Tom McKibbin is among the raft of LIV Golf players who go into the final round of this week’s event probably thinking that they are playing for second place given the performance of Joaquin Niemann over the first two days at JCB.
It has been an impressive comeback from Tom McKibbin so far this week. The youngster would have been hugely disappointed to miss the cut at The Open Championship at Royal Portrush.
McKibbin was tipped as a dark horse to win The Open given his experience on the Northern Irish course. Unfortunately, McKibbin made some needless mistakes on his way to missing out on making the weekend.
But two rounds of 68 have left the 22-year-old in a tie for sixth at LIV Golf UK. However, McKibbin is as close to those tied for 44th as he is to the lead, with Joaquin Niemann stealing the show in Uttoxeter.
Joaquin Niemann issues his verdict on Tom McKibbin after playing alongside him at LIV Golf UK
Niemann is 14 under par for the tournament and six shots clear of Bubba Watson. It is difficult to see how the Chilean does not secure his fifth victory of the season on Sunday.
Niemann actually played alongside McKibbin for the first time ever during the first round this week. And when asked about the starlet, Niemann insisted that he has everything in his game to enjoy a really bright future.
“Yeah, it was the first time that I played with Tom since he joined. I never played with him,” he said.
“I enjoyed playing with him. I think he’s a great golfer. Obviously he’s had the results before. He was in the top 10 on DP World. He probably hasn’t had the results he wants to on LIV so far, but I think he’s going to be all right. He’s really young. You can tell coming from Ireland, I think they build pretty good golfers there, and the way he controls the ball into the wind and his short game, yeah, he’s going to be great.
“It was good fun playing with him, and you can tell he’s a confident player.”
Joaquin Niemann outlines his game plan for the final round at LIV Golf UK
There are leads which leave players with something of a dilemma regarding whether they should stick or twist. Plenty of players have thrown away three or four shot advantages with 18 holes to play over the years.
But Niemann has the luxury of a six shot lead over the chasing pack heading into the final round in England. And he provided an insight into what his game plan will be as he looks to completely shut the door on those hoping to stage an amazing comeback.
“Yeah, I feel like you can be a little bit more conservative, but like I said before, if I’m conservative, it doesn’t mean that I’m going to be aggressive. I feel like I can be aggressive into a little bit more conservative line. Sometimes maybe take a few risks out of play, but at the same time, I’ve got to commit 100 percent to my shots, and I feel for me, being aggressive is to be committed to those shots,” he said.
“Obviously tomorrow there’s going to be a few difficult pins. There’s still 18 holes to play. There’s really good players behind me. I’m just going to keep focusing on what I’m doing, hitting my shots, doing my routine, and just enjoy the day tomorrow.”
Based on Niemann’s performances on LIV this year, it would be no surprise if he ends up looking every bit as comfortable as Scottie Scheffler did last week on Sunday at The Open Championship.
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