep the card clean, all while battling the heat. “It was so hot out here, it was outrageous. I’ve got a pounding headache,” Poulter said. “Hydrate, eat, do no practice, and just try to conserve some energy for the weekend.”
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Joining Poulter at 5-under 66 was Lucas Herbert, who shows no signs of slowing down his historic run. Fresh off setting multiple LIV Golf records at JCB — a wire-to-wire win at 30-under with the most birdies in tournament history — a record-tying 62 at the Open Championship, and a victory at Maaden LIV Golf Virginia 2026, Herbert opened with another strong round at Bedminster to sit squarely in the mix.
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Thomas Pieters and Brendan Steele both fired 3-under 68’s to sit four shots behind Niemann’s lead.
On the team side, Niemann’s Torque GC took control early, sitting at 4-under behind his individual lead, with Carlos Ortiz and Abraham Ancer both shooting even-par 71’s while Sebastián Muñoz shot a 3-over 74. HyFlyers GC sit second at 2-under, powered by Steele’s 68 and Scott Vincent’s 69. Herbert’s Ripper Golf Club are third at 1-under.
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The shotgun start time for the second round of LIV Golf New York on Friday has been moved to 10:05 a.m. where players will look to close the gap between the field and LIV Golf’s all-time wins leader.
