SINGAPORE RD. 2 NEWS AND NOTES: ALL GOOD WITH KOEPKA AND WOLFF

SINGAPORE – Brooks Koepka enters the final round of LIV Golf Singapore with a three shot lead, while his team, Smash GC holds the advantage on the team leaderboard by one. But there were plenty more news, notes and stats from the second round at Sentosa Golf Club.

ALL GOOD WITH WOLFF AND KOEPKA: Plenty of drama played out last season regarding Brooks Koepka and his former Smash teammate Matthew Wolff, and it eventually resulted in Wolff being traded to RangeGoats GC for 2023 Individual Champion Talor Gooch.

Sunday will be the first time Koepka and Wolff have been next to each other atop the final-round leaderboard since the trade, although they will not be playing in the same group. Koepka is in the lead group with Thomas Pieters and Adrian Meronk, while Wolff tees off 11 minutes earlier. Both groups will start on hole No. 1.

“I don’t think it really matters” Wolff said when asked if he’d rather be in Koepka’s group. “I think I’m out there focusing on myself, trying to play the best that I can play, and I’m not worried about what other people are doing. Every single tournament, every single round, I just go out there and give it my best, and that’s all I can really do. Like I said, I can’t control what other people are doing. So why focus on him?”

Koepka noted that the two players were in the same group last week in Adelaide, although neither were in contention for the title.

“Look, I have no problem with Matt,” Koepka said. “We just didn’t gel, see eye to eye on how things were or how I thought they should be. I’ve always liked him as a person. I think he’s a great kid. I’ve said that to a bunch of people even behind closed doors during everything last year. It was a good thing for him to leave the team and go to the RangeGoats, and it was a good thing for our team.

“Look, he’s fine. He seems to be playing better, in a better head space, better form, better everything.”

WOLFF, HIS BROTHER AND SINGAPORE: Eli Wolff is in town to support his younger brother Matthew, and his presence seems to be paying off.

Matthew Wolff will enter Sunday’s final round at LIV Golf Singapore tied for second at 9 under, three shots behind Brooks Koepka.

Eli Wolff was in the gallery when Matthew won for the first time on the PGA Tour five years ago. The RangeGoats GC star is hoping for similar success Sunday. “Maybe he’s my good-luck charm,” Matthew said.

Matthew said his brother has always had Singapore on his bucket list and wanted to attend last year’s tournament, but Matthew was with his fiancée. So, the brothers circled the 2024 tournament as the one for Eli to attend.

In fact, Eli arrived in Singapore earlier than Matthew, and spent Monday walking around the city. “28,000 steps,” Matthew reported.

Perhaps one of the reasons Eli enjoys Singapore is that the heat and humidity have little impact on him. “He doesn’t sweat,” Matthew said. “My shirt is drenched out there and his isn’t.”

SMASH SEEKS SECOND WIN IN 2024: The revamped Smash lineup with offseason acquisitions Talor Gooch and Graeme McDowell won the team title in the chilly weather in Las Vegas. Now the team is one day away from its second win of 2024 in the heat in Singapore.

Nine teams are within 10 shots of the lead, and with all four scores counting this season, that’s not an insurmountable lead. The closest pursuers are Ripper GC, just one shot back and currently in terrific form after winning on home soil at LIV Golf Adelaide in the first team playoff against Stinger GC.

“We’ve had some success this year, but we haven’t clicked really,” Gooch said. “I know that we’ve all at times been searching for our games, and so we know how hard it is to win as a team out here, and you don’t take it for granted. Hopefully we can go get it done tomorrow.”

TEAM COUNTING SCORES

Standings and counting scores for Saturday’s second round of the team competition at LIV Golf Singapore. The three best scores from each team count in the first two rounds while all four scores count in the final round. The team with the lowest cumulative score after three rounds wins the team title.

1. SMASH GC -23 (Koepka 64, Gooch 66, Kokrak 71; Rd. 2 score -12)

2. RIPPER GC -22 (Smith 65, Herbert 67, Leishman 67; Rd. 2 score -14)

3. RANGEGOATS GC -21 (Wolff 65, Pieters 67, Uihlein 70; Rd. 2 score -11)

T4. CLEEKS GC -20 (Meronk 66, Bland 68, Kaymer 69; Rd. 2 score -10)

T4. FIREBALLS GC -20 (Ancer 67, Garcia 68, Chacarra 69; Rd. 2 score -9)

6. LEGION XIII -17 (Hatton 68, Rahm 68, Vincent 68; Rd. 2 score – 9)

7. STINGER GC -14 (Oosthuizen 69, Burmester 70, Schwartzel 70; Rd. 2 score -4)

T8. CRUSHERS GC -13 (DeChambeau 66, Howell III 66, Lahiri 69; Rd. 2 score -12)

T8. HYFLYERS GC -13 (Mickelson 68, Tringale 68, Ogletree 71; Rd. 2 score -6)

T8. TORQUE GC -13 (Niemann 69, Muñoz 70, Pereira 70; Rd. 2 score -4)

11. 4ACES GC -12 (Varner III 67, Reed 68, Johnson 70; Rd. 2 score -8)

12. IRON HEADS GC -10 (Vincent 66, Na 70, Kozuma 72; Rd. 2 score -5)

13. MAJESTICKS GC -7 (Poulter 68, Stenson 68, Westwood 71; Rd. 2 score -6)

ROUND 2 STATS LEADERS

Driving accuracy: Abraham Ancer, 92.86.% (13 of 14 fairways hit)

Driving distance: Matthew Wolff, 337.3 yards avg.

Longest drive: Matthew Wolff, 339.8 yards, 5th hole

Greens in regulation: Adrian Meronk, Marc Leishman, Henrik Stenson, Matt Jones, 88.89% (16 of 18 greens)

Scrambling: Richard Bland (5 of 5), Harold Varner III (4 of 4), Dean Burmester (4 of 4), Louis Oosthuizen (4 of 4), Bryson DeChambeau (3 of 3), Brooks Koepka (3 of 3), Adrian Meronk (2 of 2); Marc Leishman (2 of 2), Henrik Stenson (2 of 2), 100%

Putting: Lucas Herbert, 1.33 putts per hole

Bogey-free rounds: Brooks Koepka (64), Bryson DeChambeau (66), Adrian Meronk (66), Marc Leishman (67), Harold Varner III (67), Richard Bland (68)

*Credit information www.livgolf.com Written by Livgolf Staff