Last Look LIV Golf UK by JCB: Notes, stats, superlatives and more

ROCESTER, England – Joaquin Niemann's remarkable season continued at JCB Golf and Country Club, where the all-time LIV Golf wins leader delivered a dominant wire-to-wire performance, shooting rounds of 65-63-68 to secure a three-shot victory. After parting ways with his caddie and coach following a missed cut at the Open Championship, Niemann emphatically silenced doubts about the current state of his game.

Legion XIII came out on top in the team competition for the second consecutive start and 4th time this season. The balanced attack was led by Caleb Surratt (3rd) but also had strong showings from Jon Rahm (T5), Tom McKibbin (T11) and Tyrrell Hatton (T15).

Here is a last look at some of the notable performances from LIV Golf UK by JCB:

ROUND OF THE WEEK

Although Niemann played incredibly the entire week, it was his Saturday round that was the most spectacular. He shot an 8-under 63 in Rd. 2, which was the low round of the week. Niemann hit all 18 greens in regulation and made nine birdies to only one bogey. The stellar day allowed the Torque GC captain to take a six-shot advantage over his closest competitor leading into championship Sunday.

Niemann’s statistics for Rd. 2:

1st in SG: Total: 7.59

1st in GIR: 18/18 (100%)

3rd in SG: Putting: +3.09

1st in Driving Distance (measured holes): 325.5

4th in SG: OTT: +1.89.

SHOT OF THE WEEK

There are a few strong candidates for “shot of the week” from LIV Golf UK, beginning with Lee Westwood’s hole out eagle on the third hole of Rd. 2.

Bubba Watson also had a fantastic driver-off-the-deck on Sunday, giving himself a great look at eagle on the par 5 10th, which he converted. On the par-5 13th, Watson pulled driver-off-the-deck again, once again making an eagle.

CLUTCH PERFORMANCE

Jon Rahm struggled, at least by his lofty standards, over the first two rounds at JCB. On Sunday, however, the Legion XIII Captain delivered. Rahm shot a brilliant 6-under 65 to propel Legion XIII past Torque GC on the team leaderboard. Entering the day, Legion XIII had a two-shot deficit, but the 65’s from Rahm and Surratt proved to be more than enough for the team to continue their league dominance in 2025.

UNDER THE RADAR PERFORMERS

Josele Ballester: Josele Ballester of Fireballs GC makes the “under the radar” list for the second consecutive tournament. It was a shaky beginning to his professional career, but the former U.S. Amateur champion has quickly shown why LIV Golf deemed him such an intriguing prospect.

Ballester shot rounds of 70-69-65 to finish T7, his best finish as a professional.

Dean Burmester: Dean Burmester of Stinger GC shot rounds of 69-68-66 to finish T5, which marks his best finish since LIV Golf Hong Kong in March. Prior to the week, the South African ranked 13th in the individual standings but the performance at JCB moves him into 8th.

Andy Ogletree: Andy Ogletree of HyFlyers GC came through with a good performance when he needed it most. Prior to this week, the 27-year-old was close to the bottom of the LIV Golf standings at 50th. With time running out as we approach the end of the season, relegation is looming for Ogletree. The T18 finish moved him up to 48th, just inside of the drop zone. He’ll need two strong performances to close out the season, but this was a welcome start.

STATISTICAL STANDOUTS

Joaquin Niemann: 2nd in Strokes Gained: Off the Tee (+1.59 per round) and 1st in driving distance on measured holes (316.5). Niemann hit 94.4% of greens in regulation (1st). He was also 2nd in Strokes Gained: Putting (+2.36 per round).

Talor Gooch: 1st in Strokes Gained: Approach (+1.86 per round). When Talor Gooch’s irons are fueling his performances, he tends to finish extremely well.

Dean Burmester: 1st in Strokes Gained: Around the Green (+2.17 per round). He gained over a stroke per round more than the second ranked player in the category (Sergio Garcia +1.16).

VETERAN RESURGENCE

Bubba Watson: After finishing T4 at LIV Golf Virginia, it appeared that after a few tough seasons recovering from injury, Bubba Watson had rediscovered the electric, shot-shaping brilliance that made him a household name. However, finishes of T37 at Dallas and T24 at Andalucia created a question as to whether the RangeGoats GC captain’s form had actually returned for the foreseeable future. Those questions were answered this week at JCB. Watson had total control of his golf ball all week, resulting in the best finish of his LIV Golf career (2nd).

On Sunday, it looked as if Niemann was going to run and hide, but Watson made things interesting for a few holes after a remarkable stretch to start his back nine. He made four birdies and two eagles between holes 9-14, cutting the deficit to two shots with four holes to play.

The RangeGoats have struggled this year, but it's been at no fault of their veteran Captain.

YOUNG GUN SPOTLIGHT

Caleb Surratt: At LIV Golf Andalucia, Legion XIII’s Caleb Surratt made five birdies on his second nine to help catapult the team to victory. The finish for Surratt clearly helped grow his confidence, as he produced his best LIV Golf result this week at LIV Golf UK by JCB. The 21-year-old finished 3rd, shooting rounds of 67-68-65. Playing on a team with superstars Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton is assuredly paying dividends in his development.

Surratt is establishing himself as one of the brightest young stars on LIV Golf and an invaluable piece to Legion XIII, who are suddenly incredibly deep.

BIGGEST MOVERS

Here are the players who’ve made the biggest move in the season long individual points race:

Bubba Watson: 18 spots from 31st to 13th

Josele Ballester: 12 spots from 54th to 42nd

Caleb Surratt: 7 spots from 39th to 32nd

Adrian Meronk: 6 spots from 23rd to 17th

WHO'S TRENDING?

Talor Gooch: Gooch didn’t get complacent after his victory at LIV Golf Andalucia. The four time LIV Golf winner backed up the win with a T4 finish at JCB. He’ll continue to be dangerous as the season winds down.

Josele Ballester: The rookie recorded points in back-to-back starts with finishes of T23 and T7.

Patrick Reed: Many were quick to dismiss Patrick Reed as a Ryder Cup contender after missing the cut at the Open Championship, but he’s finished T10 at LIV Golf Andalucia and T7 at LIV Golf UK by JCB, proving that his form can be sustained. If he gets a win in one of the final two events, the Ryder Cup conversation could potentially be back on.

Stinger GC: Stinger GC has three top 5 finishes in their past 5 starts. They finished 3rd at LIV Golf UK by JCB. It was their 2nd podium finish of the season.

QUOTES OF THE WEEK

Lee Westwood on people adapting to change:

“I don't mind change and adapting. It's people in general that don't like change and adapting. People are used to the traditions and staying in their ways, their comfort. But all sports have to adapt and change. I think golf is doing a great job of it through LIV."

Joaquin Niemann on making more prize money than Scottie Scheffler this season:

“All I want to do is win. I want to be the best in the field. Yeah, I don't really think about the money when I'm in that situation.”

Joaquin Niemann on how he’s dealing with so much success:

“I feel like there is always more to seek. I mean, obviously I won seven times now and going back when I join, if you ask me to be in this position right now, I mean, I will be looking stars I always say. Now that I'm in this situation all I'm thinking about is trying to win the season. I feel like there is always something else I'm going to be chasing. I feel like that's the way I am. Yeah, I feel like I'm always trying to chase something better and better every time.”

Caleb Surratt on his best ever LIV Golf finish (3rd):

“Yeah, it means a lot. Shows me a lot. It's very hard to be at the top of the leaderboard out here, especially for the first time. I've kind of been in kind of the moment here and there in a lot of tournaments but haven't been able to capitalize on a great event.”

Bubba Watson on his incredible stretch to start the back nine on Sunday:

“When that stretch happens you're just kind of unconscious, right? You're hitting shots -- like I hit this beautiful driver off the deck. Can't see where it goes, but must have hit the downslope to roll up onto the green to four feet, five feet. And then birdieing the next hole, you can see it. Birdieing 9 you can see it. But that eagle, then the eagle on 13, right? And then I mean, he got a beautiful par where he could have easily -- could have been further in the trees. There is a lot of things that could have happened, right? No, it was one of those moments, hour-long stretch, that was unbelievable. I couldn't draw it up that good. I couldn't picture it that good. Then you walk away and you're like holy -- I looked at the leaderboard and I saw I was 4-under going into 13. I was like, I thought I was over par a second ago. Oh, my gosh.”