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Tyrrell Hatton is looking to make a statement in his first start since becoming a father. The Englishman shot a 2-under 69 in Round 2 to move to 6-under par for the week and take sole possession of the lead halfway through LIV Golf Andalucía 2026.
The Legion
“If you had told me on Wednesday that I would have a two-shot lead going into the weekend, I probably wouldn’t have believed you, to be honest,” Hatton said. “Like I said yesterday, I feel like I did a good warm-up…I simplified some things and came away with that feeling.”
It was a day that belonged, in large part, to the XIII Legion. As Hatton built his lead at the top, teammate and captain Jon Rahm put in one of the most eye-catching rounds on the field. The Spaniard, who had cut a frustrated figure after an opening round of 2-over-par 73 in front of his home crowd, came out brilliant on Friday with a 4-under 67, good for tying the low round of the day. Rahm moved up to 2 under par for the tournament and sits T7, in prime position for a weekend.
The defending champion also announced himself emphatically. OKGC captain Talor Gooch, who has won two of the last three LIV golf tournaments at Valderrama, made his move Friday with a 4-under 67, which included four birdies on the back nine and moved him into a tie for third place at 3 under. Gooch has a habit of finding his best golf when it matters most at this venue, and the course would be wise to follow closely behind him this weekend.
Harold Varner III tied Rahm and Gooch with a 67 of his own, making them three players sharing the day’s low round. It was a pretty impressive round from a player who had also opened with a 2-over 73 on Thursday.
The qualification outlook for the Open Championship sharpened considerably on Friday. Detry followed his first 3-under 68 with a steady 1-under 70 to sit alone in second at 4-under, two behind Hatton. The Belgian continues to widen the gap over Joaquín Niemann in the race for that coveted exemption, and two more rounds of this could make it very difficult for Niemann to hold on.
Sharing third place with Gooch are Cameron Smith, Sergio Garcia and Scott Vincent, who are 3 under after two days. Smith’s continued strength keeps the Ripper GC captain firmly in the conversation as he gains momentum under new swing coach Claude Harmon III. Meanwhile, García is looking to add another chapter to his remarkable Valderrama story. Three Spanish players are now in the top seven: García, Rahm and David Puig in T7.
The day also produced a moment of brilliance from Lucas Herbert. The Ripper GC man triumphed on the 15th hole, the first hole-in-one in Andalusia in LIV Golf’s four visits to the venue. It was the 17th ace in league history, the fifth of 2026 and the second longest in LIV Golf history, trailing only John Catlin’s 220-yard ace at LIV Golf UK in 2024.
In the team competition, Crushers GC, fresh off their victory in Korea last week, attempt to fight back-to-back and carry the team lead into the weekend. For the second day in a row, however, no team managed to finish the round cumulatively below par, a reminder that Real Club Valderrama demands everything from every player, on every hole. With two rounds left, that’s unlikely to change.
LIV Golf Andalucía classification after the second round
1. Tyrrell Hatton (-6)
2. Thomas Detry (-4)
T-3. Scott Vicente (-3)
T-3. Sergio García (-3)
T-3. Talor Gooch (-3)
T-3. Cameron Smith (-3)
T-7. Harold Varner III (-2)
T-7. Branden Gracia (-2)
T-7. Luis Oosthuizen (-2)
T-7. David Puig (-2)
T-7. Jon Rahm (-2)
This piece is courtesy of Mike McAllister in association with LIV Golf.
