Hatton Leads LIV Golf Andalucía By Two After Round Two

Hatton Leads LIV Golf Andalucía By Two After Round Two

Tyrrell Hatton holds a two-shot lead at the halfway stage of LIV Golf Andalucía 2026 after carding a second-round 69 at Real Club Valderrama to reach six under par for the tournament. The Englishman, returning to competition following the birth of his first child – which caused him to miss the previous event in Korea – went out in level par before a three-under back nine separated him from the field. Thomas Detry sits alone in second at four under after a one-under 70.

A group of four players share third place at three under: Talor Gooch, Cameron Smith, Sergio Garcia and Scott Vincent. Gooch, the OKGC captain and a two-time winner at Valderrama in recent LIV Golf editions, posted a four-under 67 that included four birdies on his back nine. Jon Rahm, who opened with a two-over 73 in front of his home crowd, recovered with a matching 67 to move to two under and into a tie for seventh alongside Harold Varner III, Branden Grace, Louis Oosthuizen and David Puig. Three Spanish players – Rahm, Garcia and Puig – feature inside the top seven.

The round produced a notable statistical landmark: Lucas Herbert recorded a hole-in-one on the par-three 15th, described in tournament records as the first ace in LIV Golf’s four visits to Andalucía and the 17th in league history. Detry’s position at four under also carries qualification relevance, as the Belgian is reported to be competing with Joaquin Niemann for an Open Championship exemption. In the team competition, no side finished Friday’s round collectively under par – a second consecutive day without a sub-par team total on the demanding Valderrama layout.

Hatton acknowledged that his standing at the halfway point exceeded his own pre-round expectations, citing a simplified approach to his game. Two rounds remain, and with Gooch’s record at the venue and Rahm’s recovery placing several prominent names within striking distance, the lead is by no means settled heading into the weekend.