LIV Golf Andalucía Round 2: Talor Gooch Opens a Four-Shot Lead at Valderrama

Saturday at Valderrama was a double shift, and Talor Gooch was the only one of the co-leaders who clocked out in better shape than he clocked in.

After finishing his weather-delayed opening round in the morning, the Smash GC star went back out in calmer afternoon conditions and shot a 5-under 66 to reach 7 under through 36 holes at LIV Golf Andalucía. That is a four-shot lead over Dustin Johnson, whose bogey-free 64 was the best round of the week so far. In the team race, Johnson's 4Aces GC jumped from third to first at 2 over, one shot clear of Gooch's Smash GC.

The Long Saturday

The first round had been left unfinished on Friday after the Poniente wind made the greens unplayable, so the field returned at 8 a.m. to complete it before turning straight around for round two. Gooch, Cameron Smith and Joaquin Niemann came out of that morning tied at 2 under.

The afternoon split them apart. Smith shot 73 and Niemann shot 75, while Gooch posted the second-best score of the day. It is his first 36-hole lead since his breakthrough 2023 season, when he won three times, and one of those wins came on this course.

Gooch knows exactly how little a lead means at Valderrama. He said there is really "no lead that's safe, especially at a golf course like this," and he kept the same tone when asked about Sunday. "Nothing is given tomorrow," he said. He also credited a lot of range work, saying he had found plenty of dirt on the practice tee this week.

DJ Finds His Groove

Johnson opened with a 75 in the wind and looked like a nonfactor. Then he went out Saturday afternoon and did not make a single bogey on his way to a 7-under 64, his second-lowest round relative to par this season. It vaulted him into solo second at 3 under.

The 4Aces GC captain said his game has been in a good place for about six weeks, and he is not ready to concede anything. "I've got a chance," Johnson said. He has won a LIV Golf event in each of the last three years, so a fourth straight season with a title is on the table if he can erase a four-shot gap.

Grace Stays Steady

Branden Grace is the quiet story near the top. The Stinger GC veteran followed his opening 70 with another 70 and sits alone in third at 2 under. For a player battling relegation, back-to-back rounds under par on this course are worth a lot.

Three players share fourth at 1 under: Legion XIII captain Jon Rahm, 4Aces GC's Patrick Reed and Iron Heads GC's Jinichiro Kozuma, whose 68 tied Danny Lee for the third-best round of the day. Reed won LIV Golf Dallas two weeks ago and keeps lurking. Rahm, carrying the hopes of the Spanish galleries, called a comeback "doable."

Sergio Garcia is at even par after a 69, seven shots back, alongside Smith and Abraham Ancer. Garcia knows the math better than anyone. He was seven back entering the final round here a year ago and won after Anirban Lahiri let a four-shot lead slip away. This time Garcia was blunt about the task. "Everything has to go my way tomorrow," Garcia said.

Where Smith Slipped

Smith's afternoon summed up how fast Valderrama can turn. The Ripper GC captain made three bogeys and two birdies on the front nine, then made a double bogey at the 14th on his way to a 73. He is even par, seven back. His team had a worse day. Marc Leishman shot 79, and Ripper GC posted a 10-over team round.

4Aces Take Over the Team Race

Under the 2025 format, all four scores count, and 4Aces GC got enough from everyone. Johnson's 64 did the heavy lifting, with Reed adding a 71 and Thomas Pieters and Harold Varner III each signing for 72. That 5-under team round moved 4Aces to 2 over, the best 36-hole team total in the field.

Smash GC matched the 5 under. Gooch's 66 led the way, Brooks Koepka bounced back from an opening 76 with a 70, Graeme McDowell shot 71 and Jason Kokrak shot 72. Smash is one back at 3 over. Both franchises are chasing their first team win since 2023.

The morning team leaders went the other way. Crushers GC, chasing a fourth straight team title, shot 8 over on Saturday and dropped to sixth at 11 over, nine shots off the pace. Legion XIII posted a 3-over round, with Caleb Surratt's 76 hurting most, and sits third at 7 over. Fireballs GC is fourth at 8 over and HyFlyers GC fifth at 10 over. Iron Heads GC shot the third-best team round of the day at 3 under, led by Kozuma, but sits seventh at 12 over.

One Round to Go

Gooch has a four-shot cushion with 18 holes left, which sounds comfortable until you remember what happened at this event a year ago. Johnson is in form, Grace is playing for his job, Rahm is playing in front of his home crowd, and the team race is a two-horse sprint between 4Aces and Smash, with Legion XIII five back. Valderrama will decide the rest.

LIV Golf's own Round 2 recap (opens in a new tab) has the full team scoreboard.

Sources: LIV Golf, Fox Sports, Australian Golf Digest, Golf News Net. More golf coverage on Undrafted.

Photo: Jon Ferrey/LIV Golf.