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Crushers GC captain Bryson DeChambeau and teammate Charles Howell III battled for the individual title on LIV Golf’s first visit to Korea last year outside of Seoul, with DeChambeau finishing with two late birdies to take the win.
This week the course and location are different at Asiad Country Club, but the two once again find themselves at the top of the LIV Golf Korea leaderboard after Thursday’s first round, only this time they have company.
DeChambeau and Howell share the first-round lead with Scott Vincent of HyFlyers GC after each shot with a 5-under 65. Three players are tied for fourth place, one shot behind: Torque GC captain Joaquin Niemann, Majesticks GC co-captain Ian Poulter (playing with a torn meniscus) and 4Aces GC’s Thomas Pieters.
Four more players are tied for seventh at 3 under: Ripper GC captain Cameron Smith, Fireballs GC captain Sergio Garcia, Southern Guards GC’s Charl Schwartzel and the Majesticks’ Laurie Canter.
Meanwhile, local favorite Korean Golf Club produced arguably its best performance of the season. Younghan Song and new addition Doyeob Mun each shot 68 to join a large group tied for 11th, while the team is tied for fifth at 3 under par.
For DeChambeau, he’s happy that he and Howell were able to rekindle their efforts from last year, when they shared the lead going into the final three holes in what turned out to be a fascinating battle between teammates.
“I guess Charles and I love Korea,” he said.
Howell was happy, too, although he knows DeChambeau, who has already won twice this season at LIV Golf and second to Jon Rahm in the season-long points race, will be tough to dethrone.
“Team-wise, it’s wonderful. Individually, it’s terrible,” Howell said. “As far as the team goes, I love him at the top. Individually, I wish he was at the bottom. Obviously, Bryson, most weeks, plays very well, and if my name is around his, I’m usually doing something pretty good.”
DeChambeau held the lead alone for most of Thursday’s round as he birdied six of his first 10 holes. But he fell back into the pack with bogeys on the 13th when he three-putted after his approach flew 12 yards too far, and on the par-5 15th when he found the water.
“Being between 6 and 10 under par, I felt like something special was happening,” DeChambeau said. “I calmed down but still played great golf. I was surprised I didn’t dig deeper.”
Howell’s round was started by a 2-eagle from 108 yards on the par-4 second. “When the ball disappeared, I thought I had jumped it over the green, but obviously the cheers said otherwise,” he said. “I’ll take those. They don’t happen often.”
Vincent recorded the only bogey-free round of the day, a continuation of a recent surge that began when he moved from an independent wild card to the HyFlyers lineup as a replacement for captain Phil Mickelson. He finished solo fourth in Mexico City and tied for eighth in Virginia, the team’s two best individual performances this season.
He now shares the lead for the first time after any round in his LIV Golf career.
“I don’t know what it is, but the moment I joined them, my game just improved,” said Vincent, who earned his spot this season after winning the 2025 International Series title. “It’s been amazing.”
The Crushers won the team title last year in Korea and are atop the team standings after shooting a cumulative 10-under par. The team is playing without one of its regular members, Paul Casey, who suffered an injury and has been replaced by reserve Travis Smyth. Smyth shot a 2-over 72, while Anirban Lahiri shot a 68.
The newly renamed OKGC is in second place at 7 under, with the HyFlyers and Fireballs tied for third at 5 under.
TOP OF THE LEADERBOARDS
Top 10 singles
T1 (-5) – Bryson DeChambeau, Crushers (65); Charles Howell III, Crushers (65); Scott Vincent, HyFlyers (65)
T4 (-4) – Ian Poulter, Majesticks (66); Joaquín Niemann, Torque (66); Thomas Pieters, 4Aces (66)
T7 (-3) – Cameron Smith, Ripper (67); Sergio García, Fireballs (67); Charl Schwartzel, Southern Guards (67); Laurie Canter, Majesticks (67)
Team top 3
1 (-10) – GC Crushers (DeChambeau 65, Howell III 65, Lahiri 68, Smyth 72)
2 (-7) – OKGC (Kokrak 68, McDowell 68, Varner III 68, Gooch 69)
T3 (-5) – HyFlyers GC (Vincent 65, La Sasso 68, Steele 70, Tringale 72)
T3 (-5) – GC fireballs (García 67, Masaveu 68, Puig 70, Ballester 70)
ROUND 1 NOTES
FAN-DRIVEN KOREAN GC: After a recent run of disappointing results, the Korean overall hoped to use a lineup change and the support of her home fans to turn things around. So far, so good.
Newcomer Doyeob Mun, who currently leads the KPGA Tour in points this season, shot a 2-under 68 in his first round of LIV Golf to share 11th place. He was joined by teammate Younghan Song, while captain Byeong Hun An shot an even-par 70 and Minkyu Kim a 71 as the team tied for fifth place, their highest after any first round this season.
“The fact that I played my first LIV Golf tournament here at my house was truly a true honor,” Mun said. “Looking at the fans, I really felt less nervous, more comfortable. I really want to thank you for coming today.
“Over the next three days I’m really going to give my best game and have a lot of fun too.”
Considering the Korean GC has struggled in the early rounds of this season, it was a great start to a very important week for the club. The team hopes to deliver a victory to their fans just as Australia’s Ripper GC did earlier this year in front of 115,000 fans in Adelaide.
“I remember how huge the oceans of galleries were during the Adelaide tournament,” Song said. “Considering that we are in Busan, where people are known for being very passionate, I am not only interested in playing a good game with my team members at KGC, but I am also looking forward to seeing all those passionate people in Busan come out to cheer us on.”
POULTER’S ROGED MENISCUS: Majestick overall co-captain Ian Poulter produced a 4-under 66, despite playing with a torn meniscus in his left leg that he suffered at the previous LIV Golf tournament in Virginia.
Poulter said he had just finished a gym session before the first round and was about to climb a flight of six stairs. He chose to climb two stairs at a time, and when he went up, he felt something explode.
“As soon as it happened, I didn’t think I was going to play an hour before teeing off,” Poulter said. “So it was crazy.”
Remarkably, he finished with a season-best T18 in Virginia, then underwent an MRI when he returned home. That’s when he was diagnosed with the tear and told he would need surgery after the season. He took a week off before preparing for Korea.
Still, Poulter said the injury doesn’t affect his actual swing.
“Interestingly, during the golf swing I don’t feel like there’s anything wrong with it,” said Poulter, who also started using a new set of high-performance McLaren irons. “I feel it when I walk downhill, steep hills. I’m just skirting around a little bit. But look, I’m going to have to strengthen that leg. It’s not affecting my golf in any way.
“I just have to remind myself that I can’t go play paddle tennis or do anything stupid or climb stairs like I did a couple of weeks ago. Walking in a straight line and being super sensible is not something I’m used to.
“Look, I feel good. I feel great. Body feels good. We’ll deal with that at some point.”
DIFFERENT TYPES OF COURSES: While Crushers teammates Bryson DeChambeau and Charles Howell III are in familiar territory atop the LIV Golf Korea rankings, they agreed that this year’s course at Asiad Country Club bears few similarities to last year’s Jack Nicklaus Korea Golf Course in Incheon.
“This course is a little shorter, a little more position,” Howell said. “Last year it was a little more open off the tee. You could hit a lot of drivers. At this place, you have to think a little more. If you drive the ball in the heavy here, it’s really hard to get it close to the flags. The green complexes are big, but with all the huge slopes on them, if you miss the fairway, it’s a tough two-putt from 60 feet or some kind of tricky chip.
DeChambeau added: “Actually, it’s completely different. It’s funny, we happen to be playing some great golf here. Yeah, the Jack Nicklaus Golf Course was a different test, and this one is quite different from last year’s golf course.
“It’s just a hitter’s golf course, and that’s what Charles thrives on and that’s what I’ve been working to get better at, and today it paid off.”
RAHM CONTINUES THE STREAK: Legion XIII captain Jon Rahm, the reigning two-time LIV Golf individual champion and current points leader, entered Thursday with a streak of 38 consecutive rounds of par or better in LIV Golf.
That streak was in jeopardy for most of the day, as he was 3 up through 13 holes and had yet to make a birdie. But he finished his round with three birdies on his final five holes, including a birdie putt from 14 feet on his final hole for a par 70.
Rahm, who has never finished lower than 11th in any LIV Golf tournament he has completed, is part of an 11-all tie for 27th.
STATISTICS LEADERS
Round 1
Driving distance: Josele Ballester, average of 317.3 yards.
Longest trip: Doyeob Mun, 363.7 yards (11th hole). Officially measured drives taken on the 11th and 12th holes only.
Driving precision: Charles Howell III, Tom McKibbin, 86.71% (12 of 14)
Greens in the Regulation: Harold Varner III, 88.89% (16 of 18)
Fight: Scott Vincent (7 of 7), Josele Ballester (5 of 5), 100%
Fewer putts: Scott Vincent, Thomas Pieters, 24
Bogey-free rounds: Scott Vincent (65)
This piece is courtesy of Mike McAllister in association with LIV Golf.
