'Why would I come here if I didn't want to win?': Bullish Lowry targets memory-making weekend

Shane Lowry of Ireland tees off on the 4th during day two of The 154th Open Championship at Royal Birkdale in Southport. Pic: David Davies/PA Wire.

The 154th Open delivered some championship history during an eventful second round but Shane Lowry has designs on making some memories of his own on Merseyside over the weekend.

Lowry saw his record-equalling 62 at the 2024 PGA Championship matched twice on Friday at Royal Birkdale as Australia’s Lucas Herbert and American Sam Burns added their names to the men’s major championship low round list, expanding the club to six, with Xander Schauffele (also 2024 PGA & 2023 US Open), Rickie Fowler (2023 US Open) and Branden Grace (Birkdale, 2017 Open) the other members.

Friday’s rounds came six days after Korean Haeran Ryu’s round of 60 at the women’s Evian Championship, the definitive lowest round in major history but Herbert’s eight-under-par score sent the 2021 Irish Open winner to the top of The Open leaderboard on eight under after 36 holes.

The world number 97 had looked set to tee off in the last group for Saturday’s third round with fellow LIV golfer Bryson DeChambeau, whose four-under 66 had come via back-to-back birdies to the delight of packed galleries late in the evening sun as he moved to a shot behind the leader. 

But not for long.

Post-round, DeChambeau was asked by referees to return to the greenside rough at the fifth hole where he was asked to explain his actions after he trampled down high grass before playing his rescue shot. 

Despite the American’s impassioned pleas, R&A officials determined the double US Open champion had improved his lie and penalised DeChambeau two strokes, sending him back into a chasing pack on five under par.

That leaves first-round pacesetter Jackson Suber (69) and fellow Americans Cameron Young (67) and Ryan Gerard (67) lying a further shot back in a tie for third while DeChambeau will join Burns in a tie for fifth with Burns and Si Woo Kim of Korea (67) at five under.

The ruling will send shockwaves through the golfing world and put the major champion under intense scrutiny for the rest of the weekend and quite possibly beyond.

Back to the leaderboard, and lurking within striking distance of Herbert on four under will be a group of nine players tied for eighth led by defending champion Scottie Scheffler (68) and including Scotland’s Bob McIntyre (69), hometown favourite and world number nine Tommy Fleetwood (67), and Spain’s Jon Rahm (67) who picked up an official warning for throwing a club after his tee shot on the 15th under The Open’s serious misconduct policy.

Lowry, the 2019 champion, went one shot better than his opening score with a two-under-par 68 that leaves the Irishman five shots back from Herbert at three under, while world number two Rory McIlroy’s bid for a seventh major title was boosted from a three-under-par 67 that moved the 2014 Open winner to one under, seven shots adrift with 36 holes to play.

Lowry was in bullish mood following his Friday round as he identified an opportunity to put a difficult early season behind him.

“Why would I come here if I didn't want to win?” Lowry said when asked about his objectives for the weekend. “Like, you (could) say a good week would go a long way, but who cares about where I finish in the FedExCup, or when I'm 75 years of age and I'm sitting there, you're not going to say, ‘oh, in 2026, you finished 25th in the FedExCup; well done’.

“So like, I'm here to win the tournament. I'm here to compete at this level, and I'm here to put myself into contention. I feel like I've done that somewhat. I'm quite a few back, but I feel like I'm in a good position heading into the weekend.

“I feel like the way I'm playing, all I need is just a run. If I get my run, I feel like I'll be dangerous this weekend.” 

While the cream began to rise to the top, Fota Island amateur qualifier David Howard experienced the agony of coming up short as he missed the halfway cut by two shots. Howard, 27, fired a second-round 69 which was undone by a momentum-killing bogey at the 14th as he strove to reach the one-over mark to qualify for the weekend. 

Yet he can take huge encouragement from his performance alongside the game’s elite.

Herbert, meanwhile, rued the final putt of his record-equalling round. He had scored an Open front-nine record 28 to tie England’s Denis Durnian’s 1983 feat at the same course and he reached the 18th with a historic first 61 in a men’s major within reach. 

It was not to be, the Aussie missing his five-foot birdie putt, and then the six-footer back for par, as he settled for a share of history.

“I'm absolutely disappointed, and at the same time, so proud of today,” Herbert, 30, said. “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.”