LIV Golf LIVE: Leaderboard and Day 3 scores as Branden Grace holds off Dustin Johnson to win in Portland

Relive all the action from the final day of the controversial Saudi-backed invitational event

Carlos Ortiz leads Dustin Johnson by one shot after first round at LIV Portland

Branden Grace produced a spectacular final round to win the LIV Golf Portland event and claim the £3.2m first prize. The South African had started two shots back of Carlos Ortiz but a round of 65 saw him storm to victory three shots clear of the Mexican. Former world No 1 Dustin Johnson had been in contention despite a slow start but couldn’t keep pace with Grace on the back-nine, while Patrick Reed’s charge came too late to threaten the top of the leaderboard.

Grace had won twice on the PGA Tour and nine times on the European Tour before defecting to LIV Golf ahead of the inaugural event at Centurion Club last month. He is part of the Stinger GC team that won just outside London as Charl Schwartzel claimed victory. Despite Grace’s performance, it was the 4 Aces team featuring Johnson, Reed, Pat Perez and Talor Gooch that took the prize this time around.

While the action unfolded, LIV Golf also announced their latest new signing in Ryder Cup regular Paul Casey. “LIV Golf continues to attract the best players in the sport as it builds increasingly competitive fields with each event,” LIV Golf’s chief executive, Greg Norman, said. “Paul Casey adds to the growing list of top 50 golfers who are excited to be part of an innovative and entertaining format that is creating something new for golf. His proven track record on a global stage adds another exciting piece to the competition as we prepare for Bedminster.”

LIV Golf Portland

• -13 Branden Grace
• -10 Carlos Ortiz
• -9 Patrick Reed, Dustin Johnson

[2 July 2022 23:50 · Tom Kershaw]

LIV Golf Portland

Patrick Reed is two-under for his round so far but a birdie chance sails by at 11 and he remains four shots off the lead.

The lowest round in progress so far is coming from Phachara Khongwatmai. The 23-year-old is four-under through 10 holes, which is quite the turnaround, having shot 77 and 75 on Thursday and Friday respectively.

[2 July 2022 23:35 · Tom Kershaw]

LIV Golf Portland

Grace drives the green at the 330-yard 8th and two putts for birdie. He moves to -8 and is quickly joined at that mark by Johnson, who stiffed his approach to just a few feet. Ortiz can only make par and the lead is now only two.

[2 July 2022 23:23 · Tom Kershaw]

LIV Golf Portland

There’s the first chink in Ortiz’s armour. He pulls a short putt to save par at the 7th and slips back to -10. Johnson has almost an identical putt for birdie, knows the line and rolls it confidently into the middle of the hole. Ortiz still has a three-shot lead but there were signs of nerves there from the Mexican and that’s a big momentum shift.

[2 July 2022 23:16 · Tom Kershaw]

LIV Golf Portland

[2 July 2022 23:07 · Tom Kershaw]

LIV Golf Portland

Ortiz’s momentum has slowed a little with pars at 5 and 6 but the Mexican is still way out in front with a four-shot lead.

The team event is a little closer, with the 4 Aces (Johnson, Perez, Reed, Gooch) two shots ahead of the Fireballs (Ortiz, Ancer, Garcia, Lopez).

[2 July 2022 23:02 · Tom Kershaw]

LIV Golf Portland

LIV Golf have just announced Paul Casey as their latest big-name signing. The Englishman, who once said he’d refuse to play in Saudi Arabia due to being a Unicef ambassador, has been absent from the PGA Tour due to a back injury since March.

[2 July 2022 22:48 · Tom Kershaw]

LIV Golf Portland

[2 July 2022 22:43 · Tom Kershaw]

LIV Golf Portland

Few saw Matthew Wolff’s slump coming after such an exciting start to his PGA Tour career, with top-five finishes at the US Open and PGA Championship in 2020. He has fallen almost 50 places in the world rankings but a fantastic approach at the 9th serves as a reminder of his talent. That’s a tap-in to make it back-to-back birdies for the 23-year-old. He’s now at -3.

[2 July 2022 22:34 · Tom Kershaw]

LIV Golf Portland

Ortiz birdies the fourth too! The Mexican is three-under through four holes and, after seeing that putt fall, Johnson misses a short one of his own for par. Ortiz now has a four-shot lead over Harding. Johnson slips back to -6 where he is joined by Reed and Grace.

[2 July 2022 22:29 · Tom Kershaw]

LIV Golf Portland

Patrick Reed has surged into contention with back-to-back birdies at 5 and 6. He’s now at -6, four shots off Ortiz’s lead.

Ortiz only had one victory on the PGA Tour before defecting to LIV. By a quirk of fate, on that occasion at the Houston Open in 2020, Dustin Johnson was the runner-up.