LIV Golf Chicago Round 1: Dustin Johnson and Sergio Garcia Share the Lead as Stinger GC Sets the Team Pace

Two weeks ago Dustin Johnson finished dead last at LIV Golf UK by JCB. On Friday at Bolingbrook Golf Club, the 4Aces GC captain walked off with a share of the lead.

Johnson and Sergio Garcia each posted 4-under 67 in hot, windy conditions to top the board after the opening round of LIV Golf Chicago. Six players sit one shot back at 3 under, a crowded group that includes Jon Rahm, Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, Phil Mickelson, Tyrrell Hatton and Dean Burmester. In the team race, Burmester's Stinger GC leads at 6 under, one ahead of Garcia's Fireballs GC, with a 31-tournament winless streak hanging over the South Africans.

Last to First, Again

Starting on the 17th hole in the shotgun, the two-time major champion gave back two shots almost immediately, then settled in. Five birdies in a nine-hole stretch flipped the card, and 14 greens in regulation, tied for second-most in the field, kept the round stable. Only a bogey on his final hole kept Johnson from sleeping on a solo lead.

The bounce-back is becoming a habit. According to LIV Golf, this is the second time this season Johnson has gone from last place at one event to the first-round lead at the next. The first came in March, when he jumped from the bottom of the board to the top in Singapore. He also had his brother Austin back on the bag after missing the UK event.

His own read on the last-place finish was blunt. "I know my score was horrible, but I actually hit a lot of good shots," Johnson said.

Sergio's Rollercoaster

Garcia took the scenic route to the same number. The Fireballs GC captain made eight birdies and four bogeys, and the middle of the round was electric: four straight birdies from the 11th through the 14th pushed him to 6 under. Then the finish bit back, with consecutive bogeys on his last two holes dragging him back into a tie.

The putter did the heavy lifting. Garcia needed just 23 putts, tied for the fewest in the field. "Today, I felt like I hit the ball pretty much as well as I hit the ball at the beginning of the year," Garcia said. That is a meaningful benchmark for a player who already won LIV Golf Hong Kong in March and who finished tied for second at Bolingbrook a year ago. He came into the week sixth in the season points race and is projected to climb to fourth.

The Crowd at 3 Under

Koepka, without a LIV top 14 since Singapore, opened with a birdie at the par-5 third, saved par with back-to-back up-and-downs on the seventh and eighth, then strung together three straight birdies from the 10th through the 12th before a late bogey at the 16th.

The HyFlyers GC captain Mickelson reeled off four consecutive birdies from the 12th through the 15th and was bogey-free deep into the round before dropping shots on his final two holes. Even with the stumble, the 68 projects him from 20th to 11th in the points race. "At 55, I think that's a cool accomplishment, and I would love to finish this year off right," Mickelson said of his season.

Rahm, the defending champion at Bolingbrook, shot 68, matched by Legion XIII teammate Hatton, and the timing matters. Points leader Joaquin Niemann opened with a 74 and sits tied for 45th. LIV's data team bumped Rahm's chances of catching the Torque GC captain from 15 percent to 30 percent after one round, with the season finale in Indianapolis looming a week away.

Stinger GC Smells It

With all four scores counting in every round, depth beats star power, and Stinger GC had the deepest day. Burmester's 68 led the way, Branden Grace and Charl Schwartzel each added 69, and captain Louis Oosthuizen's 72 was enough to post 6 under as a team. The Stingers have not won a team event in 31 tournaments, and Friday was their cleanest look at ending that run in a long time.

Fireballs GC sits one back at 5 under thanks to Garcia's 67 and a 69 from rookie Josele Ballester, the 2024 U.S. Amateur champion. 4Aces GC and Crushers GC share third at 3 under, Smash GC is at 2 under, and HyFlyers GC is at 1 under. Legion XIII is at even par after Caleb Surratt (75) and Tom McKibbin (73) could not keep pace with Rahm and Hatton.

Trouble at the Bottom

Bolingbrook played tough. The field averaged 0.41 over par, and some of the league's veterans felt every bit of the wind. Majesticks GC and Iron Heads GC share last at 9 over, with Ian Poulter signing for 74, Henrik Stenson for 75 and Kevin Na for 77. Cleeks GC is at 4 over after Frederik Kjettrup shot 76, and wild card Anthony Kim struggled to an 82. With 2026 roster spots on the line, those numbers sting.

What Saturday Brings

Eight players are within one shot of the lead on a course that refuses to give anything away, and the two co-leaders both handed back shots late. Johnson has the ball-striking numbers, Garcia has the putter, and Rahm has the motivation of a points race that just opened back up. Stinger GC has the team lead and a long memory of how quickly those disappear.

Full first-round details are in the LIV Golf Round 1 recap (opens in a new tab).

Sources: LIV Golf (Round 1 recap), Field Level Media, Fox Sports, Arab News. More golf coverage on Undrafted.

Photo: LIV Golf.