Rory McIlroy not giving up but it will take a monumental effort to catch Brian Harmon
NINE ADRIFT: Rory McIlroy after finishing his second round during day two of The Open at Royal Liverpool. Photo credit: Peter Byrne/PA Wire.
Rory McIlroy has not given up hope of ending his major championship title drought but it will take a monumental effort from him and the entire field to chase down runaway leader Brian Harmon at the 151st Open Championship this weekend.
Harman, the world number 26 from Georgia in the United States, eagled the last early yesterday to post a second-round 65 at Royal Liverpool and move to 10 under par after 36 holes, five strokes ahead of nearest rival Tommy Fleetwood.
McIlroy sits nine back of the leader heading into today’s penultimate round, after a one-under 70 to follow a level-par opening 71 but only Pádraig Harrington of his Irish compatriots will be teeing it up this weekend as Shane Lowry, Seamus Power, Darren Clarke and amateur Alex Maguire all missed the halfway cut on Merseyside.
The day belonged to Harman, 36, whose perfectly judged 65 yesterday gave the Savannah native a 36-hole score of 132 that matches the halfway totals of both 2006 Royal Liverpool champion Tiger Woods and his 2014 successor McIlroy when they lifted the Claret Jug.
It also gives the American an excellent chance of going one better than his 2021 runner-up finish behind Collin Morikawa and joining Bob Charles and Phil Mickelson as the only left-handers to win The Open.
As a former US Open 54-hole leader who scuppered his chances of victory with a closing 79 in 2017 handed Brooks Koepka victory, Harman will know nothing is guaranteed until the 72nd hole has been completed and there is plenty of quality in his wake waiting for any slip-ups.
Hoylake crowd favourite Tommy Fleetwood, a native of nearby Southport on the northern side of Liverpool will lead the charge from five shots back. The world number 21 closed out a battling level-par 71 as temperatures dropped dramatically last evening to claim second place at the halfway stage, a shot ahead of Austria’s Ryder Cup hopeful Sepp Straka who shot a second-round 67 to move to four under par.
Harman’s cushion at the top of the leaderboard may be healthy but it is bunched chasing pack that will look to close the gap.
Straka is a shot ahead of three players on three under - Australia’s Min Woo Lee, India’s Shubhankar Sharma and Australian major winner Jason Day, who matched Straka’s four-under round and there is a handful of players including Jordan Spieth and current US Open champion Wyndham Clark at two under after 36 holes. While a stroke further back sits world number two McIlroy.
The four-time major winner reached one under par with a birdie at the last to add a 70 to his opening 71 and the Irishman declared: “I’m right in it, don’t really know what the weather’s going to hold tomorrow, it doesn’t look great, so I’ve just to keep the head down and keep plugging away.”
McIlroy also gave Harman some advice on the keys to successfully sleeping on a big lead in a major.
“Not getting ahead of yourself, not thinking about what could happen or what should happen or what you're going to drink out of the Claret Jug. You just have to stay in the present and stay in the moment. Brian is a pretty laid back unflappable sort of a guy, so I think he'll be okay.”
Harman said he had learned his lessons from the 2017 US Open at Erin Hills in Wisconsin.
“Just not trying to get too caught up in it. It's just golf. I think when I held the 54-hole lead at the US Open, I just probably thought about it too much. Just didn't focus on getting sleep and eating right. So that would be my focus this weekend.”
Harrington, who next week plays the Senior British Open at Royal Porthcawl, was more than satisfied with his finish. There were two back-nine birdies on the par fours on 12 and 16, where he holed a 25-foot putt from off the green, and then produced a great par save from inside 12 feet on the par-three 17th on the way to a level-par 71 that left him on the cutline at three over.
The 51-year-old 2007 and 2008 Open champion has now made the cut at all three majors he has played in this season and he said: “I'm pleased, obviously. I played really super golf for probably 13, 14 holes, and I just couldn't get anything out of it. Couldn't hole a putt.
"Then missed a short putt on 15, which I needed, but then all of a sudden I hole two great putts on 16 and 17 when my back is to the wall, which is exceptionally pleasing. It was very pleasing to hole the two putts when my back was to the wall on 16 and 17. Old memories in that. Good memories.”
Friday at The 151st Open was one to forget for 2019 champion Lowry, though. He slumped to a second round 77 following a birdie-free round that saw him double bogey the six at the 14th and bogey another four, including the par-five 18th. One of his clubs, however, was jettisoned at the 16th, snapped in a moment of sheer frustration.
Power was less furious with his early exit, one shot the wrong side of the cutline on four over following a second-round 75, though the West Waterford man’s disappointment was clear.
“Couple of poor shots,” Power said. “Actually played nicely but really struggled on the greens for a couple days and a couple mistakes.
"I think I only made two birdies again today, was it? I think I only made four total. Not enough. Just disappointing, kind of poor golf to be honest. It's always a pity missing by one.”
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