Wolff, Puig share Greenbrier lead as Lahiri and the Crushers climb the leaderboard

Anirban Lahiri produced three birdies in an opening burst on day two of LIV Golf Greenbrier on Saturday but his team captain Bryson DeChambeau brought in the round of the day, a 9 under 61 to power the Crushers into a tie for third, up six spots from their overnight tied ninth place.

It was a solid team performance on the day from the Crushers with Charkes Howell III chipping in with a 4 under 66 to match Lahiri’s effort and the LIV record tying 61 from their captain at White Sulphur Springs.

At the top of the order, Matthew Wolff (24) of the US and Spain’s David Puig (21) held a two-shot lead over the field on 12 under par 128s and keeping the two young guns under watch was 50-year-old Richard Bland on 11 under 129 along with DeChambeau and standings topper Talor Gooch.

Overnight leader Wolff followed his LIV-record tying 61 at The Old White course.in the opening round with a 3-under 67, while Puig shot a 65 leaving them on 12 under after the first 36 holes of the 54-hole shotgun start event.

“I’m excited to play with him tomorrow,” Wolff said about Puig. “I’m excited to be tied for the lead. I’m going to go out there and give it my all, and we’ll see what happens.

Added Puig, The age helps probably to enjoy more … or have fun, maybe. Looking forward to tomorrow.”

The third member of the lead group is Bland, the second oldest LIV Golf player. “I'm trying to keep us oldies still relevant,” said the Englishman.

Puig’s Torque GC with a cumulative second round score of 19 under also led the team leaderboard, Mito Pereira chipping in with a 62 and Sebastián Muñoz a 64. It put Torque on a 34 under total, four shots ahead of Stinger GC. Four other teams are eight shots behind including the Crushers, HyFlyers, RangeGoats and Smash, all on 26 under.

Torque are potentially in line for a fourth team title of the season and looking to close the gap with the league-leading 4Aces GC, who were 11the-placed after managing just even par on Saturday.

DeChambeau not only shot his lowest score in a LIV Golf tournament but his bogey-free round was also fuelled by a hot putter, as he converted three birdie attempts of 27 feet or better, including a 47-footer at the 14th hole and a 32-footer at the fourth.

“Obviously the putting was more important because that’s what allowed me to shoot that far under par,” said the 2020 US Open champion. “But the driving was on par if not better than that. …

Having this confidence off the tee is crucial to me playing well, and that’s what it’s provided me so far.”

DeChambeau later credited an alignment adjustment in his shoulder for his improved performance on the greens this week. Through two rounds, he has needed just 53 putts, tied for fifth lowest total in the field.

The Crushers skipper said his shoulders were open instead of square to the ball, preventing him from seeing the same line with his ball to the putt. “If one of those things are off, I get uncomfortable and that’s when I don’t putt as well,” he said.

Meanwhile, Puig will be looking for his first professional win since turning pro last year while Wolff’s last pro win came in 2019 in just his third start after turning professional.

Both players are just outside the top 24 in points who receive guaranteed spots at the end of the regular season for next year’s LIV Golf League.

“I know we’re young but we’re here for a reason,” Wolff said. “I don’t really think anyone else is looking at us like, oh, we’re young. I think they all know we’re going to give it our best. There’s a reason we’re in the lead.”

Day two scores

1. Torque GC (-34): Mito Pereira 62, Sebastián Muñoz 64, David Puig 65

2. Stinger GC (-30): Branden Grace 64, Charl Schwartzel 64, Dean Burmester 67

T3. Crushers GC (-26): Bryson DeChambeau 61, Anirban Lahiri 66, Charles Howell III 66

T3. Smash GC (-26): Matthew Wolff 67, Chase Koepka 68, Jason Kokrak 68

T3. HyFlyers GC (-26): Brendan Steele 63, James Piot 66, Cameron Tringale 68

T3. RangeGoats GC (-26): Talor Gooch 64, Harold Varner III 67, Bubba Watson 68

7. Cleeks GC (-10): Richard Bland 63, Bernd Wiesberger 67, Martin Kaymer 67

8. Majesticks GC (-20): Ian Poulter 66, Henrik Stenson 66, Lee Westwood 69

9. Fireballs GC (-19): Abraham Ancer 65, Sergio Garcia 66, Carlos Ortiz 67

10. Ripper GC (-17): Cameron Smith 64, Marc Leishman 66, Matt Jones 68

11. 4Aces GC (-12): Patrick Reed 67, Peter Uihlein 70, Dustin Johnson 73

12. Iron Heads GC (-11): Scott Vincent 64, Kevin Na 66, Danny Lee 67