Joaquin Niemann started with a superb level-par 71 on day one at Royal Troon to sit high up in the LIV Golf Open leaderboard - but one costly hole pegged him back.
The Chilean started round two with a couple of birdies in his first three holes before disaster struck at the world famous 120 yard par 3 'Postage Stamp' 8th hole.
Niemann's tee shot found the bunker to the right of the green and by the time he tapped in for an 8 he had visited three of the sand traps surrounding the small and devilish putting surface.
From two-under after 21 holes, the multiple PGA Tour and LIV Golf winner found himself four-over for the tournament just five holes later.
Joaquin Niemann experienced it all on the 8th. pic.twitter.com/D4Ma3WllkFJuly 19, 2024
There were 20 double bogeys or worse in round one at the Postage Stamp and just 51% of players hit the green in regulation despite the hole requiring just a wedge.
Niemann made a stunning comeback after the disaster on 8, going on to make four birdies in his first six holes on the back nine to miraculously get back to level par for the day. He parred in to post an impressive 71.
"It was tough, after finishing No. 8, I kind of told myself that I was playing great before that. I started really good, and I started hitting all my golf shots. One hole is not going to change that," he said.
"So looking from back here, it's pretty easy to say, but being in that position is kind of tough. So I kind of try to tell myself and try to listen to myself and try to hack into that position that I was because it's something that everybody works on.
"You're always going to have tough holes, and you're going to try to recover out of that. That's what made me proud when I finished the round. Yeah, it was great to see that happen and shooting a good round on the back nine."
The Torque GC captain currently tops the LIV Golf money list after back-to-back wins to start the year in Mexico and Saudi Arabia. The 25-year-old, regarded as one of the game's brightest talents, earned his way into this year's championship after victory at the Australian Open late last year.
He also played in The Masters and the PGA Championship this season, finishing T22 at Augusta and T39 at Valhalla.
For such a talent, his Major record is surprisingly underwhelming with a best finish of T16 from 21 starts. He'll be hoping to go better this week, although disaster at the Postage Stamp has not done his chances any good.
"I don't think I've got to prove myself at anything. I feel like I just need to play my game and try to do my best," Niemann said on Thursday at Troon.
"I think, if I keep playing well, I'm going to obviously maybe do something. Yeah, it's just fun.
"Playing on LIV and being now here in the Majors playing against everybody together is a lot of fun. This type of golf is completely different than what we're used to, so I'm enjoying it a lot here."
