Sebastian Munoz recorded the third sub-60 round in LIV Golf history, stunningly overcoming a double bogey to shoot a 12-under-par 59 to open LIV Golf Indianapolis on Friday in Westfield, Ind.
The Colombian set The Club at Chatham Hills ablaze with 14 birdies, including on 13 of his final 14 holes. Munoz stood at 1 over par after his double bogey at No. 5 (his fourth hole), but he rattled off eight birdies in a row.
After a par at the par-3 14th, he birdied his final five holes, knocking in a short putt at No. 1 for the historic round.
He’ll take just a three-shot lead over Dustin Johnson into the weekend.
Bryson DeChambeau (2023 LIV Golf Greenbrier) and Chile’s Joaquin Niemann (2024 LIV Golf Mayakoba) were the only others in the league’s brief history to shoot sub-60.
“Amazing round,” Munoz said. “I started par-par-birdie, feeling normal. I just tried to go low, then a double hits me. I just kind of stayed positive, made a couple birdies and kind of made a run and we made eight straight.
“I made a great putt on 17 and 18 to keep it going and a really good wedge shot here on 1 to finish it up.”
It was Munoz’s lowest competitive round, as his caddie said he’s shot 60 twice in his career.
The final putt was no gimme.
“The break was a little tricky so I just didn’t want to mess it up. I had missed some short ones before, so I just really tried to focus, and at the moment just hit it as smooth as I could, and it went in, so it was great.”
Munoz, 32, has yet to win on the LIV Golf circuit but is seventh in the season standings and would love his first victory to come in the regular-season finale.
Niemann, who has five wins this year, has a 12.27-point lead over Spaniard Jon Rahm in the race for the individual championship. Niemann is part of a tie for third at 7-under 64 with Patrick Reed, Belgium’s Thomas Pieters and Australia’s Cameron Smith. Rahm settled for a 4-under 67.
Meanwhile, Johnson is hoping to finish his season on a high note after doing no better than a tie for fifth all season. His 10-birdie, one-bogey round would have been the standout if not for Munoz.
“I’ve still got a few more tournaments this year (outside LIV), so it’s not like it’s that much pressure on me,” Johnson said. “But obviously I always want to win. That’s the goal. That’s why I’m out here. I still feel like I have the game to compete at the highest level.
“Yeah, it would be nice to finish off the year with a win, but obviously there’s two more rounds and a lot of good players and still 36 holes to go.”
Munoz and Niemann are teammates on Torque GC, so their low rounds boosted Torque to 23 under and a four-shot lead in the team competition. Johnson’s 4Aces GC (19 under) is second and Phil Mickelson’s HyFlyers GC (15 under) is third.
–Field Level Media
