By Friday evening of The Open 2025, Phil Mickelson was made to swallow a tough pill when NUCLR GOLF shared a video of Joaquin Niemann’s misconduct at Royal Portrush. The Chilean golfer had just crashed out of the last major of the season early. In frustration, he stomped through his golf bag, with some suggesting that he probably broke a few of his woods. That made the golf veteran go back on his claims that the 26-year-old was better than Scottie Scheffler. When Kevin Kisner asked for an update, Mikelson confessed that he was wrong to make such bold claims. Fast-forward to the present, and Niemann has also given some insight into his mental state.

Speaking to the media following an excellent second round in LIV Golf U.K. 2025, the Chilean golfer was asked what had changed after the bad run in Northern Ireland. Niemann replied, “To be honest, at the beginning of the week, I was not feeling bad. I was going to say another word. But I was feeling a little bit weird after a bad week at The Open. Obviously, the expectations were pretty high, and the way I played wasn’t my best. On the greens, wasn’t the best.”

The Torque GC captain was barely able to go under par in the 36 holes, scoring only 6 birdies at Royal Portrush. However, he only missed the cut by 1 stroke, which justifies the frustration considering how close he was to qualifying. This was Niemann’s second missed cut in a row in a major. However, he wanted to make a positive change before going to the United Kingdom, and that has helped him push ahead for two great rounds in the LIV Golf event. Looking for a fresh start, the 26-year-old even changed his team. First, everyone was shocked to learn that he replaced his caddie, Gary Matthews. Then reports came in that he had gotten rid of his coach as well.

Emphasizing on how returning to LIV Golf has helped him, Niemann added, “Just positive talk, having a nice team around, that support group that I have, I love them, so it’s great to have that group behind, and I’m able to go out and play golf freely and have the game of Seve and how he plays.” Looks like the young star is enjoying the support from his new team. Having his Torque GC teammates around has also certainly helped him propel to the top. He did mention taking inspiration from Seve Ballesteros. Perhaps Niemann might have watched some videos of the Spanish legend play in tough links conditions before heading to the U.K. That would certainly help boost anyone’s morale.

The positive atmosphere has certainly helped Joaquin Niemann a lot. He is sitting at 14-under after 36 holes in LIV Golf U.K., with 6 strokes separating him from second-place Bubba Watson. The Chilean is certainly in a prime position to win the British event. If he does go on to capture the title and the maximum from the $20 million purse, then this will be Niemann’s 5th LIV Golf win of the season. For a Tour that only hosts 13 events, that is certainly an impressive record to behold. While Phil Mickelson’s claim of him being better than Scottie Scheffler might not be entirely true, there is no doubt that Niemann is one of the better golfers in the world at the moment.

What will the individual leaderboard look like at the end of LIV Golf U.K.? Let’s take a peek at the probable changes.

Joaquin Niemann’s win and Phil Mickelson’s top 30 finish may shuffle the board around

A win will cement Joaquin Niemann’s position at the top of the individual leaderboard for the 2025 season. In their current positions, if the Chilean goes on to win, then he will create a 45-point gap between himself and Jon Rahm. With only 2 more scoreable events to go, that is a huge gap to cover, even for the dominant Spanish golfer. Bryson DeChambeau will be more than 60 points behind the Torque GC captain after the end of LIV Golf U.K. While the deficits are not impossible to cover, Niemann will need to finish outside the top 25 in both events while either of the individuals wins both of them to give them any shot at competing for the grand title.

Elsewhere, currently sitting at second place in LIV Golf U.K., Bubba Watson will also be eager for a high-ranked finish. As he had already mentioned in an interview, he is eager to end up in the top 24 of the leaderboard. A top-8 after the end of the third round should secure that position for him. Runner-up behind Niemann will nearly guarantee that Watson can’t be moved out of the top-24 after 13 events. So there is a lot on the line for the veteran golfer as well. Currently placed 15th on the individual leaderboard, Phil Mickelson has also secured his place in the top 24 for next season.