“It was really sad that I was not in” – LIV Golf’s Joaquin Niemann complains about not being let into The Open despite making the cut
Joaquin Niemann expressed his disappointment about struggling to qualify for The Open Championship 2024 after making the cut at the event this week. The Chilean golfer, who competes on the LIV Golf tour, faced challenges in becoming eligible for the Major until he won the Australian Open in 2023.
This victory secured his spot in The Open Championship 2024, where he successfully made the cut after two rounds. However, Joaquin Niemann shared his initial frustrations with the media, reflecting on the challenges he faced in qualifying for the Major.
"I was seriously looking forward to it since the end of last year. It was really sad that I was not in, and yeah, we went to Australia," said Niemann (via Christopher Powers on X).
Last year, Niemann competed at The Open Championship at Royal Liverpool but failed to make the cut. In 2024, he received a special exemption to compete at the Masters after winning the Australian Open and then played at the PGA Championship on another special exemption, finishing tied for 39th place.
Joaquin Niemann secures T11 spot at The Open Championship 2024
Joaquin Niemann secured the T11 spot after two rounds of The Open Championship 2024. The LIV golfer entered the stellar field of the Major with a splendid round of 71 to kickstart the event. He played fairly well in the opening round despite difficult conditions, carding an even-par 71.
Joaquin Niemann started his game on the first tee and parred until he made a birdie on the seventh hole, followed by back-to-back bogeys on the next two holes. He made another birdie on the back nine to score 71.
In the second round, he got off to a smooth start, shooting two birdies on the front nine. However, a bogey on the par-3 fifth hole and a double bogey on the par-3 eighth impacted his performance. The Chilean managed to bounce back, shooting four birdies on the back nine to score an even-par 71 again. He settled for an even-par score, tying for 11th place with Matthew Jordan.
Irish golfer Shane Lowry took the lead at the Major at the end of round two, followed by Daniel Brown and Justin Rose. Scottie Scheffler is also in contention to win the Major, settling in a tie for fourth place with a -2 score. Patrick Cantlay made an astonishing jump of 39 positions to secure the T7 position on the leaderboard.
Dustin Johnson also made a jump after the second round and tied for 13th place with fellow LIV golfers Brooks Koepka and Jon Rahm. Collin Morikawa and Mackenzie Hughes also tied for 13th place, along with the LIV players.
The finale of the Major is scheduled to take place on Sunday, July 21, at the Royal Troon.