Joaquin Niemann is feeling it. And why shouldn’t he? He’s won two of the four LIV Golf tournaments this season, and he’s won six times over the last 16 months. His latest came on Sunday at Sentosa Golf Club and LIV Golf Singapore, when he shot a six-under 65 to finish 17 under and win by five over runner-up Brooks Koepka.
His confidence is high, right? Right.
“More than confident,” Niemann said Sunday. “I feel like it’s just proud of the work that I’m putting in. I feel like you built confidence through preparation, and I’m pretty excited that I have two weeks [before my next start]. My next two weeks are going to be good preparation for me for what’s coming. LIV Miami is going to be a good challenge. I bet that course is going to be in good conditions and really tough conditions. It’s one of the longest and toughest courses that we play during the year.
“So yeah, it’s a good challenge, and then we’ve got the first major of the year. I’m really looking forward for the next two weeks that I have to get ready and put the best preparation and the most effort so I can build that confidence for those two weeks.”
After LIV Miami in two weeks, it’s the Masters. Niemann will make his sixth start there and has yet to finish in the top 10, but he’s been a trendy sleeper pick for the last couple of years.
He’s never finished worse than 40th the last four years at Augusta, a place where he’s now received a rare special invitation for the second year in a row, but he’s yet to make everything click there. While most LIV players have struggled to gain entry into golf’s four majors — although some of that is changing soon — Niemann has had the luxury of his Masters invites.
While he’s one of the most talented players in pro golf and worthy of an invite, the fact that he won the 2018 Latin America Amateur Championship — an event Augusta National helps run — certainly hasn’t hurt his case.
Ironically, Niemann is still without a major top 10. Although that hasn’t stopped a certain six-time major winner from making one bold claim right before Niemann’s latest victory.
“I haven’t had a great result in majors; it’s something that kind of bothers me all the time,” Niemann said. “… I know I’m going to win a major. I know it’s going to happen. Maybe not at the Masters in three weeks, maybe yes. I have no idea. I just know it’s going to happen. All I’m worried about is how I’m going to improve and how I’m going to feel better in those tough situations because the sooner and the more I learn from those situations, I feel like the more ready I’m going to be.
“The way my game trending, I know it’s going to happen eventually, so I’m pretty calm knowing that.”
