Herbert acknowledges the crowd after his brilliant round of 62 – image R&A via Getty Images
Lucas Herbert might have missed out on an opportunity to break a record held for as long as major golf championships have been played, but he is very much aware of what he achieved with his round of 62 on day two of the Open Championship at Royal Birkdale and the place he has in golf’s history, irrespective of his agonising bogey at the 18th today.
“That’s a really cool list to be a part of. Even that whole back nine today, it was not lost on me the amount of history in major championships, and the opportunity I had to break the record obviously, but then to tie it as well is still something I’m really proud of.”
When asked when it had first come to mind that something special was in store today and whether his nerves had been impacted by what was developing, Herbert suggested it was as early as his 3rd hole when he created a great opportunity to record a third consecutive birdie to start his round.
“It’s not a great question because I’m too much of an optimist, and I thought it when I hit it to about five feet on the 3rd hole. I’m a golf nerd anyway, so I know all the numbers, all the records, everything like that.
“I don’t play a schedule that is four majors a year consistently anyway, so the opportunities I do get to play majors, and you get an opportunity to get off to a hot start on a golf course that’s a par 70 — not that I wanted the thoughts to come into my head, but it was honestly when it came in.
“So it was a bit of fun for the rest of the day just trying to acknowledge the fact that there was a chance but just to try to continue to go about what I was doing normally and naturally as best I could.
“I mean, the first 12 holes, I might not play 12 better holes in my life. I was 8-under through 12, and you could make a very good argument that I could have been a couple better as well.
“I was very aware that that was not going to last forever, and it’s not like the golf course got harder. I just kind of played a bit more normally.
“Then you look at the last five or six holes, I mean, I wasn’t far away from missing that bunker on 14, and I’m a mile down there. I didn’t think it got harder towards the end of the round. I knew the record was there. The record is always going to be there, whether it’s 62, whether it goes to 61 or 60.
“My job was to execute the best I could do and then enjoy this moment here of talking to you guys about that. So I just kind of wanted to get really caught up in that at the time.
“I thought I did a really good job of it. There’s no swings I want back coming back down the stretch. Even the shot into 17, it was just poor execution. I thought I did a good job of doing what I thought I needed to do. It was a tough shot. You’ve kind of got to keep it down the left-hand side with the wind hitting you pretty hard off the left.
“Yeah, I don’t want that one back. I’d love it again, but I don’t regret the way I played that shot, I guess. I can at least sit here and go — and tell you guys that I did the best I could to shoot the best round I could, and I have no regrets.
“I’m absolutely disappointed, and at the same time, so proud of today. Very, very proud to put my name on that list of guys that have shot 62 in a major championship. So it’s kind of holding two emotions there at the same time. It’s a tricky one, and I’m sure once the dust settles, I’ll be able to sort of decompress it a little bit.
“Right now I’ve sort of got both going on, and it’s a pretty good problem to have too, to be disappointed you shot 62.”
Herbert was referring to a missed opportunity at the 17th when, after one of his outrageously long drives, he pulled his approach to the par 5 and missed an opportunity for the one birdie he needed to get to 10 under and perhaps secure the record. He then bogeyed the last, but he walked from the course in the early afternoon two ahead of the opening round leader, Jackson Suber, who had himself done a fine job of defending his lead.
Later in the day, American Sam Burns would equal Herbert’s heroics but he did so courtesy of a dramatic holed bunker shot for birdie at the last. So the anticipation which had been building for so long during Herbert’s round was not the case for Burns, but he, too, now holds the joint 18-hole major record with Herbert, Branden Grace, Xander Schauffele (2) Rickie Fowler and Shane Lowry.
The rounds of Burns and Herbert were four shots better than any other recorded on day two.
Finishing early in the afternoon, Herbert needed to wait until around 8.30pm to see if his two-shot lead would hold up and it would do so, Suber joined late in the day by Cameron Young and Ryan Gerard in a share of second place and two behind Herbert.
Herbert will play with Suber on day three, but with 51 players under par and the possibilities Royal Birkdale has displayed in terms of scoring on the opening two days, all those under par will feel they have a chance of closing in on Herbert’s lead tomorrow, Herbert under the spotlight as he attempts to become the third Australian to win the Open Championship at Royal Birkdale.
Herbert’s outward nine of 28 surpassed the performance of one of his fellow countrymen to win the title at Royal Birkdale, Ian Baker Finch, who, during his victory in 1991, reached the turn in 29. Herbert not only equaled the 18-hole title, but he now shares the lowest nine-hole score in major championship history with Denis Durnain, who also had 28 at Royal Birkdale in 1983.
Cameron John gets his Open Championship debut underway on Thursday – image R&A via Getty Images
Of the other Australasians in the field, Open Championship debutante Cameron John followed up his impressive opening round of 70 with a 3-under 67 to be at 3 under and in a share of 17th place.
John, who was one of the stars of the summer of golf in Australasia and whose wife is at Royal Birkdale despite being 30 weeks pregnant, played his opening nine in 31 before an even par closing nine of 36 for his 3 under total.
When asked what had pleased him the most, John replied, “Playing the weekend. I just enjoy competitive golf, and the fact I get to play two more days in a situation like this, it’s impossible not to have a good time out there. It doesn’t matter how you score at the end of the day. Like, even the guys I played with were all smiling all day.
It made it easy for me, and I hope they had a good time too because it’s a pretty special moment when you get to play a major.
“I saw Herby, and I was cheering him on. Obviously, I knew where he was at. Anytime you have a chance to break the low round in a major, that’s pretty cool. To have him tied at that point — we played a practice round earlier in the week, and we were both going good.
“It was kind of a little bit of stay out of our own way, and Cam Smith kind of told me that as well. It was nice to play with a couple of those guys and just get some words of advice. I’m very proud to be a Commonwealth member, and hopefully they’re very happy with that performance.”
Adam Scott recovered from a slow start with a round of 66 to be at 2 under, Kazuma Kobori is at 1 under, Ryan Fox at even par and Min Woo Lee holed a twenty-foot birdie putt at the last to survive the 1 over par cut.
Cam Smith missed out on a weekend game when he raced to the turn in 31 but played the back nine 2 over, a double bogey at the 15th proving very costly.
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New Zealanders Xie and Moore into matchplay at US Junior
Cooper Moore – struggles in round two but through to match play – image USGA
Two New Zealanders have made it into the matchplay phase of the US Junior Championship being played at the Saucon Valley Country Club in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
Auckland’s Ryan Xie, who has signed to become part of Santa Clara in California’s collegiate golf programme next season, finished in a share of 19th place following rounds of 72 and 70 and will rank in 20th place as the event heads into the knockout phase tomorrow.
Christchurch golfer, Cooper Moore, already a prolific winner of amateur titles in New Zealand and Australia, including the New Zealand Amateur and Australian Junior Championships and the Asia Pacific Junior Championship, and a professional event on New Zealand’s Charles Tour, finished in a share of 51st place but will rank in 53rd place for the match play encounters tomorrow.
Moore struggled on the more demanding Grace Course, one of two used in the 36-hole qualifying, and after an opening round of 68 over the Old Course, he could only manage 77 in round two and finished just inside the cut-off, where 14 players will tomorrow play for the final two places in the Round of 64.
One of those required to play off for a place in the knockout phase is Charlie Woods, the son of Tiger, who bounced back from an opening 76 with a round of 70, but he will need something special and a bit of luck if he is to make it through.
In the opening round of matchplay tomorrow, Xie will play China’s Jin Han, who qualified 45th, while Moore takes on Arizona’s Landon Ashcraft, who qualified in 12th place.
The only Australian in the field, Hamish Farquharson, missed out on advancing.
Match Play Brackets
Ryan Fox’s steely finish secures historic Open Championship victory
The reaction to his finest golfing moment says it all – Ryan Fox image courtesy of R&A via Getty Images
It is not only that New Zealander Ryan Fox won the Open Championship for just the second time for the New Zealand nation, but it is the manner in which he did so that will be the long-lasting memory of such an achievement.
His major record equalling round of 62 on Saturday to get him in position to challenge for the title and then bouncing back from two cruel and potentially costly blows late in his final round, especially with so much on the line, and win by hitting two of the most magnificent shots at the last will make an already historic memory even more endearing.
Fox took little time over what he described as a nervy 12-foot putt for birdie to take the title, and as he did so, he threw his arms in the air, almost struggling to believe what he had just achieved.
Fox’s caddy Dean Smith fell to his knees acknowledging just what this win would mean to him also, now and forever being known as the man who assisted Fox to such a remarkable and historic win.
Fox began the final round two shots behind his playing partner Sam Burns, but before he even began his round, it was clear on yet another day where low scoring was possible that there would be challenges from behind, and the first would come quickly.
Cameron Young began the day seven shots from Burns and five behind Fox, but by the time he reached the turn had had joined Fox at 8 under after an outward nine of 29 even before the final pairing of Fox and Burns had begun their rounds.
Fox made an encouraging start when he birdied the second from 15 feet, but Burns did the same, and the American still led by two. Then came the defining moment for Burns when he dropped shots at the 4th, 5th and 6th holes, and by the time the pair had made the turn, they were both at 8 under and trailing Si Woo Kim, who was out in 32.
Kim led at the turn by one over Young, who had finished his tournament at 9 under and more than two hours ahead of the final group despite his only bogey at the last.
Kim played his final nine holes in 40, however, and it was left to either Fox or Burns to force a playoff or win outright. Fox was first to blink when he missed a 7-foot par-saving out at the 11th, but he then birdied the 13th from 12 feet and the par 5 14th after a brilliant pitch from the left-hand greenside rough to 4 feet.
Fox was by then at 9 under and sharing the lead with Young, who continued to await his fate in the clubhouse before venturing out to warm up for a possible playoff.
Fox was doing his best to keep the occasion under control and hit a stunning shot at the par 3 15th, only for it to just catch the right edge of the front bunker and kick sharply left into a position where all he could do was play backwards. He was then left with around 40 yards to the pin for his third but hit another fine recovery to five feet and holed for an important bogey.
Another birdie would come at the next, however, when from the left-hand rough Fox hit his approach to 10 feet and when that was holed he had again joined Young at 9 under and in the lead.
The par 5 17th would surely be the hole to break the deadlock, especially given Fox’s power, but despite deciding to take an iron from the tee, adrenaline kicked in and Fox just rolled into the fairway bunker over 300 yards away and although he hit a fine 3rd shot to 10 feet he missed his birdie and headed to the last needing a birdie to win outright or a par to force a playoff with Young.
A magnificent drive was followed by a shot from 170 yards to 12 feet and Fox took little time in converting the putt for birdie and the victory by one over Young and by two over Burns.
“Surreal, to be honest,” said Fox when asked his immediate reaction. “It’s something you dream of. I used to get up in the middle of the night to watch this tournament back home. It was always something that was there just to be able to play in it, first up, and now to be an Open champion, to be the Champion Golfer of the Year, it’s unbelievable, surreal, crazy. I don’t have enough words in my vocabulary to explain it, to be honest.
“We’ve got a great history in our family but I think the other great thing is I had no pressure on me to follow in any of their footsteps. I was lucky enough to carve my own path there and had support from both my grandfather early on and obviously Mom and Dad through the whole thing.”
When asked to describe the closing moments of his round and how well he had handled the tense situation Fox would say, “Yeah, definitely the first part. I mean, I hit two shots exactly how I wanted to hit them. I didn’t feel anything for the putt; everything was shaking that much. I was just happy to hit it somewhat near the hole, and to see it go in was incredible.
“I did say to my caddie, Dean, on the tee that we were going to take it on, that I was going to try to win the tournament, and I’d live with the consequences if I stuffed it up. To go out there and execute, that drive is not a very comfortable tee shot, obviously, and to hit it in the fairway and give myself a chance was huge.
“Then I landed on a good number. I think I had 160 metres to the hole. The breeze was a little down off the left. Obviously everything is a bit jammed up there, so it was just a solid 9, and I hit it exactly where I wanted to hit it. I think I screamed to it, “Please be good,” in the air, and it was.
“To cap it off with a putt — everyone practises on the green, I guess, you’ve got a putt to win a major championship, to win The Open. It’s not like that in real life. It’s not a very comfortable feeling. It’s certainly very enjoyable when you see it go in.”
When asked to describe how this moment stands at this stage of his career, Fox responded;
“When I turned pro, I mean, just to — I think the goal was just to get on a major tour, to be honest. I think I said to my team last night, you know, at dinner, if you’d have given me my career up till yesterday when I turned pro, I’d have jumped at that. I don’t know what to think now, to be honest.
“Yeah, it is something that’s always there. You dream of being a major champion. You want to do it whether you think it’s a reality or not. I guess I probably didn’t until the last couple of years. I wasn’t in the major championships consistently until the last couple of years.
“To be sitting in front of you guys now as the Champion Golfer of the Year is a bit crazy. As I said earlier, it’s surreal. I don’t have the vocabulary to explain it.”
Scottie Scheffler and Tommy Fleetwood tied for 4th at 7 under.
It proved to be a great week for Australasians with Lucas Herbert finishing in a share of 6th and Adam Scott’s last round of 66 sweeping him into a share of 9th place.
For Fox, however, the victory is life-changing. Now recognised as one of only three New Zealand males to win a major title (joining Sir Bob Charles and Michael Campbell), Fox will hold a special place in the sports-mad and proud nation.
Perhaps now, instead of being recognised as the son of All Black Grant, it will be a case of Grant being the ‘father of Ryan’.
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Sam Burns’ lack of expectation working in is favour
Sam Burns on his way to a record-equaling round of 62 today – image R&A via Getty
American Sam Burns grabbed the third-round lead at the Open Championship, his round of 65 today coming on top of his record-equaling 62 yesterday and moving him past the then-leader, New Zealander Ryan Fox, and Australian Lucas Herbert, and eventually, as Herbert dropped shots late, taking a two-shot lead into tomorrow’s final round at Royal Birkdale.
Si Woo Kim, who was playing in the group ahead of Burns, finished at 8 under after his round of 67 to join New Zealand’s Ryan Fox in a share of second place, Fox finishing five hours earlier with his stunning round of 62 to take the lead at that point with Herbert.
Herbert, who had moved into the lead at 9 under with an outward nine of 33, bogeyed the 15th and 16th holes and was unable to capitalise on the reachable par 5 17th after taking a penalty drop. Although he saved his par, he remained at 7 under and is now three from the lead and in a share of 4th place with American Ryan Gerrard.
29-year-old Burns, whose form in recent weeks has included a runner-up finish at the US Open, is a four-time PGA Tour winner and long considered a future major winner. In five previous appearances at the Open Championship, he has failed to record a top 30 finish, however, so this week’s performance is a turnaround in his mindset and suggested his efforts thus far might well have been attributable to the distractions and lack of expectations he carried due to a family occasion.
“I think I’ve said this to someone earlier: this golf tournament was honestly so far off of my radar and expectations of playing,” said Burns. “I mean, Caroline’s due date was Tuesday this week. She was like four days late with our son. I just didn’t think there was any possible way, and little Belle had different plans for us.
“Even after she was born, after a couple of days, I wasn’t thinking much about it. Caroline was kind of like, so what are you thinking for next week? I was like, I don’t know. Should we talk about it? She was like, yeah.
“Ultimately, she’s the one who really encouraged me to come over and play. She basically said I’ve got this at home. Go over there and give it your best, and here we are.”
By the turn and despite a bogey at the 9th, Burns was at 8 under par and had joined Fox, Herbert and Si Woo Kim in the lead at 8 under, but bogeys at the 14th and 17th moved him two clear, and, tomorrow, he and Ryan Fox will tee it up at 2.20 pm in the final group as both chase their first major championship.
If scoring this week has been any indication, however, close to twenty golfers probably feel they are just one very low round away from contending and possibly winning, so tomorrow poses plenty of scenarios.
Only one golfer (Bryson DeChambeau) inside the top ten at present has been a previous major championship winner, so the manner in which the leaders handle what could well be their greatest moment in the game will tell the story as to who is holding the Claret Jug at day’s end.
DeChambeau’s round came under even greater scrutiny than normal as a result of the controversial two shot penalty applied to his second round but, although he made a shaky start with a bogey at the first, he fought back late in the day for a round of 69 and, just four shots from Burns and just two shots out of second place, he retains the chance of what would be an undoubtedly satisfying win for him.
The two-shot penalty DeChambeau received might well be the difference between winning and losing, and adding a third major championship to his two US Open Championship titles. Interestingly and cleverly, Burns deflected any concerns about the environment he played in today while partnered with DeChambeau.
“I thought the fans were very supportive of Bryson today,” added the leader. “We didn’t discuss it any.
“In my personal opinion, I honestly feel bad for Bryson in the situation that he was in. From my perspective, I didn’t feel like maybe there was enough evidence for him to deserve a penalty there.
“I feel bad for him. I think he played an incredible round of golf late yesterday, and it’s unfortunate to have something kind of like that where they come in after your round and tell you you’re being docked two shots.
“But props to him. He came out and played a really nice round of golf today, and that takes a lot of grit to be able to come out and do that. So I was impressed.”
New Zealand’s Kazuma Kobori is tied for 11th at 4 under par along with, amongst others, Australian Open Championship debutante Cameron John.
Adam Scott is in 38th place and Min Woo Lee 64th.
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Ryan Fox joins Herbert in the lead after record equaling 62
Ryan Fox shakes hands with playing partner Xander Schauffele – image Stuart Kerr R&A via Getty Images
New Zealand’s Ryan Fox headed out for his third round of the Open Championship at Royal Birkdale, five hours and twenty minutes ahead, but eight shots behind yesterday’s record-equalling Lucas Herbert. Exactly four hours later, the 39-year-old Aucklander walked from the course tied in the lead with Herbert after his nine-birdie round of 62.
Herbert was still 1 hour and 2o minutes away from his tee time, but Fox had made him and the other 77 players make the cut, fully aware of what was possible in the outstanding scoring conditions that were prevailing on day three.
Playing his 10th Open Championship, Fox has yet to record a top ten with a best of 16th at Royal Portrush in 2019, his best finish to date.
That now appears likely to change in the best way possible after drawing level with the 36-hole leader courtesy of a stunning round in which he made the turn in 29 and added another birdie at the 10th to be 6 under through ten and within just two of Herbert, only two hours after heading out.
The only real blemish came at the par 4 15th, where he found the fairway bunker from the tee, was unable to reach the green with his second, pitched to 25 feet, and two-putted for what would be his only bogey.
He immediately bounced back when he got up and down from a greenside bunker for a birdie at the par 5 14th, then added two further birdies at the 16th and 17th, the second of which came from an extraordinary pitch of 45 yards from the right rough and from an awkward angle to 4 feet at the par 5 17th.
Needing a birdie at the last to set an all-time major championship 18-hole record of 61, Fox found the fairway bunker from the tee but somehow hit an extraordinary shot onto the green, and although he left his first putt 4 feet short, he safely negotiated his final task for par, his round of 62 and his share of the tournament lead at that point.
Understandably, Fox was pumped with his effort and where he finds himself through 54 holes, irrespective of what might happen later in the day.
“I feel really good, to be honest,” said Fox perhaps understating his feelings. “Being picky, I’d want a couple of drives back today maybe, but outside of that, I feel like I didn’t really miss a shot. Had a couple of great shots down the stretch, putted really nicely.
“But it feels like, when you’re out in the morning, when the wind’s down around here, there’s almost some pressure on to shoot a score. It was nice, like Xander and I had a lot of fun out there today. Both made a bunch of birdies and kind of fed off each other.
“I would have taken 62 on a Saturday, that’s for sure.
“To be honest, nothing really changed. I didn’t think about much. It was just pick my targets, hit a shot, and keep it rolling basically.
“As I said, I get along pretty well with Xander. We just talked walking down most of the fairways. It was kind of easy. Didn’t really think about anything else that was going on there.
“Yeah, it’s nice to be in that head space. Hopefully I can find something similar tomorrow.”
When asked when he first started thinking about the historical ramifications of what he was putting together.
“Yeah, it probably crept into my head on 10, but I wouldn’t say it was there. Then when I birdied 14, I was like I’ve got a chance here. Obviously 17 you feel like it’s a birdie hole. If you can sneak one more there, I knew I had a chance to get to that 62 number.
“To be honest, standing on the last tee, I’m going if I can get one on the fairway here, you can get a wedge or a 9-iron in and have a putt for 61.
“I was pretty happy to have that 40-footer out of the fairway trap. Didn’t hit a great first putt, but I was very happy the second one went in the middle.”
How was Fox going to occupy his time for the rest of the day?
“I’ll watch a fair bit of golf on TV and try to get a replay of the All Blacks game. I watched a decent chunk of that this morning, and I was pretty happy with that result too. I just saw Shane (Lowry) on the screen, and I’m looking forward to taking 100 quid off of him, the little bet we had.”
One of the reasons the whole golfing world likes Ryan Fox is for exactly that reason. He is a knockabout bloke who likes the things most of us do.
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Lucas Herbert’s brilliance opens up two shot lead at Royal Birkdale
Herbert acknowledges the crowd after his brilliant round of 62 – image R&A via Getty Images
Lucas Herbert might have missed out on an opportunity to break a record held for as long as major golf championships have been played, but he is very much aware of what he achieved with his round of 62 on day two of the Open Championship at Royal Birkdale and the place he has in golf’s history, irrespective of his agonising bogey at the 18th today.
“That’s a really cool list to be a part of. Even that whole back nine today, it was not lost on me the amount of history in major championships, and the opportunity I had to break the record obviously, but then to tie it as well is still something I’m really proud of.”
When asked when it had first come to mind that something special was in store today and whether his nerves had been impacted by what was developing, Herbert suggested it was as early as his 3rd hole when he created a great opportunity to record a third consecutive birdie to start his round.
“It’s not a great question because I’m too much of an optimist, and I thought it when I hit it to about five feet on the 3rd hole. I’m a golf nerd anyway, so I know all the numbers, all the records, everything like that.
“I don’t play a schedule that is four majors a year consistently anyway, so the opportunities I do get to play majors, and you get an opportunity to get off to a hot start on a golf course that’s a par 70 — not that I wanted the thoughts to come into my head, but it was honestly when it came in.
“So it was a bit of fun for the rest of the day just trying to acknowledge the fact that there was a chance but just to try to continue to go about what I was doing normally and naturally as best I could.
“I mean, the first 12 holes, I might not play 12 better holes in my life. I was 8-under through 12, and you could make a very good argument that I could have been a couple better as well.
“I was very aware that that was not going to last forever, and it’s not like the golf course got harder. I just kind of played a bit more normally.
“Then you look at the last five or six holes, I mean, I wasn’t far away from missing that bunker on 14, and I’m a mile down there. I didn’t think it got harder towards the end of the round. I knew the record was there. The record is always going to be there, whether it’s 62, whether it goes to 61 or 60.
“My job was to execute the best I could do and then enjoy this moment here of talking to you guys about that. So I just kind of wanted to get really caught up in that at the time.
“I thought I did a really good job of it. There’s no swings I want back coming back down the stretch. Even the shot into 17, it was just poor execution. I thought I did a good job of doing what I thought I needed to do. It was a tough shot. You’ve kind of got to keep it down the left-hand side with the wind hitting you pretty hard off the left.
“Yeah, I don’t want that one back. I’d love it again, but I don’t regret the way I played that shot, I guess. I can at least sit here and go — and tell you guys that I did the best I could to shoot the best round I could, and I have no regrets.
“I’m absolutely disappointed, and at the same time, so proud of today. Very, very proud to put my name on that list of guys that have shot 62 in a major championship. So it’s kind of holding two emotions there at the same time. It’s a tricky one, and I’m sure once the dust settles, I’ll be able to sort of decompress it a little bit.
“Right now I’ve sort of got both going on, and it’s a pretty good problem to have too, to be disappointed you shot 62.”
Herbert was referring to a missed opportunity at the 17th when, after one of his outrageously long drives, he pulled his approach to the par 5 and missed an opportunity for the one birdie he needed to get to 10 under and perhaps secure the record. He then bogeyed the last, but he walked from the course in the early afternoon two ahead of the opening round leader, Jackson Suber, who had himself done a fine job of defending his lead.
Later in the day, American Sam Burns would equal Herbert’s heroics but he did so courtesy of a dramatic holed bunker shot for birdie at the last. So the anticipation which had been building for so long during Herbert’s round was not the case for Burns, but he, too, now holds the joint 18-hole major record with Herbert, Branden Grace, Xander Schauffele (2) Rickie Fowler and Shane Lowry.
The rounds of Burns and Herbert were four shots better than any other recorded on day two.
Finishing early in the afternoon, Herbert needed to wait until around 8.30pm to see if his two-shot lead would hold up and it would do so, Suber joined late in the day by Cameron Young and Ryan Gerard in a share of second place and two behind Herbert.
Herbert will play with Suber on day three, but with 51 players under par and the possibilities Royal Birkdale has displayed in terms of scoring on the opening two days, all those under par will feel they have a chance of closing in on Herbert’s lead tomorrow, Herbert under the spotlight as he attempts to become the third Australian to win the Open Championship at Royal Birkdale.
Herbert’s outward nine of 28 surpassed the performance of one of his fellow countrymen to win the title at Royal Birkdale, Ian Baker Finch, who, during his victory in 1991, reached the turn in 29. Herbert not only equaled the 18-hole title, but he now shares the lowest nine-hole score in major championship history with Denis Durnain, who also had 28 at Royal Birkdale in 1983.
Of the other Australasians in the field, Open Championship debutante Cameron John followed up his impressive opening round of 70 with a 3-under 67 to be at 3 under and in a share of 17th place.
John, who was one of the stars of the summer of golf in Australasia and whose wife is at Royal Birkdale despite being 30 weeks pregnant, played his opening nine in 31 before an even par closing nine of 36 for his 3 under total.
When asked what had pleased him the most, John replied, “Playing the weekend. I just enjoy competitive golf, and the fact I get to play two more days in a situation like this, it’s impossible not to have a good time out there. It doesn’t matter how you score at the end of the day. Like, even the guys I played with were all smiling all day.
It made it easy for me, and I hope they had a good time too because it’s a pretty special moment when you get to play a major.
“I saw Herby, and I was cheering him on. Obviously, I knew where he was at. Anytime you have a chance to break the low round in a major, that’s pretty cool. To have him tied at that point — we played a practice round earlier in the week, and we were both going good.
“It was kind of a little bit of stay out of our own way, and Cam Smith kind of told me that as well. It was nice to play with a couple of those guys and just get some words of advice. I’m very proud to be a Commonwealth member, and hopefully they’re very happy with that performance.”
Adam Scott recovered from a slow start with a round of 66 to be at 2 under, Kazuma Kobori is at 1 under, Ryan Fox at even par and Min Woo Lee holed a twenty-foot birdie putt at the last to survive the 1 over par cut.
Cam Smith missed out on a weekend game when he raced to the turn in 31 but played the back nine 2 over, a double bogey at the 15th proving very costly.
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Amelia Harris’agonising loss at US Junior Girls Championship
Amelia Harris – in action this week – image USGA
After easily accounting for her opening round opponent at the US Junior Girls Championship in Durham, North Carolina, Victorian Amelia Harris’ bid to become the second Australian after Minjee Lee to win the event has been thwarted with an agonising second round loss.
Harris was two up through nine holes of her match against Canadian Shauna Liu and was still 1 up playing the last of their 18-hole encounter, but Liu won the 18th to square the match and then would do so again at the 19th hole to win 1 up.
Harris had won her opening round match against Rebecca Wang of China 6&4.
Lara Thomsen of NSW lost her opening round match on Wednesday.
SCORING
Open Championship debutante takes early lead at Royal Birkdale
Jackson Suber – walks to the 18th green, the leader – image R&A via Getty Images
With day one of the 154th Open Championship now in the books, 38 players head into tomorrow’s second round under par, 59 at even par or better, and all just five shots from the first round leader, American Jackson Suber, whose first round of 65 was made even more surprising, given he was playing in his very first Open Championship.
The integrity of Open Championship layouts is typically defended by the wind associated with seaside locations and firm underfoot conditions, but at Royal Birkdale today, the wind was down, and although there was firmness, the generally benign overhead conditions would mean such a large number of players under par on day one.
Interestingly, however, Royal Birkdale never offered the opportunity for a major opening round breakaway on day one, with only two players, Ryo Hitsatsune of Japan and Norway’s Kristoffer Reita, able to record bogey-free rounds, so the Open Championship’s arguably finest test was giving with one hand but taking with the other.
Those 59 players at even par or better could sleep well tonight if they knew that in the last 45 years only one player, Mark O’Meara has won the event after being more than five behind after day one.
The leader, Suber, gained his start via the qualifying spots available at the Canadian Open a few weeks ago where he finished 4th and just two weeks ago he finished 6th at the John Deere Classic so he is an already impressive player but to have played so well in his first exposure to Open Championship golf and in just his second year on the PGA Tour suggests the 26 year old has some serious game.
His final nine of 31 included an eagle at the par 5 17th where his second shot from the right-hand rough and from 233 yards finished 6 feet from the hole.
It is early doors yet, but to have begun so well and to have done so from an afternoon tee time in what is his very first trip to Europe, has been impressive to date, and the Floridian gets the chance from a 7.30 tee time tomorrow to improve his position even further.
Suber was asked how he has been able to do so well in his very first attempt at Open Championship golf. “I’m not really sure, but I feel like I’ve just been playing good the last few months and just knowing that good golf is going to take care of everything, and really trusting my caddie to figure out where we’re going to hit it.
“Things just really started going after the birdie on 10. I just felt like the momentum was really in my favour. Just kind of kept the ball in good spots and didn’t put much pressure on my game to make pars.
“I think I watched a YouTube video on every hole at Birkdale on Friday last week or Thursday, but besides that, yeah, just — I have a stats guy that’s helped me, of course, so just knowing that the pot bunkers are no good and stay out of those.
“This year I feel like I’ve been really coming into myself as a golfer and maturing and learning what makes — what works for me. Just learning how to deal with my golf game on the road and playing a whole year and what I need to change when things are going a certain way and kind of what I need to be — how I need to be calibrating stuff every day.”
Suber leads by one over Korea’s Sungae Im and England’s Daniel Brown, Brown bouncing back from an early bogey with seven birdies in his last 11 holes while Im was home in 32 after an outward nine of even par.
World number one and defending champion, Scottie Scheffler, appeared early as if he might take the tournament apart and leave all in his wake when he birdied four of the first six holes to take the lead but a bogey at the 7th and a bogey at the reachable par 5 17th, where he made a mess of second from the fairway, saw him finish at 2 under and three off the lead.
“I felt like the few shots I hit offline today, really only a couple,” said Scheffler. “I didn’t get up-and-down on 7 and then missed the fairway on 10, I’m in a pot bunker, and then on 17 was really the only other shot I hit offline and I end up in that spot. That’s a pretty good assessment.
“I felt like I could have gotten a little bit more out of it, but yeah, if I continue to do what I did today with the ball-striking I’ll be in a good spot as the week goes on.”
Scheffler was, though, happy enough with his day and is well positioned heading into day two.
“Yeah, anytime you can shoot under par to start a major championship, it’s a good spot to be in. I got off to a hot start in the round today and wasn’t able to make as many birdies as I would have hoped to down the stretch. I played the par-5s over par. My only other bogey today was a wedge on 7, so those are a little disappointing.
As I said, if I continue to strike the ball the way I did today and just keep giving myself looks, that’s part of it. Golf is played over 72 holes, and I definitely liked what I saw today.”
The leading Australasians after day one are Min Woo Lee, Kazuma Kobori, Lucas Herbert, and Cameron John, who are at even par and in a share of 39th place.
Lee started well enough but a bogey at the par 5 17th one a hole which a birdie was very much in the offering for the long hitting West Australian put a dampener on an otherwise grinding start
“A bit of grit and bit of patience,” said Lee when summarising his round. “I think if I hit it like that a couple of years ago or last year, I would have probably made a lot more bogeys. It was good to grind it out and shoot level-par. “I didn’t have too much going great. So, it was good to grind it out.”
Travis Smyth is at 1 over, Ryan Fox, Daniel Hillier, and Adam Scott are at 2 over, and Jason Day and Cameron Smith are at 3 over.
With the cut already appearing to be around 2 over, all ten Australasians have the chance to make the weekend, but several will need to play well tomorrow if they are to do so.
Leaderboard
Victoria’s Amelia Harris sets record at US Junior Girls Championship
Amelia Harris with her record-setting card on day one – image Logan Whitton USGA
Victorian 18-year-old Amelia Harris stunned the golfing world on day one of the US Junior Girls’ Championship in Raleigh, North Carolina, producing a closing nine of 28 and a round of 63 to take the opening round lead in the 36-hole Strokeplay phase.
Harris’ feat is also the lowest known nine-hole score in a women’s USGA championship, surpassing the 29 Christina Kim shot in 2001 at the U.S. Girls’ Junior at Indian Hills Country Club, in Mission Hills, Kan., en route to the first-ever 62 shot in the championship, and Chella Choi’s 29 posted in the 2015 U.S. Women’s Open at Lancaster (Pa.) Country Club.
Although Harris would struggle in round two with a round of 75, she has finished in a share of 5th place at 6 under and comfortably into the knockout rounds, where the leading 64 face off in 18-hole match-ups.
Harris, who will attend the University of South Carolina when the new collegiate year begins, reached the turn in 1 under 35 in her opening round on Monday, but an amazing run of eight birdies over her closing nine holes saw her finish three clear of her nearest rival in the 156-player field, setting up a great week to finish her junior golfing career.
The Yarra Yarra Golf Club member, who is the current Australian Junior Girls Champion amongst other titles she has won in her impressive career to date, began her second round with yet another birdie but the momentum began to change when she dropped four shots on her way to the turn. She steadied the ship with a closing nine of even par 36 however, for her round of 75.
The only other Australian in the field was NSW golfer, Lara Thomsen, who finished in a group in a share of 11th place, and she too takes to the knockout phase tomorrow.
SCORES
Jason Day plays 14th Open Championship and 59th major
Jason Day during practice earlier this week – image R&A
This week, Australian Jason Day will play his 14th Open Championship, 16 years after receiving a late call-up to his first at St Andrews in 2010, which was his first-ever major championship appearance.
In his previous 13 starts through this week, Day has missed only three cuts, been runner-up once, and finished 4th once.
In 2015, he finished just one shot out of the playoff between the winner, Zach Johnson, Australian Marc Leishman, and Louis Oosthuisen and in 2013, he finished tied for second with Tom Kim, Sepp Straka and Jon Rahm behind Brian Harman in horror conditions at Royal Liverpool.
Day’s most recent form has again been plagued by injury issues, the now 38-year-old being forced to withdraw from the recent US Open and struggling in recent weeks to find the sort of form that has seen him runner-up in all four of the major championships in his stellar career, where he has amassed PGA Tour earnings, alone, of US$67 million.
Given the ongoing struggles he has had with back injury issues and that he is also the father of five children with wife Ellie, his career, which has included the PGA Championship title and 51 weeks as the world number one, has been one of huge success, but there is little doubt that despite his achievements, he has perhaps not reached the heights many felt he might have.
This week, he gets another chance in what will be his 59th major appearance (in addition to the two he was forced to withdraw from), and recorded ten top five finishes.
So the Queenslander will lack nothing in experience, but the issue for Day at present is just how his back will hold up and whether his current form is good enough to contend for a title he has gone close to winning previously.
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Ten Australasians to tackle Royal Birkdale
Royal Birkdale stages its 11th Open Championship – image R&A
Seven Australians and three New Zealanders will face the starter on day one of the Open Championship at Royal Birkdale this Thursday, the highly regarded layout proving to be a happy hunting ground for Australians in the past, with Peter Thomson winning twice there and Ian Baker Finch winning his major championship at Royal Birkdale in 1991 in a year when Mike Harwood also finished runner-up.
Royal Birkdale was created on its present site in 1894, but it wasn’t until 1954 that it hosted its first Open Championship, won by Peter Thomson, and in 2026 it will hold its 11th Open Championship.
The Australasians in the field in ranking order are Min Woo Lee, Jason Day, Ryan Fox, Adam Scott, Lucas Herbert, Daniel Hillier, Cameron Smith, Travis Smyth, Kazuma Kobori and Cameron John.
Cameron John is the only Open Championship debutante amongst the group, having earned the right to play via his performances on the PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit.
On the other side of things, Adam Scott is by some way the most experienced as he tees it up in his 26th Open Championship, the 2012 edition his best effort when he finished runner-up to Ernie Els, beginning a stretch of three consecutive top five finishes in that period.
Cam Smith is, of course, the only winner of the event amongst that group, his win coming four years ago at St Andrews in 2022, but in his three starts since, he has missed the cut twice and finished 33rd in the other.
Smith missed the cut at the recent US Open but did finish a very meritorious 7th at the PGA Championship in May and has played LIV Golf events for much of the year.
Min Woo Lee found form after a few indifferent efforts in recent weeks, when he finished runner-up at last week’s Scottish Open, but his record at the Open is not good, missing the cut in three of his five starts and recording a best of 21st in the other two.
In another time and place, Jason Day might have been a consideration to be in contention, and nothing would give me more pleasure than to see him do so, but his recent form is a day-to-day proposition (forgive the pun), injury issues still bothering the runner-up in all four major championships, and of course, winning the 2015 PGA Championship.
Ryan Fox has always appeared as this style of golf suits the now, two-time, PGA Tour winner, and he gets to play his 10th Open Championship. Fox played well in the Irish and Scottish Opens earlier in his career on links-style courses and has made a lot of cuts of late on the PGA Tour without really contending. He showed glimpses of his best in Scotland last week and could do well.
New Zealand Open winner Daniel Hillier seems to be at odds with his game at present, having missed his last three cuts. Hillier will play his 5th Open Championship, missing the cut in three and finishing 19th in the other.
Lucas Herbert finished runner-up to Daniel Hillier at the New Zealand Open and earned the one spot available from that event. This will be Herbert’s 6th Open Championship, his best coming in 2022 when he finished 22nd behind Cameron Smith.
Kazuma Kobori gained one of the last spots in the Open at Final Qualifying, but he has struggled to regain the sort of form in 2026 to match his brilliant season in Europe last year. He has played one Open Championship, missing the cut by a long way in 2024, but he is a much more credentialed and experienced player now.
Travis Smyth earned his place in the field by winning the PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit and gets to play his second Open Championship, having missed the cut in 2023.
Tee Times