Tyrrell Hatton arrived at one of the most demanding courses on LIV Golf’s schedule this week with his swing in a bad shape and no certainty about how the first round would go. Coming off a missed cut at the PGA Championship and limited practice in the week since, the Englishman spoke about his recent struggles.

“Yeah, I mean, my dad came over to the house, I think, three or four times last week, so I was able to do a little bit of work with him, albeit we didn’t hit a huge amount of balls,” Tyrrell Hatton said. “My swing has obviously not been in a great place, so trying to get it back to where we would like it to be. So yeah, those feelings felt pretty awful. It felt like I was getting closer at the back end of last week, and then I flew here, and like hitting balls outside again, and it felt pretty awful on Tuesday and yesterday.”

Hatton’s father, Jeff, is a golf coach who began coaching specifically for his son when Tyrrell started playing. Jeff has coached his son professionally since age 12. According to his website, Jeff is still the only coach the LIV golf pro has. Although Hatton sounded somewhat unhappy with his current state of the game, his dad’s advice appears to have worked.

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At Valderrama, Hatton opened with a 4-under 67, carding five birdies and one bogey to share the lead with Scott Vincent. He carried the momentum on Friday as well, picking up three birdies and an eagle to grab a solo lead. Nevertheless, Hatton’s comment was surprising considering his recent performance.

In April, he had finished T3 at the Masters, one of the best results he has shown at majors. Then a T5 at LIV Golf City followed. However, at the PGA Championship at Aronimink, rounds of 72 and 74 sent him home on Friday as he missed the first cut in a major since the 2024 Open Championship.

Between Aronimink and Valderrama, Hatton has barely had any time to process his emotions, let alone practice his golf swing. But for good reasons. Hatton and his wife, Emily, welcomed their first daughter less than a month ago. And during this time, his practice was reduced to a home studio, hitting between 35 and 75 balls a day. When he arrived in Spain and hit balls outdoors for the first time, it felt awful.

“I was somewhat nervous about how bad it could be today,” Hatton added. “But yeah, just tried to have a single thought and not overcomplicate it out there. My warmup was better, and that gave me a little bit of confidence to just trust it out on the golf course, and I felt like I hit a lot of good shots in the end.”

At the press conference, Hatton was also asked how he copes when he feels close to achieving his goals, only for things to suddenly take a turn. Tyrrell made it clear that one strong round or a bad one does not erase the bigger picture he views the sport with.

“I think that’s just golf in general, to be honest. That’s why it’s such a hard game. You can have a few weeks where you feel like you’re swinging it great; it feels great, but then even in those weeks where you feel like you’re swinging great, you might not win the tournaments. From my side, I know that I’ve not won a tournament now for 18 months, and I would love for that to change this week, but there’s still a lot of golf left to play. Yeah, hopefully I can keep swinging well and holing putts, and that’s what I try to do.”

Hatton hasn’t won a tournament in 18 months, and that thought does linger in his mind. But he also believes there is still a lot of golf left to play, and he is just focusing on swinging well and holing putts to keep his momentum going.

Even during his winless stretch on tour, Hatton’s performances continued to rank among the best. His last win came at the Hero Dubai Desert Classic in January 2025. He was also one of the best players across multiple tours in terms of ball-striking. The only missing piece is a victory. Now, after taking the lead, he may finally have a chance to change that, but a veteran and home-favorite will certainly look to spoil that.

Sergio Garcia is chasing his own comeback at Valderrama

Hatton is not the only player at Valderrama this week navigating a difficult stretch of form. Sergio Garcia, captain of Fireballs GC and a former individual winner at this very venue, arrived in Spain with a 2026 season that has largely fallen short of expectations.

Sergio Garcia shot a first-round 69 on Thursday, sitting two shots behind Hatton. As of publishing, the Spanish major winner was trailing the Englishman by five strokes. Across eight LIV starts this year, Garcia has managed just one top 10 finish, majority of the time finishing outside the top 20. Earlier in the season, he acknowledged the frustration directly.

“It feels like it’s struggling to happen a little bit,” he said.

At 46, Garcia is also playing against the backdrop of LIV Golf’s uncertain future, as the league leaves players without clarity on what the tour looks like beyond this season. For Garcia, Valderrama has always felt something different, as he grew roughly four hours away and won the 2024 title here. If there is a week for his form to first resurface, this one could be it.