Still something left in the tank – McDowell

Northern Ireland’s Graeme McDowell says contending for his first LIV Golf title reminded him that he still has “something left in the tank”.

The 2010 US Open champion led during Sunday’s final round in Virginia but was edged out by Chile’s Joaquin Niemann, who shot an eight-under 63 to clinch his fourth win of the season.

McDowell, whose last win came at the Saudi International in February 2020, made just two bogeys across the three rounds to finish one stroke behind Niemann.

McDowell carded five birdies in a bogey-free 66 on Sunday, but his momentum was stalled by two weather delays as heavy rain hit Robert Trent Jones Golf Club.

After a birdie on the 17th, the 45-year-old gave himself the chance to match Niemann’s 15-under mark on the final green, but missed his putt on the left.

“I’m happy with the fight. It was tough to keep the momentum going with the breaks. I just asked Joaco [Niemann]’s caddie what they did in the second break because whatever they did was good,” added the four-time Ryder Cup player.

“It’s hard to play loose when you need it, when you kind of haven’t been there for a while.

“But I was really happy the way I composed myself generally today. Drove the ball great. I felt pretty comfortable out there.

Having failed to qualify for the US Open last week, McDowell is targeting a return to major competition on home soil at the Open Championship at Royal Portrush next month.

He finished tied for 57th when the Open returned to Portrush in 2019.

He will play in the next LIV event in Dallas on 29 June before attempting to qualify for the Open in the final qualifying event at Royal Cinque Ports in Kent.

“I’m going to use this as momentum to take forward to Dallas and then on to the British Open qualifier,” said McDowell, who has not played in a major since the 2020 US Open.