Saturday’s second round of the LIV Golf Chicago Invitational concluded with reigning British Open winner Cam Smith of Australia closing with consecutive birdies to take a three-stroke lead.
Smith, ranked third in the world, scored a four-under par 68 to sit at 10-under 134 after 36 holes of the 54-hole event with a shotgun start at Rich Harvest Farms.
Two-time major champion Dustin Johnson shot his worst round in 14 since joining LIV Golf, a 74, and tied for second with fellow American Peter Uihlein, who shot a 66.
Laurie Canter of England and Charl Schwartzel of South Africa tied for fourth with a score of 138 in pursuit of a $4 million grand prize from a $25 million purse.
Several prominent golfers have deserted from the US PGA Tour to the Saudi-backed parallel circuit, leading the PGA to enforce permanent bans on former members.
Smith, who won his first major championship in July at St. Andrews before switching to LIV Golf following the PGA Tour playoffs, began the day three strokes behind his playing partner Johnson but quickly assumed the lead.
Smith remarked, “Out there, it was difficult.” “I received a few breaks, and DJ did not make as many putts as usual.
“Game is feeling good. I anticipate a fantastic round tomorrow.”
Johnson opened with a bogey on the first hole, and he and his playing partner both birdied the par-5 second.
At the fourth hole, Smith made a long breaking birdie putt while Johnson settled for par.
Both players birdied the eighth, but Smith missed an eight-foot putt for par on the par-5 eleventh to fall two strokes behind.
At the par-3 13th, Johnson hit his approach shot over the green and missed a six-foot par putt. Johnson bogeyed the par-3 16th hole as well.
Smith converted birdie putts from six feet on the par-5 17th and par-5 18th, while Johnson missed the 18th green and made bogey to give the Australian a three-stroke lead.
PGA playoff winner Rory McIlroy, PGA commissioner Jay Monahan, and LIV Golf commissioner Greg Norman all voiced their opposition to such a move, prompting Phil Mickelson, one of the first to leave the PGA for LIV Golf, to state that the two sides must unite.
Over the past 20 or 30 years, the PGA Tour has featured the top golfers in the world. “That will never happen again,” Mickelson declared.
“LIV Golf is here to stay, and this type of contentious discourse serves no one’s interests. The optimal solution is for us to unite.”
Six-time major champion Phil Mickelson and LIV Golf have filed an antitrust action against the PGA, which is scheduled to go to trial in 2024.
The 52-year-old American left-hander stated that LIV appeals to a younger fan base, but that golf still need the “historical” foundation that the PGA provides, stating, “The presence of LIV Golf in the golf ecosystem is essential.”
AFP