Who Is Lucas Herbert? The LIV Golf Star Contending At The Open

Lucas Herbert stormed to the top of the leaderboard during the second round of The Open, but who is he?

Lucas Herbert in The Open at Royal Birkdale
Lucas Herbert is in contention at The Open, but who is he?
(Image credit: Getty Images)

The 2026 Open featured some surprise names near the top of the leaderboard over the first two rounds.

One was Jackson Suber, who led the way after 18 holes, before another player yet to make his mark at a Major, Lucas Herbert, took his place following a brilliant 62 in the second round at Royal Birkdale.

Given his career and recent form, perhaps it shouldn’t come as such a surprise that Herbert took proceedings by the scruff of the neck, though.

Herbert has been a professional for 11 years, but the groundwork was laid well before he left the amateur game behind in 2015.

The 30-year-old was born near Victoria, Australia, and it didn’t take him long to develop a fascination with the game, picking up his first club at the age of three before going on to play junior golf at Neangar Park Golf Club and Commonwealth Golf Club.

One of the highlights of his amateur career came just a year before he turned pro, when he represented his country in the Eisenhower Trophy.

There, he finished with the joint-second-best individual score, three strokes behind none other than Jon Rahm.

All the signs were that Herbert was set for a solid career in the game, and so it has proved.

Lucas Herbert reacts to winning the Dubai Desert Classic

Lucas Herbert's maiden professional title came at the 2020 Dubai Desert Classic

(Image credit: Getty Images)

After a spell on the PGA Tour of Australasia to begin life in the professional ranks, he graduated to the DP World Tour in 2018 via sponsor exemptions.

Titles soon began to come his way, beginning with one of the biggest events on the circuit, the Dubai Desert Classic, which Herbert won in 2020.

Two more DP World Tour wins followed, while he also claimed a maiden PGA Tour win in 2021, beating Danny Lee and Patrick Reed by one at the Butterfield Bermuda Championship.

In 2024, LIV Golf came calling, with Herbert linking up with 2022 Open winner Cameron Smith as part of the all-Australian Ripper GC team.

Another big win came in 2025, when Herbert won the Asian Tour’s prestigious International Series Japan, further cementing the notion that he can be a man for the big occasion.

Lucas Herbert with his caddie holding the LIV Golf Virginia trophy

Lucas Herbert won the 2026 LIV Golf Virginia

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Finally, just two months before teeing it up at Royal Birkdale, he claimed his first LIV Golf title, beating Sergio Garcia by four shots in Virginia with the help of his long-time caddie Nick Pugh, the latest indication that he was ready to shine on one of the biggest stages of all.

Lucas Herbert Facts

1. Lucas Herbert was born on December 5, 1995 in Bendigo, Australia.

2. He represented Australia in the 2014 Eisenhower Trophy and finished with the joint-second-best individual score, three strokes behind Jon Rahm.

3. Herbert turned professional at the end of 2015 and began on the PGA Tour of Australasia. He has also played on the DP World Tour, the Asian Tour and the PGA Tour. In 2024, he joined LIV Golf.

4. His first DP World Tour title came at the 2020 Dubai Desert Classic. Herbert defeated Christiaan Bezuidenhout in a playoff. He won his second DP World Tour title at the 2021 Dubai Duty Free Irish Open, going wire-to-wire. His third was at the 2023 ISPS Handa Championship in Japan.

5. Other big wins in Herbert's professional career include the 2025 International Series Japan and the 2026 LIV Golf Virginia, where he beat Sergio Garcia by four shots.

6. In his first LIV Golf season, Herbert helped his Ripper GC team win the Team Championship title.

7. Before the 2026 Open, his best finish at a Major was T13 at the 2022 PGA Championship.

8. Herbert is a supporter of Aussie Rules side, Western Bulldogs, who play in Melbourne.

Lucas Herbert Bio

Swipe to scroll horizontally

Born

December 5, 1995 - Bendigo, Victoria, Australia

Height

6ft 2in (1.88 m)

Former Tours

PGA Tour

Current Tour

LIV Golf, DP World Tour, PGA Tour of Australasia

Professional Wins

7

Highest OWGR

40th

Lucas Herbert Pro Wins

Swipe to scroll horizontally

Tour

Event

Winning Score

DP World Tour

2020 Dubai Desert Classic

-9 (playoff - Christiaan Bezuidenhout)

DP World Tour

2021 Irish Open

-19 (three strokes)

PGA Tour

2021 Butterfield Bermuda Championship

-15 (one stroke)

DP World Tour

2023 ISPS Handa Championship in Japan

-15 (playoff - Aaron Cockerill)

PGA Tour of Australasia

2024 Ford NSW Open

-15 (three strokes)

Asian Tour

2025 International Series Japan

-20 (five strokes)

LIV Golf

2026 LIV Golf Virginia

-24 (four strokes)

Mike Hall
News Writer

Mike has over 25 years of experience in journalism, including writing on a range of sports throughout that time, such as golf, football and cricket. Now a freelance staff writer for Golf Monthly, he is dedicated to covering the game's most newsworthy stories. 


He has written hundreds of articles on the game, from features offering insights into how members of the public can play some of the world's most revered courses, to breaking news stories affecting everything from the PGA Tour and LIV Golf to developmental Tours and the amateur game. 


Mike grew up in East Yorkshire and began his career in journalism in 1997. He then moved to London in 2003 as his career flourished, and nowadays resides in New Brunswick, Canada, where he and his wife raise their young family less than a mile from his local course. 


Kevin Cook’s acclaimed 2007 biography, Tommy’s Honour, about golf’s founding father and son, remains one of his all-time favourite sports books.

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