DeChambeau leads in Korea entering Sunday; Smash GC atop team leaderboard

INCHEON, South Korea – Bryson DeChambeau is the solo leader after 36 holes for a record-setting third consecutive LIV Golf tournament. The drama on Sunday now focuses on whether he will convert his latest opportunity into a victory.

The Crushers GC captain shot his second consecutive bogey-free round at LIV Golf Korea presented by Coupang Play, carding a second-round 6-under 66 for a 13-under total and a four-shot lead over Cleeks GC’s Richard Bland.

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It’s the fifth 36-hole lead that DeChambeau has held since joining LIV Golf and is also his largest advantage. But DeChambeau has yet to capitalize on any of those leads, including the two previous LIV Golf tournaments.

Last month in Miami, he led by two shots entering the final round but was overtaken by Ripper GC’s Marc Leishman. Last week in Mexico City, he led by one before Joaquin Niemann rallied on Sunday. DeChambeau’s two LIV Golf wins in 2023 came when having to play catch-up to start the final round.

Asked what he must do Sunday at Jack Nicklaus Golf Club Korea to close out a tournament that’s clearly within his grasp, DeChambeau replied: “Just be a kid out there. Have a lot of fun. Go back to my roots. Just get it done.”

Smash GC also would like to get it done Sunday for their first team win of the season. Although 18-hole co-leader Talor Gooch fell back after a 71 on Saturday, his teammates picked him up. Jason Kokrak joined Gooch in a tie for third after shooting a 67, while Graeme McDowell shot 69 and captain Brooks Koepka shot 70.

The team’s 11-under total moved them to 21 under for the first two rounds, six shots clear of the three teams tied for second – Torque GC, RangeGoats GC and DeChambeau’s Crushers.

“Along with myself, I don't think BK, Graeme or Gooch have gotten off to a very good start [to the 2025 season] at all team-wise, individual-wise, kind of collectively,” Kokrak said. “So, looking to turn that around tomorrow.”

DeChambeau has been flawless the first two days in Korea, particularly off the tee with an impressive combination of power and accuracy. He leads the field with a 342.2-yard driving distance average and is tied for fourth in driving accuracy, hitting 25 of 28 fairways.

Among his playing partners Sunday is the 52-year-old Bland, creating a unique final group that includes the reigning U.S. Open and U.S. Senior Open champions. Bland can’t match DeChambeau’s length and knows that a four-shot deficit will be difficult to overcome.

“This kind of course is tailor-made for him,” Bland said of DeChambeau. “I’ve probably got to shoot something in double digits to get anywhere near him.”

Stinger GC’s Dean Burmester is among those tied for third, four shots behind DeChambeau. Burmester has an ace and three other hole-outs this week but was disappointed that a late bogey cost him a chance to be in the final group.

Asked what it would take to catch DeChambeau, Burmester replied: “Drive it past him, see if I can get into his head.” Then he added: “Just kidding.”

It’s now down to serious business in Korea, particulary for DeChambeau. Besides his recent LIV Golf near-misses, he also led last month’s Masters with 16 holes to play before falling back. That recent string gives him plenty of motivation to hoist a trophy – or two with his team – on Sunday.

“Given that we're a global team, it would be awesome to win here in Korea,” DeChambeau said. “The fans are great. I think the Korean fans like the Crushers. I know they like the Iron Heads a little bit more.

“Hopefully we're a close second, and hopefully we can give them some fun for tomorrow.”

TEAM SCORES

LIV Golf’s new scoring format this season now involves all four scores now counting in every round in the team competition. (Click here for more on the new format). Here are the results and scores for each team after Saturday’s Rd. 2 of LIV Golf Korea presented by Coupang Play.

1. SMASH GC -21 (Kokrak 67, McDowell 69, Koepka 70, Gooch 71; Rd. 2 score: -11)

T2. TORQUE GC -15 (Ortiz 66, Muñoz 67, Niemann 71, Pereira 71; Rd. 2 score: -13)

T2. RANGEGOATS GC -15 (Watson 69, Wolff 69, Uihlein 71, M. Kim 72; Rd. 2 score: -7)

T2. CRUSHERS GC -15 (DeChambeau 66, Howell III 66, Casey 71, Lahiri 79; Rd. 2 score: -6)

5. STINGER GC -13 (Burmester 68, Schwartzel 68, Oosthuizen 71, Catlin 75; Rd. 2 score: -6)

6. LEGION XIII -10 (Rahm 66, Surratt 68, Hatton 70, McKibbin 74; Rd. 2 score: -10)

7. MAJESTICKS GC -6 (Horsfield 70, Westwood 70, Poulter 73, Stenson 73; Rd. 2 score: -2)

T8. 4ACES GC -5 (Pieters 67, Johnson 69, Reed 70, Varner III 74; Rd. 2 score: -8)

T8. RIPPER GC -5 (Smith 66, Herbert 67, Jones 74, Leishman 75; Rd. 2 score: -6)

10. CLEEKS GC -2 (Bland 69, Meronk 72, Kjettrup 74, Kaymer 77; Rd. 2 score: +4)

T11. HYFLYERS GC -1 (Steele 68, Tringale 69, Mickelson 70, Ogletree 72; Rd. 2 score: -9)

T11. IRON HEADS GC -1 (Kozuma 70, Na 70, Jang 71, Lee 77; Rd. 2 score: E)

13. FIREBALLS GC +1 (Puig 68, Masaveu 70, Garcia 72, Ancer 74; Rd. 2 score: -4)

Wild Cards: C. Lee 71. A. Kim 74

ROUND 2 NOTES

THE GOOD AND THE BAD: Stinger GC’s Dean Burmester hasn’t required a putter on four different holes through the first two rounds. He had a hole-in-one on Friday and has three other hole-outs, including a chip-in to save par on the eighth hole Saturday.

“King of the hole-outs this week,” he called himself.

Meanwhile, on Saturday he played with Crushers GC’s Anirban Lahiri, who suffered an unfortunate break that completely derailed his round and perhaps even the Crushers’ chances of winning the team title.

Lahiri was riding a string of three straight birdies going into the ninth hole, but his approach shot hit the flagstick and shot across the length of the green into the water. That resulted in a double bogey, and the distraught Lahiri followed with a triple on the next hole and another double on the 12th en route to a 7-over 79.

“How brutal this game can be to anybody,” Burmester said. “A head-spinner. If that was me, I think I would’ve jumped in the lake.”

Burmester offered some words of encouragement to Lahiri but knew the damage had been done. “He’s a good friend of mine and we get along well,” he said. “It was tough to see him go through that today.”

RAHM IN CONTENTION: Through his first 17 holes in Friday’s opening round, Legion XIII Captain Jon Rahm was tied for 42nd on the leaderboard and had just a single birdie on his card. But then he eagled the par-5 18th and built on that momentum in the second round, as he shot a 66 to move into a tie for ninth.

Rahm is now in line to keep his string intact of top-10 finishes in every completed LIV Golf start.

CH3 MAKES MOVE: Crushers GC’s Charles Howell III opened with five birdies in his first seven holes en route to a 66 that leaves him tied for third. It’s his best performance since returning from injury late last season.

PEREIRA BREAKS STREAK: One reason for Torque GC’s rise up the leaderboard Saturday was the 1-under 71 shot by Mito Pereira. The Chilean has struggled this season and entered this week in the Drop Zone, but he carved out his first sub-par score in his last 12 rounds.

KOREAN BBQ FAN: Consider Crushers GC Captain Bryson DeChambeau a huge fan of Korean food. “I love Korean barbecue, galbi beef, marinated beef is unbelievable,” he said. “I love the experience. We're probably going to go there tonight. I think we are going to go there tonight with the team and have a great time.

“Korean barbecue is amazing, and I'll forever come back here for that.”

ROUND 2 STATS LEADERS

Driving accuracy: Bubba Watson, Sebastián Muñoz, Abraham Ancer, 100% (14 of 14 fairways hit)

Driving distance average (for measured holes 3 and 16): Bryson DeChambeau, 342.9 yards avg.

Longest drive (includes all holes): Matthew Wolff, 362 yards, 3rd hole

Greens in regulation: Richard Bland, 88.89% (16 of 18 greens)

Scrambling: Graeme McDowell (7 of 7), Sebastián Muñoz (5 of 5), Jon Rahm (5 of 5), Carlos Ortiz (3 of 3), Bryson DeChambeau (3 of 3), Richard Bland (2 of 2), 100%

Putting: Charles Howell III, Dean Burmester, 1.28 putts per hole

Bogey-free rounds: Bryson DeChambeau (66), Carlos Ortiz (66), Jon Rahm (66), Sebastián Muñoz (67), Graeme McDowell (69)