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Shane Lowry leads the way coming into the third round of The 152nd Open after scoring 69 just before the truly brutal conditions on day two.
Englishman Daniel Brown was the surprise package on day one, ending his first day at a major with a joint lead alongside Shane Lowry, but the Irishman powered through to gain another two strokes and end the day top of the pile.
Those two are joined near the top of the leaderboard by the impressive Justin Rose, who calmly navigated the challenging conditions to score 68 and keep himself in with a shout at five under heading into the weekend. Scottie Scheffler, Xander Schauffele, Patrick Cantlay and Jon Rahm are among the chasing pack.
Powerful winds brought bad luck for some though, as Tiger Woods equalled his worst two-round score at a major, and Rory McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau both failed to make the cut.
Follow live coverage of the 152nd Open Championship below:
Shane Lowry leads the way at The Open
Shane Lowry believes he is ready to take whatever is thrown at him “on the chin” after keeping his bid for a second Open title firmly on track at Royal Troon.
Lowry added a second round of 69 to his opening 66 for a halfway total of seven under par and two-shot lead over English duo Justin Rose and Dan Brown, who both came through 36-hole final qualifiers earlier this month.
Lawrence Ostlere20 July 2024 08:02
McIlroy, Woods and Fleetwood among stars to miss Open cut
Lawrence Ostlere20 July 2024 08:15
Lowry survives 11th hole drama to lead
Lowry felt he had “done the hard part” on the 11th by getting his tee shot in play, but was distracted by a cameraman on his second shot and pulled it into the gorse.
After taking a penalty drop Lowry hit his fourth shot to around 10 feet to give himself a chance to salvage a bogey, only for his original ball to be found by a spectator.
That meant it was still in play and, after a long delay while it was determined where he could best take a drop, Lowry hit his approach just short of the green and eventually completed a double-bogey six.
Former Ryder Cup player David Howell, the on-course commentator with Lowry’s group for Sky Sports, said the spectator who found the ball was “being a little sheepish” when he realised Lowry’s intentions, adding: “He’s feeling awful.”
Lawrence Ostlere20 July 2024 08:28
Lowry survives 11th hole drama to lead
“I hit a great provisional,” Lowry explained. “The referee asked me going down (the fairway) did I want to find my first one, and I said no. So I assumed that was OK.
“Then we get down there and somebody had found it, so apparently you have to go and identify it. I felt through that whole process of that 20 minutes of seeing where I could drop I was very calm and composed and really knew that I was doing the right thing.
“And Darren (Reynolds, his caddie) did a great job too. He kept telling me we have loads of time, we don’t need to rush this.
“To be honest, I was happy enough leaving there with a six. It wasn’t a disaster. I have felt quite calm and composed the last couple of days. I’ve felt really in my comfort zone.
“Sometimes you are in a frame of mind where you get on with it better than other times. This week in my head feels like that, where I think I’m ready to take what comes, take what’s given to me out there.
“Anything that’s thrown at me, I feel like I’m ready to take it on the chin and move on. If I give myself a chance on Sunday I know I can do it and that’s as good as a position to be in as any.”
Lawrence Ostlere20 July 2024 08:46
Leaderboard after round two
Here’s how the top of the leaderboard looks after two rounds of The Open. Lowry leads, but just look at the star-studded chasing pack ready to pounce if he falters. Moving day will be fascinating.
Shane Lowry, Ireland;66-69;-7
Daniel Brown, England;65-72;-5
Justin Rose, England;69-68;-5
Dean Burmester, South Africa;71-69;-2
Billy Horschel, United States;72-68;-2
Scottie Scheffler, United States;70-70;-2
Patrick Cantlay, United States;73-68;-1
Corey Conners, Canada;71-70;-1
Jason Day, Australia;73-68;-1
Xander Schauffele, United States;69-72;-1
Matthew Jordan, England;71-71;E
Joaquin Niemann, Chile;71-71;E
Mackenzie Hughes, Canada;69-74;+1
Dustin Johnson, United States;74-69;+1
Brooks Koepka, United States;70-73;+1
Collin Morikawa, United States;73-70;+1
Luke Baker20 July 2024 09:01
Credit: Source link
