Sergio Garcia fired six birdies Saturday on his way to a 4-under-par 68, good enough to provide him a two-shot lead over the rest of the field at LIV Golf Miami after two rounds at Trump National Doral.
The native of Spain suffered a pair of bogeys, his first two of the tournament, but a hot start, with four birdies through the first nine holes, more than balanced out those missteps.
“It’s definitely not easy, that’s for sure,” Garcia said of the challenging course. “I think this one and Valderrama for me will be two of the toughest courses we play all year on LIV. Nice to put a couple solid rounds to start with, and we’ve still got to finish it up tomorrow. One more solid day and we’ll see what happens.”
Garcia’s team, Fireballs GC, which includes Abraham Ancer (69), Eugenio Chacarra (72) and David Puig (75), is in fifth place.
Despite not seeing much help at the team level, Garcia sees his own play as being his primary focus headed into the final day of play.
“I think the only thing that’s going to play to my favor is if I’m as committed as I can be and trusting what I’m doing,” Garcia said. “I think that’s the most important thing.”
Garcia, 44, has yet to win a LIV tournament, despite being one of the first players to leave the PGA Tour for LIV Golf in 2022.
Four golfers are in a tie for second place, headlined by Talor Gooch, who was tied for the lead with Garcia and Peter Uihlein after Round 1. His 2-under 70 featured four birdies against two bogeys.
Gooch, unlike Garcia, does not have an exemption into the Masters to be played next week at Augusta National. He is instead focused on winning Sunday.
“I’m confident going into tomorrow, and it would be nice to get the first win on home soil,” Gooch said.
England’s Tyrrell Hatton had a strong round, shooting a 5-under 67 to forge a tie with Gooch in second. His six-birdie effort gave his team, Legion XIII, a three-shot lead on the team board.
RangeGoats GC is in second place, as is team member Matthew Wolff, who shot a 3-under 69 to tie with Hatton, Gooch, and South Africa’s Dean Burmester (69).
Wolff’s teammate, Uihlein, dropped into a tie for 13th after shooting 1 over on Saturday.
–Field Level Media