Lee Westwood carded a solid 67 (-4) in the opening round of LIV Golf Singapore and sat tied for the lead with DeChambeau, Rahm and Lee on a particularly testing day on the Asian course, where it was not easy to post scores below the course par and players had to fight to overcome the challenges.
The Englishman, co-captain of the Majesticks GC, admitted that the course looked very tough from the outset. “This course today doesn’t forgive anything. It’s very firm and the wind has started to blow. There are several holes where you have to fully commit to the line off the tee”, he told the media straight after finishing his round.
Beyond the result, the Englishman’s card has added merit. Westwood returned to competition just a week ago after six months without playing tournaments due to a wrist injury that even put his presence at the start of the season in doubt. “Seven weeks ago I couldn’t even hold the putter. The specialist thought I had torn the tendon sheath and that I might need surgery”, he recounted.
In the end, the Englishman avoided surgery, although he still lives with some discomfort, which he managed this Thursday. “As the round progresses it aches a bit. Like when you finish a gym session and the muscles start to hurt”, he explained. For that reason he is limiting practise balls and conserving energy for competition.
His bogey-free round, a rarity on such a demanding course, was one of the day’s standout performances. “There’s a lot of danger out there. If you get a little out of position, the hole becomes difficult straight away”, he noted. Even so, he praised the condition of the course: “The greens are among the best I’ve ever seen, not just in Asia, anywhere”.
Westwood himself admits that sharing the lead with one of the players who isn’t among the favourites and two of the big stars of the Saudi circuit has surprised him given the context. “The form doesn’t surprise me because I worked very well in the pre-season, but to arrive with almost no rhythm, jet-lagged, injured and play like this… that is unexpected”, he explained.
At nearly 53, the Englishman also joked about the origin of the injury that has bothered him in recent times. “I was on my simulator at home trying to generate 180 miles per hour ball speed, forgetting that I’m nearly 53 and not 23. I felt a ‘click’ on the follow-through… and there were my old tendons breaking”, he said with a laugh.
Westwood, who has historically played well in Asia, said he felt comfortable again in the region. “I’ve always felt very at home here. I’ve been coming since the nineties and I’ve won in several countries”, he recalled. For now, the veteran Englishman has already made it clear that his return to competition is very much for real. And if his wrist holds up, he promises to be a handful all weekend in Singapore.
