Joaquin Niemann’s win at LIV Golf Adelaide on Sunday, February 16 2025 was the culmination of a year and a half of hard work. Now, it has the express honour of becoming Niemann’s building block towards the objective that drives every professional golfer worth his salt.
While his victory on Sunday was pivotal to his career, such that it could very well fuel his Majors aspirations, Niemann found himself aware that the moment was brought on by more than years of sweat and sacrifice. Of equal importance: A rock-solid temperament coupled with the ability to step up at critical junctures to nose ahead of a cutthroat field.
Niemann did so, and sent out the message that 2025 could be his on LIV. A hurrah at the Majors, starting with an invite to The Masters in April, could be one more solid affirmation that LIV Golf is an equally strong conglomeration of talent on the world stage.
Joaquin Niemann seals win at 2025 LIV Golf Adelaide
It was the perfect chase down, and the 31-year-old Chilean’s three-shot win over Torque GC teammate Carlos Ortiz and Abraham Ancer of Fireballs GC at the Grange Golf Club was an extension of his belief. Niemann finds his craft in a good place. Notably, the urge is strong to keep going full steam week in and week out, keeping the putts rolling in nicely.
Aware that all it takes is one bad round or week for a dip in momentum, Sunday’s flawless round, dotted with seven birdies for a total of 13-under, was about the perfect buildup for his next assignment.
Niemann will wait a while for his next LIV week in Hong Kong, but when he tees off in early March at the Hong Kong Golf Club at Fanling, he will still be telling himself, “I don’t want to get out of the game rhythm because you don’t know what can happen next.”
Given the form he is in, Niemann can for now focus on the positives, and what’s working for him can be good enough to help him contend at the Majors.
“That is something we all work for. I know I can do it; it’s a matter of that week being my week. I need to be patient. Having a good finish in the Majors, I’m ready for it,” he said.
Setting the tempo
Niemann’s endeavours towards improvement was strengthened by this week Down Under. The connecting thread goes back in time as the land and its encouraging fans played a part in helping to secure his top 5 at the DP World Tour’s Fortinet Australian PGA Championship two seasons ago, and his maiden win at the ISPS Handa Australian Open soon after.
Since then, Niemann has won early in the season to set the tempo for the year. The opening week in Mayakoba set up an immensely successful 2024 at LIV. That win and the one in Jeddah plus other strong results were pivotal in bringing home his second place finish on the individual rankings.
Asked to compare the skill level in 2024 and now, Niemann declared he is a much better player. This, despite closing 2024 with a win at the Asian Tour’s PIF Saudi International, which handed him the top spot in the International Series.
“I feel my game keeps improving. That’s something I keep seeing during my career. Every time I get more experience, days like today (Sunday) make me grow as a player. There is a lot I have to take and if I could have these Sundays more often, chasing leaders, it would [be] really good for my game.”
It could well have been two wins in the space of three weeks as Niemann, the 54-hole leader at the International Series India, almost made it a three-peat in terms of season-opening wins. However, his T3 placement in Gurugram is nonetheless a vital cog towards improvement.
Deep connect
The amazing fans, as Niemann put it, will be in for a lot more quality action over time. To wit: LIV Golf and the South Australia Government have announced an extension of their agreement, which makes Adelaide the home of the League till 2031.
As per the understanding, the North Adelaide Golf Course will be designed by former LIV CEO, Commissioner, and now Board member Greg Norman, and LIV Golf events will be staged within the Adelaide Park Lands.
“I’ve dreamed of building a global golf league for 30 years, and LIV Golf Adelaide is the realisation of what LIV Golf can be around the world,” said Norman.
Major goals
Known to be severe on protagonists, the Augusta National Golf Club has been relatively kind to Niemann. Making cut four times, his best finish at the Masters was the T16 in 2023, and he will look to step up even more this time.
This could very well be Niemann’s year, as his recent performances have earned him exemptions to The Open and PGA Championship as well. And, with the USGA granting exemptions to LIV for the US Open, Niemann is in the race to grab a spot for the 2025 edition at Oakmont in June.
“That [The Majors] is what I work for. For me, the main goal is not here, it’s looking way ahead. I’ve got so many years of golf and trying to get better, and I feel like these moments right now are big moments of learning where I can improve my game. The way I played today talks a lot on how I’ve been working, how I’ve been practicing. Being able to see those little steps forward all the time is always satisfying, and makes me have more energy to go out and get better again,” he said, on dreaming big.
Some consolation
Going into the final day as a joint leader with a three-shot lead, Abraham Ancer was undone by his mistakes towards close and Niemann’s brilliance. Yet, there was some comfort to be had with the Fireballs GC taking the top spot in the Team Championship with an emphatic win over Legion XIII.
The six-shot cushion was largely due to Ancer and David Puig’s efforts through the week, and with captain Sergio Garcia and new lad Luis Masaveu chipping in on the final day, the new scoring format ensured they all added up towards Fireballs’ win in the second start of the year after the top 5 finish in Riyadh.
It is a good omen as it promises to be another good season. The Fireballs had a win and two runner-up results last year, which left them sixth on the Team Championship, and it was a proud captain Garcia who walked up to Ancer on the 18th green.
The angst of missing out on a double win was there, but for Garcia and the rest, staying competitive in tricky conditions was a big takeaway.
Missing out on a win at least twice last season, Garcia understood the turmoil within Ancer, and the hug and whisper on the 18th green was an attempt to assuage the pain.
“He [Ancer] did a lot of good things, and he has to remember those. Obviously, it always hurts. It happened to me two or three times last year. The good thing is he played really [solidly] and he’s going to take all those positives,” said Garcia.
At one point with the finish line still some distance away, Fireballs were assured as team champions and thus became the only team to win at least once in every season, giving Ancer the space to chase personal glory.
In the brutal conditions, keeping the blinders on was critical, and Ancer was up to the task with the birdies leading to the closing stretch.
He maintained the tempo, and but for the bogey-bogey finish, the storyline could have been a lot different. As one who knows how to win, Ancer separated the positives from the mixed plot.
“Having a chance to win the tournament, the last two holes were rough. But I think it’s fuel for the rest of the season. I feel like my game is trending in the right direction, and I like where things are headed,” said Ancer.
It was in Hong Kong that Ancer posted his first win on LIV last season, and Adelaide’s back-nine on Sunday has left him craving to set things right when he goes back in a few weeks. “I have enough fuel from here to do it there,” he admitted.
Amid the noise at the top of the leaderboard, Legion XIII continued in their goal: to keep performing. After the team win in Riyadh, captain Jon Rahm was at the fore once more, helping the team finish runner-up after the Fireballs. The top spot in the team ranking is still theirs. The skipper is second in the individual standings, and new signing Tom McKibbin is likewise showing signs of being a youthful value add.
(Main and featured images: @livgolf_league/LIV Golf/Instagram)
The information in this article is accurate as of the date of publication.
