Talor Gooch’s 10-under 62 in Friday’s opening round at LIV Golf Adelaide gave him a four-shot lead.
It also set a LIV Golf record for lowest round in relation to par and tied the record-low score by any LIV golfer.
Gooch is American, his caddie Malcolm Baker is Australian. Ever since LIV Golf announced its intentions to play in Adelaide, they’ve been discussing the event and the huge crowds expected at The Grange Golf Club.
“We were curious because of all the buildup, all the hype,” Gooch said. “The expectations were high, right? And it lived up to it every bit. So it was a blast out there.”
Of course, it helps when your scorecard includes a bogey-free round with 10 birdies.
“It’s the days that you work hard for,” said Gooch, who missed just one fairway and one green.
With two par five in his remaining three holes, Gooch couldn’t help but think of shooting 59.
“I for sure wanted to be the first 59 on LIV,” he said. “That would’ve been a cool history book to have.”
He made par on the first par-five, the 9th, then birdied the par-five 10th to get to 10 under. He said he’d gladly take that and the four-shot lead.
“If anyone says they’re not surprised at 10 under, they’re lying to themselves,” Gooch said. “10 under is never an expectation of what you think is going to happen.”
England’s Richard Bland and South Africa’s Dean Burmester were his closest pursuers after shooting 66.
Australian Cameron Smith produced a three-under 69 and will need some low scores to catch Gooch.
“It was a pretty epic day,” Smith said. “It was incredible every hole, the support going on to the tee, off the green. To be honest, it was pretty tiring. But no, it was a really good day. I’m looking forward to doing it again over the weekend.”
– Edited report from LIV Golf website
