Shane Lowry moved into the lead of the 152nd British Open at seven below par after his second spherical at Royal Troon on Friday as a tame Tiger Woods limped to 14 over to overlook the lower. Woods isn’t the one large identify to wrestle within the blustery circumstances on Scotland’s west coast as Rory McIlroy will start his second spherical at seven over and certain needing an below par spherical to make the weekend. Lowry had been usurped on the prime of the leaderboard late on Thursday by unheralded Englishman Daniel Brown, who posted a six below 65.
Nonetheless, the Irishman, who gained his sole main on the British Open in 2019, recovered from a dramatic double bogey on the eleventh that threatened to derail his cost to submit a two below par spherical of 69.
Lowry leads by two pictures from Brown, who confirmed little signal of nerves below the highlight in his first main, with a gradual 72 to take a seat at 5 below.
“To be sincere, I used to be glad sufficient leaving there with a six. It wasn’t a catastrophe,” stated Lowry on his travails at 11.
“To be main this match after two days, it is why you come right here.”
Lowry was on the cost as he hit the flip in 34 due to birdies on the primary, fifth and eighth.
The world quantity 33, although, was rocked as after a wayward tee shot on the eleventh, he veered approach left into thick bushes.
Remarkably Lowry’s ball was discovered, however deemed unplayable forcing him to play a drop and lose two pictures.
He bounced again impressively selecting up two pictures within the closing three holes.
World primary Scottie Scheffler has Lowry in his sights because the American moved right into a share of fourth at two below regardless of dropping a shot at 18.
Scheffler has already gained six instances this 12 months, together with his second Masters title in April.
A monster putt on the 14th and a birdie on the par-five sixteenth took the American inside putting vary earlier than a pricey bogey on the final left him nonetheless 5 adrift of Lowry.
– Woods’ worst ever Open –
Woods’ match got here to a sorry finish after two rounds that may do little to quell doubts over whether or not he ought to proceed to place a battered physique by the pressure of trying so as to add to his 15 main titles.
The 48-year-old hit again at ideas earlier within the week from former European Ryder Cup captain Colin Montgomerie that he ought to retire to protect his standing as one of many sport’s all-time legends.
Woods has burdened he feels bodily higher of late as he continues to struggle again from the extreme leg accidents he suffered in a automotive crash in 2021.
“I simply have to preserve progressing like that after which finally begin taking part in extra competitively and begin moving into type of the aggressive circulate once more,” he stated.
However the three-time British Open champion lower a sorry determine as he trudged across the Troon hyperlinks along with his two-round rating leaving him in 149th out of the 154 gamers nonetheless lively within the match.
His rating of 156 over two rounds matches his worst ever at a serious with the 2015 US Open and is his poorest at a British Open by three pictures.
Sturdy winds ensured low scoring remained tough with the sixth, which had been the longest gap in British Open historical past on Thursday at 623 yards, diminished by 20 yards as a result of circumstances.
Consideration later turns to McIlroy’s try and get better from a disastrous opening spherical of 78 with the projected lower sitting at 4 over.
Scottish Open champion Bob MacIntyre’s goals of a primary main on residence soil unravelled as he dropped eight pictures in his first 4 holes to drop to 9 over.
(Apart from the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV employees and is printed from a syndicated feed.)
Subjects talked about on this article
