Jon Rahm and Adrian Meronk each shot an 8-under 62 Friday to take the lead after the first round of the LIV Golf Jeddah Invitational in King Abdullah Economic City, Saudia Arabia.
Rahm had a bogey-free round, with Meronk mixing seven birdies, an eagle and a bogey.
One shot back and tied for third after rounds of 63 are Bryson DeChambeau, Charl Schwartzel of South Africa and Chile’s Joaquin Niemann. Another South African, Louis Oosthuizen, is in sixth place at 6-under.
Seven players, including LIV 2023 season champion Talor Gooch, are tied for seventh at 5-under.
Anthony Kim, rusty after a 12-year absence from pro golf, is in last place after opening with a 6-over 76.
It was the first competitive round ever for Rahm at the Royal Greens Golf and Country Club. He found the course to his liking.
“Like everything, there’s going to be a few spots where when you’ve played a couple more times, a couple breaks or situations, wind differences, you’re going to have more experience on, but it’s not a golf course that is very tricky tee to green,” the Spaniard said. “Like it’s very much in front of you. You know where you have to go. You just have to hit good shots.
“I feel like my record when I’m playing tournaments for the first time has been pretty good for some reason. Sometimes not knowing is a blessing.”
Everything went right for him on Friday.
“Really, really good day. Drove it great. Drove it really good, besides maybe one tee shot, and even then I ended up in a good spot on 12,” said Rahm, in his first LIV season. “Anytime you shoot a bogey-free 62, there’s not much that goes wrong. Put it in the right spots and gave myself the opportunities.”
This wasn’t the first time at Royal Greens for Meronk, and it’s a course that suits him.
“I just like the layout of this course,” said Poland’s Meronk, also in his LIV debut season, “Really enjoy playing here. I have played here before. I’m trying to just be friendly with the wind. It’s always quite windy here. But I just like the setup. It suits my eye and I think suits my game, as well. I’m enjoying playing here.
Meronk credited his putter for the low score.
“I holed a lot of good putts but gave myself a lot of good chances. Could have been lower. But just overall the whole game was quite solid,” he said. “I didn’t make too many mistakes. I was quite solid off the tee. Just really a solid day. I really enjoyed it today.”
In team play, Rahm’s Legion XIII jumped to the lead Friday at 17-under. The team is a shot ahead of Stinger GC, which benefited by strong play from Schwartzel and Oosthuizen.
–Field Level Media