'I guess we can agree I played like a captain' – Stenson fires a shot after LIV Golf Bedminster win

Henrik Stenson could not resist taking a dig at his Ryder Cup predicament after winning his debut event on the breakaway golf tour at LIV Golf Bedminster, saying "I guess we can agree I played like a captain".

Stenson – who was sensationally stripped of his Ryder Cup captaincy after announcing he would leave the PGA Tour – was a wire-to-wire winner in the 54-hole event, shooting a seven-under 64 in his opening round, before following it with a pair of 69s.

He finished two strokes ahead of Matthew Wolff and Dustin Johnson at nine under, with Carlos Ortiz (eight under) and Patrick Reed (seven under) rounding out the top-five, and a further three-stroke buffer to sixth.

Speaking immediately after sinking his winning putt, Stenson said it was pleasing to perform so well after such a hectic couple of weeks, but only after taking a shot at those in charge of his Ryder Cup ban.

"Yeah, I guess we can agree I played like a captain," he said, before acknowledging Ian Poulter is the captain of his Majesticks GC team.

"It's been a busy 10 days, and I'm extremely proud that I managed to focus as well as I did. I was a little wobbly coming home here – I haven't finished the deal in a couple of years with any wins – so it's always a little added pressure when you're up in contention, but I did well."

For the win, Stenson pocketed a $4.375million cheque, as well as a $375,000 bonus for his team finishing in second-place, only trailing Dustin Johnson's 4 Aces GC, which included Pat Perez at five over.

Stenson is understood to have accepted a signing-on fee to join LIV Golf in the region of $50 million, according to ESPN's report.

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