ROCESTER: Two years ago, American Andy Ogletree was part of the inaugural LIV Golf course in London. It didn't go well. Battling through nagging hip and back injuries from the previous year, he finished last and was left to seek playing opportunities.
This week, Ogletree is playing again in a LIV Golf event in England and is again coming back from injury. But this time, his position in the ranking is clearly different.
Shooting a bogey-free 6-under 65, Ogletree is 12 under and will take a two-shot lead into Sunday's final round of LIV Golf UK at JCB Golf and Country Club. On the team side, Smash GC and Legion XIII share a four-shot lead over Ogletree's HyFlyers GC, Stinger GC and Torque GC.
Not only is Ogletree looking for his first LIV golf title and the biggest win of his career, but he's also hoping to complete an amazing redemption story.
“It completes the journey,” said Ogletree, who joined the Phil Mickelson HyFlyers after earning a LIV Golf spot this season as the 2023 International Series champion.
“It was a crazy ride. I don't know exactly what it will mean. We will see. But for now, focus on tomorrow, focus on taking care of the things I can control and we'll go from there.”
Ogletree, forced to adjust his swing this season to compensate for a left wrist injury, can't afford to look too far — his closest pursuers are two of LIV Golf's best players.
Ripper GC captain Cameron Smith is hoping to take a LIV Golf title in England for the second consecutive season after winning the London event at the Centurion Club last year. Legion XIII star Tyrrell Hatton recently won his first LIV golf title in Nashville and has been one of the league's most consistent players since joining.
Smith and Hatton are each at 10 under, but neither seemed completely satisfied with their second-round 5-under 66.
Smith appeared to be breaking away from the pack after his eighth birdie of the day left him in the lead by two. But an errant drive on the 16th hole followed by a water ball on the 17th green produced back-to-back bogeys.
“Probably the most disappointing 5-under I think I've ever had,” said the three-time LIV Golf winner. “I felt really good until a few free swings.”
Hatton, like Ogletree, was bogey-free in his round and hit it well from tee to green as he missed just two greens in regulation. But his putter didn't warm up until the final 10 holes.
“I played really nice golf and I felt like I wasn't doing anything,” he said afterward. “I didn't feel like there was actually a hole there. It took until the 10th hole for a putt to drop.”
Smith and Hatton will play in the final bracket with Ogletree on Sunday, but there are seven other players within five shots of the lead. They include Legion XIII captain Jon Rahm and Crushers GC's Paul Casey, who are tied for fourth; 2023 individual champion Talor Gooch, tied for sixth with Stinger GC captain Louis Oosthuizen; and Gooch Smash GC captain Brooks Koepka, who is tied for eighth with the RangeGoats duo of Matthew Wolff and Peter Uihlein.
It will be a tall order for Ogletree to hold them all, but given the journey he's taken to get to this point, he's up for the challenge. They currently sit 38th in points, but a win would move them into the top 24 Lock Zone with just two regular season tournaments remaining.
“I think I'll be nervous, but I'll be looking forward to it,” he said. “I'm going to run to that pressure and embrace it, and I think everybody's going to be nervous when it comes down to it. Whatever happens, I'll take it and learn from it and move on.”
Standings and score tally for Saturday's second round:
The three best scores from each team count in the first two rounds, while all four scores count in the final round. The team with the lowest cumulative score after three rounds wins the team title.
T1. SMASH GC-21 (Gooch 66, Koepka 68, Kokrak 69; Rd. 2 score: -10)
T1. LEGION XIII -21 (Hatton 66, Surratt 68, Rahm 70; Rd. 2 score: -9)
T3. COUPLE GC -17 (Niemann 67, Ortiz 67, Munoz 68; Rd. 2 score: -11)
T3. STINGER GC-17 (Oosthuizen 67, Schwartzel 67, Grace 70; score Rd. 2: -9)
T3. HYFLYERS GC -17 (Ogletree 65, Tringale 70, Mickelson 72; Rd. 2 score: -6)
T6. CRUSHERS GC -16 (DeChambeau 65, Casey 66, Catlin 71; Rd. 2 score: -11)
T6. FIREBALL GC -16 (Puig 68, Chacarra 70, Garcia 70; score Rd. 2: -5)
T8. ROCK GOATS GC -15 (Uihlein 67, Wolff 68, Watson 72; score Rd. 2: -6)
T9. CLEEKS GC -13 (Bland 68, Samooja 68, Meronk 69; Rd. 2 score: -8)
T9. RIPPER GC -13 (Smith 66, Ormsby 71, Herbert 72; Rd. 2 score: -4)
T11. MAJESTICKS GC -10 (Poulter 68, Stenson 69, Horsfield 70; Rd. 2 score: -6)
T12. IRON HEADS GC -8 (Vincent 66, Kozuma 69, Na 70; Rd. 2 score: -8)
T12. 4ACES GC -8 (Reed 68, Perez 69, Johnson 69; Rd. 2 score: -7)
