Australian Lucas Herbert once again showed the form that has linked him to a PGA Championship invite on day one of International Series Japan presented by Moutai, but the LIV Golf man played down any suggestions he might be disappointed at missing out on a spot in the second Major of the season next week.
The Ripper GC star, had been touted to receive an invite to Quail Hollow next week following a blistering run that includes three top-five finishes and three top 20s in seven LIV Golf starts this season.
The 29-year-old had previously secured three wins on the DP World Tour and a win on the PGA Tour, and he once again showed his potential at Caledonian Golf Club, carding a course-record equalling 62 thanks to an eagle and five birdies on the front nine and back-to-back birdies on 13 and 14.
Talking about his Major opportunities, he said: “I didn't think I had any chance for the entire year, until I found out there was meetings or conversations had on Monday to decide the final spots. But they have always been pretty consistent with who they have invited. And the reality is, I knew what I was signing up for when I came to LIV Golf.
“Hopefully one day it changes, and there is more of a defined pathway for the guys on LIV who are playing well to be playing in the Majors. I think there's players other than myself, that are playing really well, that are going to be teeing it up at Quail Hollow.
“The way it is at the moment, it is their decision to invite who they want. I wasn't on that list. I don't necessarily think I was unlucky not to get an invite. The rules and the criteria were set out there in front of me, and going to LIV Golf was always going to make that difficult.”
Herbert is not despondent about the situation – far from it. The Australian still believes his move to LIV Golf has been a positive in many ways, and he has embraced the team aspect having joined an all-Australian four that includes former Open champion Cameron Smith, Marc Leishman and Matt Jones.
A second-place finish in Mexico two weeks ago, including a stunning 10-under final round, highlighted his impressive form and on the sidelines at Caledonian Golf Club in Japan, he said: “A lot of the reasons why I'm playing well are because of the opportunities I've had going to LIV Golf. I had the opportunity to learn from the guys on my team an incredible amount. I don't know that I would have had those opportunities outside of LIV.”
When asked about his good run this season, Herbert highlighted two aspects: fitness and equipment.
Herbert said: “I have played very nicely this year. I worked pretty hard in the off season to kind of set myself up to start the way I have. I was able to get in the gym a little bit more, and I had the fortune of seeing results because of being in the gym and getting stronger. I was able to see how that correlated to the golf course very easily.
“And then also, (it was) probably the first time in 10 years that I have been a free agent from an equipment standpoint. So I was able to test a lot of different equipment. And I think for me, the driver was a big help. I didn’t realise how much I had been struggling with the driver equipment-wise for a while.
“It has been phenomenal this year. So that has been a big help just getting in play, off the tee a lot more, and that's given me a good chance to be able to attack the golf course a bit easier than (if I was playing) out of the rough.”
The International Series is the most prized pathway in golf. It consists of 10 elite tournaments sanctioned by the Asian Tour and offers the year-long Rankings leader promotion to the LIV Golf League
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