Dustin Johnson leads by 2, 4ACES by 1 on second day of LIV Golf Tulsa

BROKEN ARROW: Dustin Johnson, LIV Golf’s reigning Individual Champion, started the 2023 season slower than expected after enduring a minor back injury early in the year.

The 4Aces GC captain is now rounding into form in front of record crowds at LIV Golf Tulsa.

Johnson posted his second consecutive 7-under 63 in the second round to take a two-shot lead at 14 under over Stinger GC’s Branden Grace going into Sunday’s final day at Cedar Ridge Country Club. The 4Aces also moved ahead of the Stingers on the team leaderboard by one shot.

Saturday’s sellout crowd was the largest single-day attendance for a LIV Golf event in the US. Another strong crowd is expected on Sunday, which should make LIV Golf Tulsa the most-attended event of the eight played in the US since LIV Golf’s debut in 2022.

They have seen a return to form for Johnson, as the back-to-back 63s are his best scores of the year.

“I saw a lot of good things in Australia and Singapore,” the two-time major winner said of the previous two LIV Golf tournaments. “I was playing well. Just didn’t get a lot out of my rounds … I knew it was coming. I was seeing a lot of good things.”

Johnson will be seeking his second individual tournament title on Sunday, having won last year in Boston with a dramatic eagle putt in a playoff. He will be in the final group with Grace for the first time since last year’s tournament in Portland, the first LIV event played in the US. The South African shot a 7-under 65 at Pumpkin Ridge to rally from two strokes down to win and will need a similar performance at Cedar Ridge.

Grace led for the majority of the second round before suffering his first two bogeys of the week at holes 15 and 16. Meanwhile, Johnson birdied both holes, a