Irishman Shane Lowry survived a misadventure at No. 11 and birdied two of his ultimate 3 holes to go into the clubhouse with the lead halfway via the second one spherical of the 152nd Open Championship on Friday at Royal Troon.
Lowry’s two-putt birdie on the par-5 sixteenth gap and his 20 1/2-foot putt on the 18th gave him a 2-under-par 69, striking the 2019 Open champion at 7-under 135 heading into the weekend in Troon, South Ayrshire, Scotland.
He has a two-shot edge over 18-hole chief Daniel Brown of England, who posted a 1-over 72 to drop to five beneath.
“I do know (Saturday) goes to be a protracted day, however I have finished it earlier than,” Lowry mentioned. “Going available in the market main the event, who is aware of if I’ll be main by way of the top of the day? With those prerequisites, most probably can be, however we’re going to have to attend and spot.”
On the par-4 eleventh, Lowry’s 2d shot were given misplaced within the tough, and he hit a provisional ball onto the fairway. Then his unique ball used to be discovered, and by way of rule he used to be required to play it. It took 20 mins between photographs for Lowry to make the verdict to take a penalty stroke and a drop. He hit a blind shot over some shrubbery onto the fairway and double bogeyed again to five beneath.
“The referee requested me happening, did I wish to in finding my first one, and I mentioned no. So I believed that used to be OK,” Lowry mentioned. “Then we get down there, and any individual had discovered it. So it seems that we need to in finding it then, or it’s important to cross and determine it, which I assumed, for those who declared it misplaced earlier than it used to be discovered, that you simply did not, you did not have to head and determine it.
“… To be truthful, I used to be glad sufficient leaving there with a 6. It used to be no longer like — it wasn’t a crisis. I used to be nonetheless main the event.”
Englishman Justin Rose used to be in 3rd position at 3 beneath after 12 holes of his 2d spherical. He made his first bogey of the event on the twelfth.
Global No. 1 Scheffler carded a 70 to sign up for a tie at 2 beneath with Billy Horschel (68) and South Africa’s Dean Burmester (69). Scheffler holed a 35-foot birdie putt on the par-3 14th and added a birdie at No. 16 to get to three beneath, however he discovered a pot bunker off the 18th tee and completed up with a bogey.
Within the clubhouse at 1 beneath via two rounds are Xander Schauffele (72), Patrick Cantlay (68), Australia’s Jason Day (68) and Canada’s Corey Conners (70).
Notable gamers who teed off within the afternoon wave come with Northern Eire’s Rory McIlroy, Spaniard Jon Rahm and U.S. Open winner Bryson DeChambeau. Justin Thomas started the day in 3rd position at 3 beneath however shot a disastrous 9-over 45 on his entrance 9, capped by way of a triple bogey at No. 9, to plummet out of rivalry.
Tiger Woods adopted a gap 79 with a 6-over 77 Friday to complete the 2 rounds at 14 over, lacking the reduce at his 3rd directly primary.
–Box Degree Media
