Johnson, Neiman line up repeat of Boston 2022 photo-finish at LIV Singapore 

Three years ago, Dustin Johnson of the 4Aces and Torque GC’s Joaquin Neimann clashed in a playoff to decide the Boston title, and on March 16, they could well be doing the same at LIV Golf Singapore presented by Aramco. 

Johnson prevailed over Neimann and India’s Anirban Lahiri that day in Boston for his first individual LIV title and looks well set to continue his hunt for another at the Sentosa Golf Club where Torque captain Niemann shot the best score in March 15 second with a 7 under par 64 to grab a share of the lead with Johnson, who followed his 63 on March 14 with a 3 under 68 in the second round. 

Niemann said, “I still remember that day. It was my first week on LIV. He got it going, I got it going. I felt like I was the leader for a few holes, and he birdied back and then made an amazing putt on the playoff hole. It’s always fun playing with DJ. I’m excited for tomorrow.” 

At 11 under after 36 holes, the pair are three shots clear of their closest pursuers including Neimann’s in-form teammate Sebastian Munoz, Cameron Tringale of the HyFlyers, Smash GC’s Jason Kokrak and Lucas Herbert of the Rippers. Johnson’s 4 Aces also hold a five-stroke lead over Phil Mickelson’s HyFlyers in the team competition where the former are looking to end a run of 22 consecutive tournaments without a win.

Eight shots further behind are Sergio Garcia’s Fireballs GC in third place, but still in the hunt for a third straight tournament title after winning at Adelaide and Hong Kong last week. Johnson and Niemann are in the lead group for the first time since Niemann’s LIV debut in Boston during the 2022 season. Johnson posted his first LIV Golf individual win that week by rolling in a dramatic eagle putt in a playoff that included Niemann and Lahiri. They have competed in the same group thereafter but not with the lead entering the final round. 

Behind them, Muñoz continued to push for a first win a 3 under 68, putting him inside the top five of the leaderboard for the eighth time after 11 rounds this season, and Herbert remains his team’s best-performing player this season, shooting a 5 under 66 on Saturday. Kokrak equalled that score on Saturday and hopes to join Smash teammates Talor Gooch (2023) and captain Brooks Koepka (2024) as Singapore individual winners. “Good vibes with two teammates that have already won here,” Kokrak noted. “I know the golf course well enough. I know what to do. It’s just going out there and doing it.” 

Tringale fired a second consecutive 67 to lead the resurgent HyFlyers. He has not yet won an individual title and the HyFlyers have never won as a team. Sunday in Sentosa well se and end to that barren run. “We all just want it so bad,” Tringale said. “We want to prove to people that we’re a legitimate team. There’s no reason we can’t do it. We’re all excited about the chance.” Since their five wins in the 2022 season including the overall team title, and three times in 2023, the 4Aces have not been a dominant force. “The competition is so good out here,” Johnson noted. “The quality of players from top to bottom is pretty high. To win as a team, it's tough.”