We’re halfway through the British Open and Shane Lowry is in complete control of the standings.
Lowry fell to 7 under par after his second-round 69 on Friday, giving him a two-shot lead over the field heading into Moving Day at Royal Troon in Scotland. He also held a slim lead in the second round as strong winds completely swept away the afternoon wave and sent several big names home early.
Daniel Brown, who led after the first round, shot a 1-over-par 72 on Friday. He’ll start Saturday at 5 under for the week along with Justin Rose, who matched the day’s lowest round with his 3-under 68 on Friday. They are the first trio from the U.K. and Ireland to lead the British Open at the halfway point since 1951.
No. 1 Scottie Scheffler will enter the day five shots behind Lowry at 2 under. Scheffler, who has already won six times this season on the PGA Tour, is coming off a playoff win at the Travelers Championship.
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A two-hit swing for Daniel Brown
Daniel Brown is the sole leader once again after a wild two-shot swing on the 12th hole. Brown sank his birdie putt, while Shane Lowry missed a very doable par putt and fell to 4 under.
Leaderboard
1. Brown (-6)
2. Horschel (-5)
T3.Lowry (-4)
T3. Justin Rosa
T3. Xander Schauffele
Lowry bogeys and falls behind Horschel and Brown
But that didn’t last long. Shane Lowry, after a hard drive that hit a fan on the 11th hole, made a bogey and was left at 5 under par.
He is now tied again with Billy Horschel and Daniel Brown for the lead.
Lowry leads alone again
Shane Lowry is back on his own at the top after Daniel Brown and Billy Horschel each made a bogey. We’ll see how long this lasts.
Dustin Johnson from DEEP
This will have to be remembered as the putt of the day. Incredible.
Billy, the backwards hat, joins the leaders
Billy the golfer, wearing his hat backwards, is now joint leader at the British Open. After his fourth birdie to close the front nine, Horschel tied Lowry and Brown on 6 under par.
Daniel Brown, co-director
Shane Lowry just made a double on the par-3 8th after his drive landed in a bunker, leading to a big hit. Daniel Brown made a bogey, so the two are tied for the lead at 6 under.
Xander Schauffele and Billy Horschel are suddenly just a step away. As for Lowry, well…
Only three players since 2000 have won The Open with more than one double bogey that week, the last of whom was Mickelson in 2013. That was Lowry’s second double.
Shane Lowry’s lead was thus reduced to just one shot. Daniel Brown managed two consecutive birdies even after his poor tee shot on the seventh hole to reach 7 under par.
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Daniel Brown, just like us
Daniel Brown nearly eliminated Dean Burmester at Postage Stamp… from the wrong hole.
Xander throwing darts
We came this Another hole-in-one close today at Royal Troon. Xander Schauffele birdied the Postage Stamp to get to 4 under par.
After a tough Friday afternoon in terms of weather, several golfers made the most of the briefly benign conditions at Royal Troon on Saturday morning.
Then the rain fell again.
Click on the photo to read more about Saturday’s first wave at Royal Troon. (AP/Peter Morrison)
Lowry extends lead to 3
Shane Lowry’s lead grows after his first birdie of the day on the par-5 4th. He now leads by 3 points as the rain begins to fall in force at Royal Troon.
Brown steadies the ship after an early bogey
Daniel Brown bogeyed the first hole after a poor tee shot but has recovered, birdieing the third hole to move back to 5 under par for the tournament and into sole second place. He has appeared completely unconcerned at the moment more than two rounds into his debut in a major championship.
Russell Henley’s quality in the third round continues
At 6 under par through 12 holes, Henley has moved up to second place and his approach game has been excellent. Not everyone can hit an iron like that from the first cut… but putting? A trick for weekend fourball
Justin Thomas heads to Sunday even for the tournament
Thomas enters Saturday’s third round at 4-under 67. He got off to a blistering start with six birdies in his first 12 holes. After making bogeys at 13 and 15, he was able to steady his course and finish with three straight pars. He is seven shots behind leader Shane Lowry heading into the final round.
Justin Thomas returned to par in the tournament after moving day. (Warren Little/Getty Images)
Xander Schauffele gets going on Saturday morning
More red numbers on the wild boar as it continues to rain… 2 under par for the day and 3 under par for the championship for Xander Schauffele.
Shane Lowry finds the bunker from the tee on hole 1
With the rain falling harder than ever, the leaders are off the first tee and at 7 under par Shane Lowry is at the top of the leaderboard, and also in a fairway bunker to the left of the first tee. Lowry is looking to lift the Claret Jug for a second time.
Shane Lowry looks to lift the Claret Jug for the second time this week. (AP/Jon Super)
Russell Henley with SALSA
Skip, skip, stop, close. That’s exactly how Russell Henley drew it at Postage Stamp. He made par and came out in 32. Henley is 2 under for the tournament and 4 under on the day at the turn. You’ll also notice that the rain has fully arrived and is changing conditions for players at Royal Troon.
Scottie Scheffler begins his game in the third round
The two-time Masters champion is in contention at the British Open and his round is already underway. He starts the third round at 2 under par and five shots behind Shane Lowry. Scheffler, who is playing today with Dean Burmester of LIV Golf, has six wins from his 15 starts this season.
Scottie Scheffler is looking for his seventh win of the year this week. (AP/Peter Morrison)
Justin Thomas loses pace after a good start
After teeing off in 31, Justin Thomas is back down to earth. Seven birdies in his first 12 holes had Thomas knocking on the door of the leaders, who are set to begin their rounds over the next half hour or so, but bogeys at 13 and 15 and a missed second shot at 16 have Thomas scrambling to stay connected with the leaders as his third round begins to draw to a close.
Justin Thomas of the United States reacts to his putt on the 14th green during his third round of the British Open Golf Championship at Royal Troon Golf Club in Troon, Scotland, Saturday, July 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Peter Morrison)
