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LIV Golf Live Updates: News, Notes and Scores From the Final Round at Trump Bedminster

Sweden's Henrik Stenson never trailed on Sunday in winning his first LIV Golf event, claiming the $4 million first prize. 4 Aces GC won the team title.

Morning Read Staff

LIV Golf Live Updates: News, Notes and Scores From the Final Round at Trump Bedminster
LIV Golf Live Updates: News, Notes and Scores From the Final Round at Trump Bedminster /

> Here are the final results, payouts from Bedminster

Henrik Stenson Wins in LIV Golf Debut

After an eventful two weeks, Henrik Stenson finally had a reason to smile on Sunday. The Swede won in his LIV Golf debut, shooting a final-round 69 to win by two shots at 11 under over Matthew Wolff and Dustin Johnson at Trump National Golf Club Bedminster in New Jersey.

Stenson had his Ryder Cup captaincy stripped last week due to his decision to sign with LIV Golf. He won $4 million at Bedminster, more than twice as much as he had ever won in an event.

"I played like a captain," he said. "It's nice to be here with the guys, getting a feel for it. It's been a busy 10 days, I'm extremely proud to have focused the way I did."

In the team competition, 4 Aces GC won for the second consecutive event. Johnson, Talor Gooch, Patrick Reed and Pat Perez will split $3 million. The Majesticks team, which includes Stenson, finished second.  

Stenson Three Up With Four to Play

Henrik Stenson got to 12 under with a birdie on the par-3 14th and is up three shots with four holes remaining.

Matthew Wolff is alone in second at 9 under, 7 under for his final round. Dustin Johnson is third at 8 under.

Broadcasters Pay Tribute to Bill Russell

The death of legendary basketball champion Bill Russell was mentioned on the broadcast, with commentators paying tribute.

Analyst Jerry Foltz said he worked at a golf course in Seattle for a summer where Russell was a member, remembering that the Hall of Famer had his own unique dress code (understandable for a near-7-footer).

David Feherty remembered when Russell was a guest on his Golf Channel interview show.

"He was a wise old man, and a beautiful soul," Feherty said.

Phil Mickelson Has Something to Play for

In the team competition, the top three foursomes share a $5 million purse. And three of the four players' scores count on Sunday, meaning just about everyone has something to play for regardless of their place on the individual leaderboard.

Hence, Phil Mickelson is still worth watching though he's tied for 36th. His HyFlyers team is contending for third in the team competition and his score is counting at the moment. Teammate Matthew Wolff has the lowest score on the golf course at 6 under, Justin Harding is at 4 under for the day and Mickelson's 1 over score also counts at the moment.

At the top of the team leaderboard, the 4 Aces have a three-shot lead over the Majesticks.

Henrik Stenson in Control at the Turn

With nine holes to go, Henrik Stenson has a four-shot lead at 11 under and hasn't given anyone an opening to get close.

Stenson is 2 under for his final round with two birdies and no bogeys. Matthew Wolff is 5 under on his round and Sergio Garcia is 4 under, both soaring up the leaderboard, but Stenson's playing partners Dustin Johnson and Patrick Reed (both 1 under) aren't stacking up birdies.

Johnson and Wolff are tied at 7 under, with Garcia and Reed at 6 under.

Matthew Wolff Going Low on Sunday

The low round on the course belongs to Matthew Wolff, 5 under through eight holes including an eagle at the drivable par-4 10th.

Wolff has surged into solo second at 7 under, four shots behind Henrik Stenson. 

4 Aces Holding on to Team Lead, but It's Closer

About one-third of the way through the final round, the 4 Aces GC is leading the team competition -- but their lead is two shots over the Majesticks, compared to six shots when the day began.

The final round in the team competition counts three of the four players' scores, as opposed to two of the four the first two rounds, so volatility is very possible. 

At the moment, scores by Majesticks' players Henrik Stenson (2 under for his round), Ian Poulter (3 under) and Lee Westwood (even) count. Compare that to Talor Gooch (1 under), Patrick Reed (even) and Pat Perez (even).  

Talor Gooch Moves Into Solo Second

With a long birdie putt at the 3rd hole, Talor Gooch moved into solo second at 6 under, four shots behind Henrik Stenson.

Gooch shot 64 on Saturday to put himself within striking distance for the final round. In his first two LIV events he finished ninth and seventh, making a total of $1,255,000.

Before moving to LIV, Gooch won the RSM Classic early in the PGA Tour season. That paid $1,296,000.

Right Away, Henrik Stenson's Lead Grows

The three-shot lead that Henrik Stenson took to the first tee Sunday was five shots when he left the green, as Dustin Johnson bogeyed and Stenson rolled in a birdie.

Four players are five shots back: Johnson, Patrick Reed, Talor Gooch and Carlos Ortiz.

Can Henrik Stenson Hold On?

The final group has teed off at Bedminster, with Henrik Stenson leading by three shots over Dustin Johnson and four over Patrick Reed.

As our Bob Harig wrote after Saturday's second round, the attention on Stenson has turned to his play after a tumultuous two weeks that saw him lose the European Ryder Cup captaincy.

Stenson played alongside Reed yesterday and now gets Johnson as well, LIV's best player by world ranking. Reed and Johnson are also teammates on 4 Aces GC, the leading team by six shots at the start of the final round and chasing a second consecutive team title. 

Stenson's biggest payday in golf was $1,710,000 for winning the 2009 Players Championship. The winner today takes home $4 million.  

Hole Assignments and Groups for Round 3

Here are the groups for the final round. The shotgun start is 1:15 p.m. ET with a twist -- the first hole will have two groups, with the leaders teeing off second at 1:26. The theory is that with the top six players on the leaderboard starting on the same hole, the possibility for 18th-hole drama is better.

Hole 1: Henrik Stenson, Dustin Johnson, Patrick Reed
Hole 1: Talor Gooch, Carlos Ortiz, Phachara Khongwatmai
Hole 2: Martin Kaymer, Lee Westwood, Turk Pettit 
Hole 3: Charl Schwartzel, Ian Poulter, Sergio Garcia 
Hole 4: Matthew Wolff, Chase Koepka, Travis Smyth
Hole 17: Paul Casey, Branden Grace, Sam Horsfield 
Hole 16: Jinichiro Kozuma, Charles Howell III, Chase Koepka
Hole 15: Justin Harding, Peter Uihlein, Jason Kokrak
Hole 5: Louis Oosthuizen, David Puig (a), Scott Vincent 
Hole 7: Kevin Na, Bernd Wiesberger, Bryson DeChambeau
Hole 8: Matt Jones, Eugenio Lopez-Chacarra,  Shaun Norris
Hole 9: James Piot, Pat Perez, Ryosuke Kinoshita
Hole 10: Graeme McDowell, Sadom Kaekwanjana, Laurie Canter
Hole 11: Hudson Swafford, Richard Bland, Yuki Inamori
Hole 12: Wade Ormsby, Abraham Ancer, Phil Mickelson
Hole 13: Jediah Morgan, Hennie Du Plessis, Hideto Tanihara

Henrik Stenson's Lead is 3 After Round 2

A bogey at the par-5 18th hole wasn't the way Henrik Stenson wanted to end his Saturday, but the Swede will take a three-shot lead to Sunday at Bedminster. He's 9 under after rounds of 64-69. 

Dustin Johnson is three shots back at 6 under after shooting 69, while Patrick Reed, Talor Gooch and Carlos Ortiz are at 5 under.

In the team competition, the 4 Aces are 20 under, five shots ahead of the Majesticks. The Fireballs are a distant third at 6 under.

Henrik Stenson to 10 Under

With the second round coming to a close at Bedminster, Henrik Stenson is giving himself breathing room.

The Swede is 3 under on his second nine with birdies at 16 and 17 and a tee shot in the fairway on 18. He's at 10 under, four shots ahead of Dustin Johnson and five ahead of Talor Gooch, who is in with a round of 64.

Playing for His Status

Not everyone's contractual status is known in LIV Golf, but the broadcasters revealed that Phachara Khongwatmai has to play well on the Asian Tour (which sanctions LIV Golf) to remain high enough on its order of merit to keep making LIV starts. In other words, he's not one on a guaranteed contract like many of the well-known players.

He's also playing well this week, which would presumably keep him around. The 23-year-old from Thailand is tied for seventh, 1 over on his round while playing in the lead group of Henrik Stenson (still leading at 9 under) and Patrick Reed (in solo second at 6 under).

4 Aces Team Surging

The lowest two scores for teams count in Round 2, and the 4 Aces team is building on its first-round lead thanks to Talor Gooch.

The Oklahoman has the low round on the golf course, at 6 under, and with his score helping the 4 Aces are at 18 under as a team, six shots ahead of the Majesticks at 12 under. Then it's five more shots to the Fireballs at 7 under.

The winning team shares $3 million from the $5 million team purse. The 4 Aces won the team title at the last event in Portland.

How About Phil?

Phil Mickelson only has one round under par so far in his LIV Golf career, and it appears that Saturday won't be his second.

The 52-year-old is 3 over for his second round with two birdies, two bogeys and a disastrous triple bogey at the par-3 16th. After opening with a 75 at par-71 Bedminster, he's 7 over for the event.

As our Bob Harig wrote on Friday, Mickelson is still bullish on LIV Golf but his scores have not matched his enthusiasm.

He's tied for 44th at the moment in the 48-player field. He was 34th in LIV Golf's first event in London and 42nd at its second event in Portland. 

Three Straight Bogeys for Patrick Reed

Patrick Reed has bogeyed three straight holes, from the 10th to the 12th, and has fallen to 4 under and four back of leader Henrik Stenson.

Stenson's lead is three shots over Dustin Johnson and Phachara Khongwatmai. 

Reed is in a five-way tie for fourth with Lee Westwood, Charl Schwartzel, Carlos Ortiz and Turk Pettit.

Henrik Stenson Leads After Two-Shot Swing

The Swede has the solo lead by two all of a sudden, birdieing the 10th hole while playing partner Patrick Reed bogeyed. Stenson is at 8 under.

Stenson's lead is all the more remarkable given his last two weeks. He was stripped of his European Ryder Cup captaincy on July 20, then on Thursday at his LIV Golf introductory press conference expressed disappointment in the decision and said he was under the impression he could still serve as captain while playing on the controversial tour.

Yet here he is, leading halfway through his first LIV Golf start.

Bedminster Playing Tougher Saturday

The winds have kicked up a bit in Round 2, and consequently few players are making many moves.

The low round on the course midway through the round belongs to Talor Gooch, who is 4 under and 2 under overall, tied for 11th. Turk Pettit is 3 under on his round and 3 under for the tournament, tied for 5th.

Of the top four on the leaderboard, only Dustin Johnson is under par for the day, at 1 under.

Going in the other direction is Jinichiro Kozuma, who opened with 69 on Friday but is 7 over for the round and tied for 38th.

Eagle Returns Henrik Stenson to Co-Lead

Henrik Stenson eagled the par-5 8th, offsetting a double bogey from earlier in the round to get back to 7 under alongside Patrick Reed.

The day began with the lead threesome of Reed and Stenson tied at 7 under and Phachara Khongwatmai at 5 under, and they're in the same positions again as Khongwatmai also eagled the 8th. 

Patrick Reed Back in Front by 2

With a birdie at the par-3 7th, Patrick Reed got back to where he started the day at 7 under. He leads by two over Dustin Johnson and Henrik Stenson.

Reed and Johnson are teammates on 4 Aces GC, so they're also in the driver's seat in the team competition given that two scores are counted from a team's four players in Round 2.

Dustin Johnson Ties for the Lead

Dustin Johnson, the highest-ranked player in LIV Golf at No. 17 in the world, is tied for the lead in his quest for a first win.

He birdied the sixth hole, his second birdie in three holes, to get to 6 under alongside Patrick Reed. 

Two shots back and also making a move is Lee Westwood, 2 under for his round after stuffing one close at the par-3 4th.

Patrick Reed Bogeys, But Still Leads

Patrick Reed lipped out a short putt at the par-3 4th but remains in the lead at 6 under by one over playing partners Henrik Stenson and Phachara Khongwatmai, and Dustin Johnson, who birdied the 4th hole to get to 5 under.

Henrik Stenson Falls Out of Lead

Henrik Stenson endured an adventure at the 3rd hole, taking a double bogey after a prolonged discussion over a tee shot that ended up in the woods.

His drive on the par 4 kicked off a slope and cart path into the woods, and after he found the ball he discussed taking an unplayable lie -- except the subsequent drop after two-club relief would have also been in deep grass next to the cart path and no sure thing. After much deliberation, he went back to the tee. He then made "4" with his second ball, but it was a 6 thanks to the errant first drive.

Patrick Reed also had a ruling, taking a free drop from a sod seam next to a greenside bunker that was considered ground under repair. He hit a high flop to a foot and made the putt, leaving him as the solo leader.

Justin Harding Makes Two Quick Birdies

South Africa's Justin Harding opened with two birdies Saturday to get to 2 under for the tournament and into a tie for sixth.

The 36-year-old is another player that American golf fans may be less familiar with. He made 15 of 23 cuts on the PGA Tour, with half of those starts coming in the 2018-19 season. He has two wins on the DP World Tour, most recently in March 2021 at the Magical Kenyan Open.

He has finishes of 11th and ninth in his first two LIV Golf starts.

The Third Man in the Final Group

Co-leaders Patrick Reed and Henrik Stenson are a marquee pairing on Saturday at Bedminster, but far lesser known is the other man in the threesome.

Phachara Khongwatmai, two shots behind the leaders, is a 23-year-old from Thailand, ranked No. 148 in the world.

In 2013, at age 14, he became the youngest winner of a professional tournament when he won the Sing Hua Hin Open on the All Thailand Golf Tour. Three years later he played in the British Open at age 17, missing the cut.

He finished 28th in the LIV Golf opener in London and 29th at the second event in Portland.

Hole Assignments and Groups for Round 2

Here are the groups for Round 2. Everyone tees off at 1:15 p.m. ET in the shotgun start, and are grouped by scores in order -- Hole 1 has the tournament leaders, down to Hole 13 for the threesome at the bottom of the leaderboard.

  • Hole 1: Patrick Reed, Henrik Stenson, Phachara Khongwatmai
  • Hole 2: Dustin Johnson, Carlos Ortiz, Martin Kaymer
  • Hole 3: Charles Howell III, Brooks Koepka, Ian Poulter
  • Hole 18: Jinichiro Kozuma, Jason Kokrak, Lee Westwood
  • Hole 17: Branden Grace, Chase Koepka, Travis Smyth
  • Hole 16: Peter Uihlein, Charl Schwartzel, Sergio Garcia
  • Hole 15: Justin Harding, Yuki Inamori, Scott Vincent 
  • Hole 4: Pat Perez, Matthew Wolff, Sam Horsfield
  • Hole 5: Ryosuke Kinoshita, Bernd Wiesberger, Bryson DeChambeau
  • Hole 7: Abraham Ancer, Kevin Na, Turk Pettit
  • Hole 8: Hudson Swafford, Shaun Norris, Richard Bland
  • Hole 9: Paul Casey, Matt Jones, Talor Gooch
  • Hole 10: Eugenio Lopez-Chacarra, David Puig (a), Graeme McDowell
  • Hole 11: Louis Oosthuizen, Wade Ormsby, James Piot
  • Hole 12: Phil Mickelson, Laurie Canter, Hideto Tanihara
  • Hole 13: Jediah Morgan, Hennie Du Plessis, Sadom Kaekwanjana

Patrick Reed, Henrik Stenson Tied at Top

Round 1 is in the books at Bedminster, with Patrick Reed and Henrik Stenson leading the way after 7-under 64s. They are two shots clear of the field.

"I have to be extremely pleased with my focus, it's been pretty busy the last 10 days," Stenson said, referring to a week that saw him lose his European Ryder Cup captaincy in the wake of coming to LIV Golf.

Reed bogeyed his fourth hole of the day, then poured in eight birdies over the remaining 14 holes to get to 7 under.

"I was not only hitting the ball well, I was putting it in the right spots," Reed said. "I was able to feel I was able to putt aggressive around this place."

Thanks to Reed and Dustin Johnson, who shot 4 under, the 4 Aces team is leading at 11 under in their quest for two team wins in a row. The Majesticks, with new team member Stenson and Ian Poulter (3 under), are 10 under and one shot back. Then it's four back to the Iron Heads, whose top player was Phachara Khongwatmai at 5 under. He's in solo third place overall.  

Patrick Reed Gets to 6 under

After this chip to the par-5 15th, Patrick Reed birdied to get to 6 under and the solo lead.

Henrik Stenson is in solo second at 5 under, then three players are at 4 under: Dustin Johnson, Carlos Ortiz and Phachara Khongwatmai.

Stenson-Reed, Part 2?

Henrik Stenson birdied the 11th hole (his 14th of the day, remember the shotgun start) to match Patrick Reed at the top at 5 under par.

If the round ended like this, the two would be paired on Saturday for Round 2 in a matchup with some history.

Stenson and Reed faced off in Ryder Cup singles in 2014, in a spirited match that saw seven lead changes before Reed won 1 up. Along the way, Reed famously put his finger to his mouth to shush the partisan crowds in Scotland. The U.S. lost the competition, but Reed made an unforgettable impression as a rookie in winning 3.5 points, the most on the American side.

Carlos Ortiz in the Hunt Again

Mexico's Carlos Ortiz finished second in his LIV Golf debut last month in Portland and is 4 under with five holes to play in his first round, one shot off Patrick Reed's pace.

Ortiz won $2,125,000 for the runner-up finish, more than double what he had made all year on the PGA Tour in 20 events before leaving for LIV.

Patrick Reed On a Hot Streak

After finishing T3 in Portland with better rounds as the event went on — 72-68-67 — Patrick Reed is staying hot at Bedminster.

Reed is 5 under and leading on the par-71 course, having birdied the 10th for his sixth birdie in seven holes. His lone bogey came early in his round at the 3rd.

His 4 Aces team is tied with the Majesticks at 6 under.

It's Good to Be New on Friday

Three of the newest players in LIV Golf are on the first page of the leaderboard.

Henrik Stenson and Charles Howell III are in the lead group at 3 under, while Jason Kokrak is at 2 under. Paul Casey, the other newcomer, is 2 over.

Stenson's teammate on the Majesticks, Lee Westwood, is 2 under, so that team leads early. The low two scores count for teams in the first round.

Bubba Watson Officially Introduced

LIV Golf made it official Friday, announcing two-time Masters champion Bubba Watson as its newest player. As the circuit has done with some other signees, such as Paul Casey and Patrick Reed, it brought Watson on during the broadcast for a chat.

bubba screen

Watson last played at the PGA Championship in May, finishing T30. He has since had what he said is "meniscus preservation surgery" on his right knee and that he hopes to begin swinging again in mid-October.

He will appear at LIV's next event in September in Boston as an off-course captain, and will play in 2023.  

One of LIV Golf's Newest Is Leading

Henrik Stenson has had quite a week. It began with him having his European Ryder Cup captaincy stripped in the wake of signing with LIV Golf, and then he came to Bedminster to begin his LIV Golf career with a press conference.

On Thursday, Stenson reiterated his disappointment over losing the captaincy, saying he believed he could keep it while playing with LIV Golf.

"I made every arrangement possible here to be able to fulfill my captain's duties, and I've had great help here from LIV to be able to do that," he said. "And still, the decision was made that I was to be removed."

On the course, the story is more positive. Early on Friday, the Swede got to 3 under to take the lead. 

 

Bryson DeChambeau Seeing Improvement

The first half of 2022 was all but lost for Bryson DeChambeau, as hip and hand injuries limited his starts. When he tried to play hurt, it didn't go well, like at the Masters where he missed the cut.

But three months after surgery on the injured hand, his game appears to be coming back. DeChambeau finished in a tie for 10th at LIV Golf's Portland event (his first LIV start), then tied for eighth at the British Open. 

He's 1 under early at Bedminster after holing a long putt for birdie.

Pat Perez Out to a Fast Start

The last time Pat Perez teed it up at LIV, he was shooting a final-round 80 in Portland.

Friday, he opened with birdies on his first two holes to take the early lead.

Perez, 46, shot 69 in his first round in Portland, which counted for his 4 Aces team. The third-round 80 did not, but teammates Dustin Johnson, Patrick Reed and Talor Gooch played well and the 4 Aces won the team competition and split $3 million. 

David Feherty Debuts in the Booth

LIV Golf came on the air Friday from Bedminster with a retooled broadcast booth. 

David Feherty, new to the circuit after leaving NBC Sports following the British Open, is in the booth alongside play-by-play man Arlo White and analyst Jerry Foltz. Dom Boulet, in the booth for the first two events, has been moved into an on-course role.

Feherty will be counted on to deliver humor to the broadcast. When Phil Mickelson was shown beginning his round, Feherty called him the "gorilla whisperer," a reference to Mickelson being shown in a nature preserve during a video welcoming Feherty to LIV.

Notable Teams This Week

With a number of new players joining LIV Golf this week, some of the four-man teams are new. And some aren't.

The team champions of the first two events remain intact. Stinger GC, winners of the inaugural event in London, is the South African foursome of Louis Oosthuizen (captain), Charl Schwartzel, Hennie du Plessis and Branden Grace. The American foursome 4 Aces GC, winners in Portland, stays the same with Dustin Johnson (captain), Patrick Reed, Talor Gooch and Pat Perez.

Majesticks GC had been an all-English team with Lee Westwood (captain), Ian Poulter, Laurie Canter and Sam Horsfield, but newcomer Henrik Stenson of Sweden has replaced Canter. The Cleeks team now has Canter, along with Martin Kaymer (captain), Graeme McDowell and amateur David Puig.

Charles Howell III, who said he was recruited to LIV by Bryson DeChambeau, is on the DeChambeau-captained Crushers team with another newcomer in Paul Casey, plus Shaun Norris.

The other new LIV player this week, Jason Kokrak, is on Smash GC with the Koepka brothers and Richard Bland.

In the team format, the two best scores in Rounds 1 and 2 are combined with three scores from Round 3 for a total team score. The top three teams are paid from the $5 million team purse.

Hole Assignments and Groups for Round 1

Here are the groups for Round 1. Everyone tees off at 1:15 p.m. ET in the shotgun start. After Round 1, players will be paired by score for the remaining two rounds.

  • Hole 1: Branden Grace, Bryson DeChambeau, Sergio Garcia
  • Hole 2: Martin Kaymer, Lee Westwood, Charl Schwartzel
  • Hole 3: Jason Kokrak, Ian Poulter, Talor Gooch
  • Hole 4: Graeme McDowell, Charles Howell III, Sadom Kaewkanjana
  • Hole 5: Jinichiro Kozuma, Peter Uihlein, Scott Vincent
  • Hole 7: David Puig (a), Jediah Morgan, Hideto Tanihara
  • Hole 8: Hennie Du Plessis, Eugenio Lopez-Chacarra, Bernd Wiesberger
  • Hole 9: Travis Smyth, James Piot, Richard Bland
  • Hole 10: Ryosuke Kinoshita, Laurie Canter, Chase Koepka
  • Hole 11: Wade Ormsby, Phachara Khongwatmai, Turk Pettit, Ian Snyman, Blake Windred, Branden Grace
  • Hole 12: Hudson Swafford, Yuki Inamori, Shaun Norris
  • Hole 13: Matt Jones, Justin Harding, Sam Horsfield
  • Hole 15: Matthew Wolff, Pat Perez, Kevin Na
  • Hole 16: Louis Oosthuizen, Phil Mickelson, Henrik Stenson
  • Hole 17: Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson, Carlos Ortiz
  • Hole 18: Abraham Ancer, Paul Casey, Patrick Reed
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