LIV Golf Invitational Series 2022: Brooks Koepka Holds Round 1 Lead in Saudi Arabia

Brooks Koepka raced out to a two-shot lead following the first round of the LIV Golf Invitational Jeddah after shooting an eight-under 62 at the Royal Greens Golf & Country Club in Saudi Arabia.

Koepka posted an unblemished scorecard with eight birdies and no bogeys. He's seeking his first LIV Golf victory after winning eight times on the PGA Tour.

Let's take a look at the top of the individual leaderboard after Friday's play:

• 1 (-8): Brooks Koepka
• 2 (-6): Charl Schwartzel
• T-3 (-5): Hideto Tanihara, Peter Uihlein, Patrick Reed
• T-6 (-4): Turk Pettit, James Piot, Carlos Ortiz
• T-9 (-3): Marc Leishman, Jediah Morgan, Anirban Lahiri, Abraham Ancer, Sergio Garcia, Lee Westwood, Phil Mickelson

And here are the team leaders with 36 holes left to play in the three-round tournament:

• 1 (-15): Smash
• T-2 (-10): Torque, Niblicks, Fireballs
• 5 (-9): Stinger

The team standings illustrate how well Koepka, the captain for Smash, played in the opening round as only four of the other 11 squads exceeded his individual score.

Koepka, a four-time major champion, was one of the first marquee signings for LIV. The former top-ranked player in the world has slid down to No. 33 as the Official World Golf Ranking continues to review whether players on the new tour should receive ranking points for the 54-hole events.

"I just hate when you sit on the fence. Pick a side. It's either yes or no. Pick one," the two-time PGA Player of the Year told reporters last week. "To not say something that's really an answer, and to say, 'We'll think about it,' I don't agree with. Just pick a side. If it's no, that's fine, we'll figure it out from there."

Although the 32-year-old American wouldn't get any points for winning in Jeddah, he'd receive quite the consolation prize: a $4 million winner's check.

Meanwhile, the leaderboard is shaping up for a star-studded weekend.

One issue for LIV in its infancy has been mediocre play from some of its biggest names. Koepka is 23rd in the individual standings, with Garcia (11th), Bryson DeChambeau (20th), Mickelson (32nd) among those also outside the top 10.

Having Koepka, Schwartzel, Reed, Garcia, Westwood and Mickelson all in the initial hunt is a promising sign in terms of building more attention for Sunday.

The second round of the LIV Golf Invitational Jeddah will tee off at 12 p.m. local time Saturday, which is 5 a.m. ET in the United States. LIV uses a shotgun start, meaning every group starts at the same time on a different hole.

After this week's event wraps up, LIV will have just one tournament remaining in its debut season: the Team Championship beginning Oct. 28 in Miami.