Ian Poulter shows true colours after crazy trick shot during LIV Golf UK final round

Heading into the week, Poulter admitted it would ‘mean an awful lot’ to win his first LIV title in front of an English crowd, having struggled to find the form that saw him become one of Europe’s best players since making the Saudi switch.

And whilst it looks unlikely he will come away with the title on Sunday having drifted well off the lead across the opening 36 holes, he was still able to show a glimmer of his old entertaining self during his third round. Having started the day at two-under, the former Ryder Cup star birdied his first hole of the day at the par-four eighth, he added a second a hole later at the ninth.

And he did so in style, firing in an impressive tee shot, before rolling in a no-look putt, with his face looking towards the galleries by the time it reached the cup. He could not have picked a better place to showcase his party trick, with the Majesticks Arms – a pub made for fans of his team – situated just by the green.

The effort was lapped up by those watching on, as Poulter saluted the cheering crowds after collecting his ball from the hole. Heading into the tournament earlier this week, both Poulter and his co-captain Lee Westwood spoke of the importance of playing in front of a British crowd.

“Whenever we have the opportunity to come and play in front of home fans, and especially this week, extending the tickets to 14,000, should be awesome for us. We don’t play enough golf over here, so when we do, it’s pretty special. This is going to be a tough test this week.

“Golf course layout is good, but it’s going to be strong, and we’re really looking forward to the challenge.” His thoughts were echoed by Westwood, who added: “Yeah, this is obviously our home event, and even more so for me, I guess, because I’m from the Midlands.

“I did grow up only an hour and 20 minutes away. My phone has been quite lively for the last month or so with people wanting tickets. It’ll be fun playing in front of friends and family and also people from this area in England. It’s always special to play in the UK. Golf fans are very knowledgeable. They’re great fans. I’m sure they’re looking forward to coming out and seeing some world-class golf.”