PLAYERS AWAIT 36-HOLE FINALE
Saturday will start early and continue until late in the afternoon for the final two rounds at LIV Golf Promotions. But the reward to the winner is immense: a spot in next year’s LIV Golf League.
Kieran Vincent went through this a year ago, claiming one of the then-three available spots at the inaugural Promotions event in Abu Dhabi. He even had to play an extra playoff hole.
“Fortunate enough to be in this situation previously,” he said. “We’ll try and draw on some of that, try and conserve energy for tomorrow because it’s a long day, action-packed, so anything can happen.”
Indeed, fitness will be a big key in deciding the outcome.
“36 holes is something I’m very comfortable with,” said Hong Kong’s Taichi Kho. “I played four years of college golf at Notre Dame, and we played a lot of 36-hole days.
“I understand it’s a marathon, not a sprint. You’re going to make mistakes, and you’re going to make some miraculous shots during the round. It’s important to keep yourself level-headed and I guess not to over-try during the round because you have to conserve your energy for the entirety of the day.”
The two English players left in the field are also the two oldest players competing Saturday – 41-year-old Steve Lewton and 39-year-old David Horsey. Lewton had a first-round bye while Horsey has played the first two days.
“It’ll be interesting,” said Horsey, who last remembered playing 36 holes in a day when he was an amateur. “Especially the legs. It’s quite firm ground and you find the legs ache a bit, the calves a bit. Walking on the sand between tees and fairways is quite heavy. Hopefully the legs will hold up.”
SCHNIEDERJANS DROP EXPLAINED
LIV Golf Promotions rules update:
Schniederjans Drop in Second Round Playoff Explained
On the third hole of the Friday playoff, Ollie Schniederjans’s tee shot came to rest against the earthen wall that separates the desert and rough. The Model Local Rule that had been adopted for the week is as follows: ABNORMAL COURSE CONDITIONS / IMMOVABLE OBSTRUCTIONS – Rule: 16.1, Earthen Walls: Between the grass and desert is ground under repair if the ball touches or when it interferes with the player’s area of intend swing, free relief is available under Rule 16.1, but interference does not exist if the earthen wall interferes only with the player’s stance. Schniederjans took his nearest point of complete relief from the wall and dropped correctly within 1 club-length, remaining in the general area.
QUICK LOOK AT THE FINAL 20 PLAYERS
SCOTT VINCENT, Zimbabwe (63) – Played full-time on LIV Golf the first three years, the last two with Iron Heads GC.
BEN CAMPBELL, New Zealand (64) – Highest-ranked player (3rd) in field from The International Series final standings.
KIERAN VINCENT, Zimbabwe (65) – Played for Legion XIII after earning a LIV Golf spot at the 2023 Promotions tournament.
JEUNGHUN WANG, Korea (65) – Four professional wins, including three on the DP World Tour; Rookie of the Year winner in 2016.
GUNN CHAROENKUL, Thailand (66) – Has 12 professional wins across five different tours; finished T14 in last year’s Promotions tournament.
BRANDEN GRACE, South Africa (66) – Won LIV Golf’s first U.S.-based tournament in 2022 as a member of Stinger GC; finished second and ninth in individual points in first two seasons.
JEONGWOO HAM, Korea (66) – Won Korean Tour’s Golfzon-Toray Open in September.
DAVID HORSEY, England (66) – Has six career wins, including four on the DP World Tour.
DAIHAN LEE, Korea (66) – Won Korean Tour’s KPGA Tour Championship in November.
JACK BUCHANAN, Australia (67) – Two-time winner this year on PGA Tour of Australasia; fourth on Order of Merit.
BRETT COLETTA, Australia (67) – Has three career wins, including two since 2023 on PGA Tour of Australasia.
TAICHI KHO, Hong Kong (67) – Became first player from Hong Kong to win on the Asian Tour with his victory at the World City Championship in 2023.
RICHARD T. LEE, Canada (67) – Won Asian Tour’s BNI Indonesian Masters in November; 5th in International Series points.
LEE CHIEH-PO, Chinese Taipei (67) – Won International Series Thailand in October; 7th in International Series points.
SOOMIN LEE, Korea (67) – Won Korean Tour’s KJ Choi Invitational in October; has six career wins.
STEVE LEWTON, England (67) – Won Asian Tour’s Mandiri Indonesian Open in September; finished 20th in last year’s Promotions tournament.
SUTEEPAT PRATEEPTIENCHAI (67) – Won twice on Asian Tour and once on Thailand Tour in 2024.
MAX ROTTLUFF, Germany (67) – Has four professional wins, including two in 2023 on the Challenge Tour.
BORJA VIRTO, Spain (67) – Has four career pro wins, including two on Challenge Tour in 2015; played collegiately at Iowa State.
OLLIE SCHNIEDERJANS, USA (68) – Former top-ranked amateur from Georgia Tech who has one professional win.
