SUGAR GROVE, Illinois: Ripper GC’s Jediah Morgan, fighting to retain his spot in the LIV Golf League for next season, opened with a 5-under 66 to share the first-round lead Friday at LIV Golf Chicago.
Morgan is tied with Fireballs GC captain Sergio Garcia, Stinger GC captain Louis Oosthuizen, Crusher GC’s Anirban Lahiri and Torque GC’s Sebastián Muñoz on a packed leaderboard in which 19 other players ­are within two shots of the lead. Among those pursuers are team captains Brooks Koepka (Smash GC), Dustin Johnson (4Aces GC) and Bryson DeChambeau (Crushers), who each shot 68, and Joaquin Niemann (Torque), who shot 67.
While the four other co-leaders are assured of returning in 2024, the 23-year-old Morgan is one of four players currently in the Drop Zone who face relegation at the end of the season. He ranks 46th with just three points but a big result this week at Rich Harvest Farms could move him above the Drop Zone.
 Non-captains ranked 45th or worse will be relegated but have a chance to play their way back in later this year at the promotion tournament.
“I know where I am and everyone keeps reminding me where I am, so it’s pretty hard to get away from it,” said Morgan, who posted the low round in the field on Sunday at the previous LIV Golf event in Bedminster last month.“So, there’s no point in me trying to act like it’s not there in my head. It’s obviously there.
“But I know if I play well enough, put myself in the position I think to make putts for birdie, then that’s really all you can do.”

Team counting scores

Here are the standings and counting scores for Friday’s opening round of the team competition at LIV Golf Chicago. The three best scores from each team count in every round for their total team score. The team with the lowest cumulative score after three rounds wins the team title.

1. STINGER GC (-13): Louis Oosthuizen 66, Charl Schwartzel 67, Dean Burmester 67

2. FIREBALLS GC (-12): Sergio Garcia 66, Carlos Ortiz 67, Eugenio Chacarra 68

3. CRUSHERS GC (-12): Anirban Lahiri 66, Charles Howell III 67, Bryson DeChambeau 68

4. RIPPER GC (-11): Jediah Morgan 66, Marc Leishman 67, Cameron Smith 69

5. 4ACES GC (-10): Patrick Reed 67, Peter Uihlein 68, Dustin Johnson 68

6. TORQUE GC (-10): Sebastián Muñoz 66, Joaquin Niemann 67, David Puig 70

7. SMASH GC (-10): Jason Kokrak 67, Brooks Koepka 68, Matthew Wolff 68

8. RANGEGOATS GC (-9): Thomas Pieters 67, Talor Gooch 68, Bubba Watson 69

9. MAJESTICKS GC (-6): Sam Horsfield 69, Ian Poulter 69, Lee Westwood 69

10. IRON HEADS GC (-3): Scott Vincent 67, Kevin Na 70, Danny Lee 73

11. HYFLYERS GC (-2): Cameron Tringale 68, Brendan Steele 69, James Piot 74

12. CLEEKS GC (-1): Graeme McDowell 70, Richard Bland 71, Bernd Wiesberger 71

CASARES, Spain: The European team started to fight back on Friday afternoon as they edged fourballs to trail the US 5-3 at the end of the first day of the Solheim Cup.

The US swept the morning foursomes 4-0 at Finca Cortesin in Spain, but Europe collected two wins and two halves in taking the afternoon fourballs 3-1 to revive their hopes of an unprecedented third win in a row.

Europe received a huge fillip from Leona Maguire in the second match. All square and with American Lexi Thompson on the fringe of the green in two at the par five 18th, the Irish star chipped in for birdie.

Clearly rattled, Thompson half shanked her chip and could only manage a par and the Europeans, Maguire and Georgia Hall, claimed a first full point.

“it was a great win,” said Maguire, who won four and half points out of five on her debut two years ago. “Georgia kept it together on the front nine and then I made some birdies on the back nine.

“It’s been a long, tiring day but it was a good comeback in the afternoon.”

Spaniard Carlota Ciganda, who had sat out foursomes, carried on the home charge in the afternoon, joining rookie Linn Grant in a 4 and 2 victory over Ally Ewing and Angel Yin in the final foursome.

The other matches swung back and forth.

In the top tie, rookie Gemma Dryburgh and Madelene Sagstrom shared the spoils with US rookie Rose Zhang and Megan Khang.

A highlight was Dryburgh’s chip in for birdie at the 16th — but Zhang followed her in with a 20-foot putt to keep the match all square.

The third match was also a well-earned half. US Open Champion Allizen Corpuz holed a long putt for birdie at the 18th, but rookie Maja Stark followed her in from around the same range.

In the same match, Emily Pedersen claimed the shot of the day with a hole in one at the 178-yard 12th.

“It was a tough morning, but good to fight back in the afternoon,” said European Captain, Suzann Pettersen.

“I think my team was almost trying too hard in the morning but I was confident they could come back.”

The morning was all about the US. Thompson and Khang set the tone in the top match, winning the opening three holes against European rookies Grant and Stark.

The Americans went on to win by 2 and 1 and their next two matches claimed victory on the final green.

In a one-sided final match, Ewing and rookie Cheyenne Knight trounced Charley Hull and Pedersen by 5 and 4.

Hull, playing in her sixth Solheim, was struggling with neck and upper back pain and was worked on by the physiotherapist on the practice range.

But she was out spectating in the afternoon and expects to be fit for final two days.