Joaquin Niemann isn’t afraid to call his shot.
“I know I’m going to win a major. I know it’s going to happen,” he said Sunday.
The claim may seem bold, but for the 26-year-old Chilean, he seems to be rounding into form heading into major season.
Niemann picked up his second victory in the last three events, running away to win LIV Golf Singapore by five shots at Sentosa Golf Club on Sunday. It’s his sixth worldwide win dating to December 2023, and it moved him to first in the LIV Golf individual standings, which is significant.
An individual in the top three of the LIV Golf standings, who’s not already exempt into the U.S. Open, will receive a spot in the field at Oakmont come May 19. The U.S. Golf Association’s major is the only one Niemann is not in the field for in 2025, but he’s doing his best to change that.
“Obviously it’s one of the goals to qualify for the majors,” Niemann said. “Yeah, I feel like it just comes. Hopefully I can get that spot before Miami. I feel like that’s not my main focus. It’s obviously something that it would favor me if I play good golf, but like I said before, I’m here to make my team win, to get a good result for them and motivate them to do those good results.”
Niemann entered the final round tied with Dustin Johnson, who opened in 8-under 63 at Sentosa on Friday, for the lead, but Niemann was brilliant on Sunday. He blistered the field with a 6-under 65, winning by five shots over Brooks Koepka. The 6-under mark was tied for the best score on Sunday, with Koepka, and was Niemann’s second LIV win in three events, as he took the title in Adelaide.
LIV Golf has one more event before the Masters, its U.S. debut in 2025 at Trump Doral in Miami next month. Niemann is hoping to play well there, but he feels as if his game is trending for the majors either way.
“I have it on my mind. I know that I’ve been playing great out here, and if I look back into my stats, I haven’t had a great result in majors. It’s something that kind of bothers me all the time,” Niemann said. “But I feel like if I see the bigger picture and — I saw an interview the other day from Greg Norman back in the day when he was World No. 1 and I hadn’t won a major yet, and I liked his answer because it’s completely true. If you ask me, I’m pretty sure and I’m pretty calm about it because I know it’s going to come. Maybe not at the Masters this next three weeks, maybe yes. I have no idea. I just know it’s going to happen.
“All I’m worried about is how I’m going to improve and how I’m going to feel better in those tough situations because the sooner and the more I learn from those situations, I feel like the more ready I’m going to be. The way my game trending, I know it’s going to happen eventually, so I’m pretty calm knowing that.”
In the team competition, Sergio Garcia’s Fireballs GC won its third straight event, finishing at 22 under, three shots ahead of Jon Rahm’s Legion XIII.
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