ROSTER: Two years ago, American Andy Ogletree was a member of the inaugural LIV Golf Course in London. It didn't work. Battling lingering hip and back injuries last year, he finished last and was left fighting for a chance to play.
Ogletree is back playing at the LIV Golf event in England this week, again recovering from injury. But this time his position in the leaderboard is clearly different.
Shooting a bogey-free 6-under 65, Ogletree is 12 under and will hold a two-shot lead heading 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 HyFlyers GC Ogletree, 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.
“Finish the journey,” said Ogletree, who joined Phil Mickelson's HyFlyers after earning a spot at LIV Golf this season as the 2023 International Series champion.
“It was a crazy road. I don't know exactly what that will mean. Let's see. But right now just focus on tomorrow, focus on what I can control and we'll move on.''
Ogletree, forced to adjust his swing this season to compensate for a left wrist injury, can't afford to look too far ahead — his closest pursuers are two of LIV Golf's top players.
Ripper GC captain Cameron Smith is hoping to claim the LIV Golf England title for the second consecutive season after winning last year's London event at the Centurion Club. Legion XIII star Tyrell Hutton recently won his first LIV Golf title in Nashville and has been one of the most consistent players in the league since he joined.
Smith and Hutton are both 10 under par, but neither seemed completely satisfied with their second round of 5-under 66.
Smith appeared to be breaking away from the pack after his eighth birdie of the day left him two shots ahead. But an errant drive on the 16th hole and then a water ball on the 17th green led to back-to-back bogeys.
“It's probably the most disappointing 5-under I've ever had,” said the three-time LIV Golf winner. “Felt really good until I hit a couple of free swings.”
Hutton, like Ogletree, was bogey-free in his round and hit well from tee to green as he only missed two greens in the round. But his putter didn't warm up until the last 10 holes.
“I played really good golf and I just felt like I was going to let loose,” he said afterward. “It didn't feel like there really was a hole. It took until the 10th hole for the shot to fall.”
Smith and Hutton will play in the final group on Sunday with Ogletree, but there are seven other players within five shots of the leader. They include Legion XIII captain John Rahm and Crushers GC's Paul Casey in fourth place; 2023 individual champion Taylor Gooch, tied for sixth with Stinger GC captain Louis Oosthuizen; and Gooch's Smash GC captain Brooks Koepka, who is tied for eighth with the RangeGoats duo of Matthew Wolfe and Peter Weiline.
It will be a tall order for Ogletree to contain them all, but given the journey he's taken to get to this point, he's up for the challenge. He is currently 38th in points, but a win would move him 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 will run towards that pressure and take it and I think everyone will be nervous going down the stretch. Whatever happens, I'll accept it, learn from it and move on.”
Standings and scoring for Saturday's second round:
The top three scores from each team count in the first two rounds and all four in the final round. The team with the lowest total after three rounds wins the team title.
T1. SMASH GC -21 (Huch 66, Koepka 68, Kokrak 69; Number 2: -10)
T1. LEGION XIII -21 (Hatton 66, Surratt 68, Ram 70; score Rd. 2: -9)
T3. TORQUE GC -17 (Nieman 67, Ortiz 67, Munoz 68; Score 2: -11)
T3. STINGER GC-17 (Oosthuizen 67, Schwartzel 67, Grace 70; score 2: -9)
T3. HYFLYERS GC -17 (Ogletree 65, Tringale 70, Mickelson 72; score 2: -6)
T6. Crusher GC -16 (DeChambeau 65, Casey 66, Kathleen 71; Score 2: -11)
T6. FIREBALLS GC -16 (Puig 68, Chakara 70, Garcia 70; score 2: -5)
T8. RANGEGOATS GC -15 (William 67, Wolff 68, Watson 72; 2nd row score: -6)
T9. CLICK GC -13 (Bland 68, Samoja 68, Meronk 69; score Rd. 2: -8)
T9. ROCKER GC -13 (Smith 66, Ormsby 71, Herbert 72; score 2: -4)
T11. MAJESTICS GC -10 (Poulter 68, Stenson 69, Horsfield 70; score 2: -6)
T12. IRON HEADS GC -8 (Vincent 66, Kazuma 69, Na 70; score 2: -8)
T12. 4ACES GC -8 (Reid 68, Perez 69, Johnson 69; score 2: -7)
