NIEMANN DELIGHTED OVER MASTERS INVITATION
Chilean golfer Joaquin Niemann had cause to celebrate before a ball had even been struck at the International Series Oman, after receiving a coveted invite to the Masters on the eve of the tournament at Al Mouj Golf.
The Torque GC captain has been in sensational form, shooting a wonderful 59 on his way to a thrilling playoff victory at the season-opening LIV Golf Mayakoba event in February, and also winning the Australian Open in another playoff back in December.
After carding a blemish-free 6-under round of 66 to sit one off leader David Puig from the Fireballs GC team, the 25-year-old could not hide his delight about the invite to Augusta National for the first major of the season which takes place April 11-14.
He said: “It’s exciting, I was trying to chase that invite so it is nice that they called me yesterday – I am super excited with that news. I obviously love that course at Augusta National and it is one of those courses you must be hitting it well off the tee and hitting it long. If I keep driving it well, I think it is going to serve me well and I’m looking forward to that week.”
Niemann will have plenty of time to hone his game between now and April. Following the International Series Oman, he heads straight to Saudi for LIV Golf Jeddah, before a further two weeks on the road at LIV Golf Hong Kong and the International Series Macau presented by Wynn.
When it comes to the Masters, Niemann is trending in the right direction. In the last three tournaments he has finished T40, T35 and T16, so he has cause for optimism going into the historic event.
He said: “I’m looking forward for all those next three weeks, they will all give me good preparation for what’s coming next. I like my chances and I want to play well. Obviously, I can’t say what’s going to happen, I have to go out there and grind it.”
The International Series Oman got underway today and runs until Feb. 25 at Al Mouj Golf. It is the opening event on The International Series and the second event on the Asian Tour calendar.
The International Series is a set of elevated tournaments on the Asian Tour that provide an open pathway for golfers from all over the world onto the LIV Golf League.