Two South Africans will carry local hopes into the second round of LIV Golf Promotions after safely negotiating the opening hurdle at Black Diamond Ranch in Florida.
Louis Albertse and Oliver Bekker both carded solid three-under-par 67s to advance from a field of 60 players, with only those finishing under par earning a place in Friday’s decisive second round.
Albertse was tidy throughout, showing composure on a demanding layout where mistakes were costly, while Bekker leaned on his experience to grind out a score that comfortably kept him inside the cut line.
With scores reset for round two, both South Africans remain firmly in the hunt for a place in the weekend shootout – and ultimately one of three coveted spots in the 2026 LIV Golf League.
The opening round was led by Canada’s Richard T Lee, who fired a bogey-free six-under 64 to top the leaderboard, but the focus now shifts to consistency rather than position.
Friday’s round will see the 29 qualifiers joined by 18 exempt players, with the top 20 and ties advancing to the final two-day stage.
Also advancing were several players with major international experience, including Chase Koepka, Max Kieffer and Sadom Kaewkanjana, underlining the depth of the field and the scale of the challenge still ahead.
The final stage will be contested over 36 holes across the weekend, with only the top three earning LIV Golf cards.
Advancing into Round 2
Richard T. Lee, Canada – 64
Max Kennedy, Ireland – 66
Pablo Ereno, Spain – 66
Suteepat Prateeptienchai, Thailand – 66
Sadom Kaewkanjana, Thailand – 66
Hongtaek Kim, South Korea – 66
Louis Albertse, South Africa – 67
Charlie Forster, England – 67
Oliver Bekker, South Africa – 67
Dominic Foos, Germany – 67
Chase Koepka, USA – 67
Austen Truslow, USA – 67
Sarit Suwannarut, Thailand – 67
Lucas Bjerregaard, Denmark – 67
Will Florimo, Australia – 68
Poom Saksansin, Thailand – 68
Travis Smyth, Australia – 68
Sung-kug Park, South Korea – 68
Max Kieffer, Germany – 69
Tomoyo Ikemura, Japan – 69
Collin Adams, USA – 69
Julien Brun, France – 69
Julian Perico, Peru – 69
James Ashfield, Wales – 69
Cory Crawford, Australia – 69
Jose Islas, Mexico – 69
Pavit Tangkamolprasert, Thailand – 69
Joe Pagdin, England – 69
Matthias Schwab, Austria – 69
Photo: Mike Stobe/LIV Golf
