David Puig announced in September 2022 that he was turning professional. Just two months later, he was playing in the star match of the final round at the International Series in Morocco. He started as the leader with a two-shot advantage and finished in third place. Since then, he hasn’t missed leading on a Sunday any year. In 2023, he achieved it twice, once more in 2024, and now comes the fifth in 2025, just in time, shortly before the year ends.
In 2023, he achieved it at the International Series in Singapore, an Asian Tour tournament like the one in Morocco the previous year, and at the LIV Golf at Greenbrier. In Singapore, he started with a whopping nine-shot lead and, obviously, ended up lifting the trophy. Meanwhile, at Greenbrier, in his first star Sunday match in the LIV, he finished in fourth place alone. He started the last day tied with Matthew Wolff. It wasn’t David’s fault that day; it was simply that Bryson DeChambeau went crazy and signed a twelve under par…
Finally, in 2024, he also started as the leader in the final round at the LIV Golf in Houston. He was tied with Paul Casey, Carlos Ortiz, and Adrian Meronk and finished in a tied third place. Interestingly, in 2025, his best year in LIV, he hadn’t yet managed to get into any final Sunday match, but he couldn’t leave empty-handed. He’s got it in the bag. Tomorrow, he’ll tee off in the star group with Anthony Quayle and Ricardo Gouveia. All three are tied at -13.
Puig’s numbers are impressive. Every year since turning professional, he has managed to lead a tournament in the final round, and with tomorrow’s, he will have achieved it in the three professional circuits he has played during his still budding career: Asian Tour, LIV Golf, and DP World Tour. The next steps will be the PGA Tour, if that possibility ever arises, and the Majors, where practically no one doubts that sooner or later he will achieve it.
Puig, therefore, has experience in these situations, even though it’s the first time it happens to him in the DP World Tour. Let’s remember, on the other hand, that it’s the first tournament the golfer from La Garriga plays as a card-carrying member of the European circuit. It will be a litmus test, although he has a very clear plan, as he confessed today, Saturday, after the third round. “I just played solid. Here you can’t make mistakes with the second shots to the wrong side, and the flags are very hidden, so you have to play to the wide part of the green. I think I did quite well, and that allowed me to have a bogey-free round, first of all, and not have too much stress except on two or three holes in the middle part,” he assured.
For now, his record leading is one win in four attempts. The goal tomorrow is to improve that percentage. Let’s see if the second comes, although it won’t be easy as there are 25 players separated by only five shots.
