Niemann leads at Int'l Series India after flawless 68
Jan 31, 2025 - 4:20 PMWritten by: International Series Staff
Gurugram, India - Torque GC captain Joaquin Niemann was impressive at the International Series India presented by DLF on Friday and took the clubhouse lead.
While all around him were struggling to cope with the demands of DLF Golf and Country Club, Niemann fired a bogey-free 4-under 68 to stand at 6 under, two strokes over 2025 LIV Golf reserve player Ollie Schniederjans and Kazuki Higa. They shot rounds of 69 and 71, respectively, in the season-opening event on The International Series.
Half of the players in the field were unable to finish their rounds, the result of a backlog caused by a two-hour delay at the start of the day due to thick fog, and Thursday morning’s one-hour delay because of the same issue.
Crushers GC captain Bryson DeChambeau has been a crowd favorite this week as multiple LIV Golf members are competing. He was able to complete his second round (even-par 72) and sits T-11 at 1 under entering the weekend. DeChambeau is tied with Crushers teammate Anirban Lahiri, a local favorite, who is also 1 under after completing two rounds. Fireballs GC member Abraham Ancer is also playing well and is 3 under and three shots off the lead, but he was only through eight holes in Round 2 before play was halted.
Niemann, who is bidding for back-to-back wins on The International Series after having claimed the season-ending PIF Saudi International in December, had an eagle and two birdies en route to the first bogey-free round so far this week.
"It's a tough course," he said. "You gotta hit your tee shots; you gotta hit your lines. Anything can happen ... I am just happy to be in this good situation going into the weekend. And there is a lot of good golf to play."
Niemann won the Saudi International by beating Ripper GC captain Cam Smith and Legion XIII member Caleb Surratt in a playoff and has never finished outside the top-10 in an Asian Tour event, although he has only made five starts.
Niemann, 26, is feeling fresh after coming off a long break that also saw him get married.
"I was busy but not playing golf," Niemann said. "I took probably two or three weeks off after I got married. Had a nice party, being able to spend time with the family. So yeah, that kind of gave me some extra energy to come out here and do my best."
Niemann started his round on No. 10 and saved the best for last, holing a lob shot for eagle on the par-5 eighth hole before making a brilliant par save on the par-4 ninth. He had found trouble off the tee on the last but chipped back into the fairway and got up and down from about 100 yards, holing a 6-foot putt.
Schniederjans, who is playing on The International Series this year thanks to finishing fourth at the LIV Golf Promotions event last year, stormed through at the end with four closing birdies. He was particularly pleased with his birdie on the tough par-4 17th.
"On the 17th, yeah, it's the most wild hole I think I've ever played in a tournament," Schniederjans said. "Just the second shot, you have to judge it perfectly, or you can really make a mess there. I got the number right where I was looking, and it popped that ridge and ended up 2, 3 feet away there."
Schniederjans has been dogged by injuries throughout his career following an outstanding amateur career, when he was ranked the No. 1 amateur in the game in 2014.
"I've played hundreds of events against Bryson DeChambeau early on," he said. "It's been a while, though, because I was injured and I came back to Korn Ferry, spent three years out there after being out. So, it's been a while since I've got to play with these guys. I saw some of these guys like Baan (Anirban Lahiri) and Bryson, like I'm saying hi to them, haven't seen him in five years."
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