On 9 March 2014, Patrick Reed amazed the world with his victory at the WGC Cadillac Championship. He was 23 years old and triumphed in the first World Championship he ever played in his life. He swept aside everyone in his path, including Dustin Johnson and Tiger Woods, among others. At the end, he boldly declared himself as one of the top five golfers in the world. Indeed, that week he played like one, although that statement would become a sort of curse, as he never surpassed sixth place in the world rankings.
That victory and that statement occurred at the Blue Monster in Doral. Eleven years and 25 days later, he has returned to play on Donald Trump‘s course as one of the top five players in the world. He shot 67 (-5) in the first round of the LIV Golf Miami and took the lead with a two-shot advantage over Dustin Johnson (-3), quite something, one of his great rivals also in 2014, Bryson DeChambeau (-3) and Phil Mickelson (-3). The top four have a date next week with the Masters Tournament and it seems they want to send a message.
Reed played like clockwork. He excelled at golf. He once again displayed that blend of overwhelming talent around the green with his extraordinary ability to capitalise on every birdie opportunity that comes his way. He managed to get to seven under par, an astronomical result under really challenging windy conditions in Doral. Only a final double bogey on the 9th, after a poor second shot and a weak first recovery shot, levelled the score. The difficult part, in any case, will be to unseat him. There are few players who cling more reliably to a first position than the one born in San Antonio.
Speaking of credentials for the Masters, Sergio García (-2) presented his a long time ago and continues to renew them every time he suits up. A magnificent round of 70 shots, with a performance full of control. He made four birdies, three of them taking advantage of par 5s, and only two bogeys, both times after ending up in the green bunker on the wrong side. These are his only two mistakes on a very difficult day. On the other hand, he made an exceptional birdie on the challenging 18th. Only four were made today. You have to play a perfect hole and that’s what the man from Borriol did: perfect drive to the fairway, great second shot that came very close to the flag, and a good putt from about two and a half metres. Impeccable. He is in the fight for victory. Fully.
Great start also for Luis Masaveu (PAR) in his first official competition round at the Blue Monster. He has placed in the provisional top 10 with three birdies and three bogeys. On the other hand, Jon Rahm (+1) has once again left many doubts with his long game and has ended his extraordinary streak of consecutive rounds under par. He hadn’t lost a duel with the course in LIV Golf since Valderrama. 24 rounds later, he has succumbed. He had no choice. If he was hoping to see something positive in Doral, it certainly wasn’t today. He was inconsistent from the tee and erratic in distance control with his second shots. It’s true that the conditions weren’t good, but even so, he missed more than usual for him. In fact, his +1 is a great result and he built it thanks to a sensational display on the greens. He continues with an extraordinary level of putting.
Tough day at the office for David Puig (+5). He completes the first round in Miami without a single birdie on his card. That is indeed a tremendous rarity for the magnificent golfer from La Garriga. He is not the only one who has been subdued by the Monster. There are also the rounds of Tyrrell Hatton (+6), Joaco Niemann (+6), or Louis Oosthuizen (+7).
