IT TOOK UNTIL Friday evening for Scottie Scheffler’s what’s-the-point-of-it-all-really nihilism to spread and take hold among the rest of the field at this Open Championship.
For Scheffler is in command of this golf tournament at its midway stage, thanks a Friday 64 that sees him take the solo lead, one shot ahead of Matt Fitzpatrick.
Scheffler left a putt on the final green inches short of the hole for what would have been a 63 that would have tied the course record, famously set by Shane Lowry during the third round of his triumph in 2019.
Lowry, as Scheffler’s playing partner, was watching on from the same green, but had enough going on without worrying about the status of his record. Lowry’s day was one of intense frustration: there was the familiar angst of terrific play from tee to green undermined by his putter, which was compounded by a two-shot penalty after his round.
Lowry couldn’t resist a smile as he was acclaimed by the grandstands on the 18th green, with Scheffler and Collin Morikawa hanging back in the fairway to afford him the moment. At that point, however, Lowry knew he wouldn’t simply be walking off to sign his card.
Walking up the 15th fairway, a rules official sidled over to Lowry and told him he would have to sit with the R&A after his round to review footage of an incident that occurred on the 12th hole. Taking his practice swing from the rough, slow-mo, zoomed-in footage showed Lowry’s swing hit a blade of grass that caused his ball to move. Lowry did not notice the ball move, and as he did not call the incident, tournament officials hit him with a two-shot penalty.
The only footage reviewed was a zoomed-in, close-up of the ball moving, but Lowry wanted to find an angle showing him looking at the ball, as he said this would prove he looked at the ball and did not believe it had moved. That footage was not forthcoming, and ultimately Lowry accepted the penalty as, he said, he wanted to protect his reputation.
“The last thing I want to do is sit there and argue and not take the penalty and then get slaughtered all over social media tonight for being a cheat”, he said.
Advertisement
And so the one-under round of 70 that was displayed on the scoreboard to the raucous grandstands on 18 was abruptly changed to a one-over round of 72, which leaves him on even-par for the tournament and fully 10 shots behind Scheffler.
“Look, we’ll see what the weather brings and see what happens tomorrow”, he said. “But I’ll go out there, I’ll be a little bit earlier than I thought I was going to be. I’m going to miss the Lions game now, which is disappointing.”
Lowry then walked away, his coach Neil Manchip offering a consoling pat on his shoulder.
It was a head-spinning few hours for Lowry, whose walk down the first fairway was met with the first burst of heavy rain of the day. But while it was difficult to play in the heavy showers, the softened course made life easier in between them. Lowry, however, saw too few putts drop to make the most of it all.
He saw a birdie putt from 13 feet slide by on the par-five second hole, though did pick up a shot on the third, which proved to be his only gain on the front nine, while a seven-footer on the par-five seventh drifted agonisingly by. For the second time this week, Lowry hit the worst of the day’s weather at the worst possible time, as the heavens opened to let loose great hammering, sheets of rain as he teed it up on 11, the hardest hole on the course. When his tee shot went left, the broadcast microphones picked up a couple of frustrated Lowry F-bombs. Having scrambled brilliantly to give himself 11 feet for his par, Lowry saw the putt come up one foot shy.
Then came the complication on 12, of which he was informed of on the 15th fairway, at which point he felt he was battling to make the cut at one-over par. He then birdied 15, had a brilliant long, arcing putt for birdie stop dead over the hole on 16. He would miss another birdie look on 17, however, to finish par-par before his fateful trip to the scorers’ tent.
A question in his post-round interview said the penalty had taken him away from the “fringes of contention.”
“Eight shots behind Scottie Scheffler isn’t in the fringes of contention the way he’s playing”, replied Lowry.
Shane Lowry. Ben Brady / INPHO
Ben Brady / INPHO / INPHO
The first ominous signs came yesterday, as Scheffler hit just three fairways all day yesterday while getting the worst weather of the day during his round’s toughest stretch of holes, and yet he shot three-under.
Whenever the rain abated, he dismembered Royal Portrush. A birdie on one was followed by three-straight birdies on holes five through seven, and he picked up another shot on 10 before giving it back at the fiendish 11. And though he missed from 12 feet for birdie on the par-five 12th, he bounced back with a birdie on 13. He birdied the signature par-three 16th – known as Calamity Corner - for the second-straight day, and got lucky with his lie on 17 after he blew his tee shot way right. He wasn’t in the mood to overlook his break, sending his second shot to within 14 feet of the hole. He drained the putt.
The par on the last protected Lowry’s course record but was of cold comfort to the rest of the field.
Scheffler is one shot clear of Matt Fiztpatrick, who went one shot better than yesterday with an eight-birdie, five-under round of 66. Fitzpatrick caught fire at the turn, birdieing all of 10, 11, 12, and 13.
Elsewhere, Haotong Li hung tough for a second-straight 67 to keep himself in the mix, two shots off Scheffler and in a tie for fourth place with Brian Harman.
Lee Westwood went under par for the second day and is among the golfers tied for 12th at three-under, while defending champion Xander Schauffele is a shot further back at two-under, reacting to a double-bogey on 10 with three-straight birdies.
Lowry didn’t have a patent on the day’s frustration: Jon Rahm was seen tossing and kicking a club amid much general self-reproach, with a one-over round of 72 seeing him fall back to even-par for the tournament and likely out of contention.
All of Pádraig Harrington, Darren Clarke, and Tom McKibbin missed the cut, while Bryson DeChambeau responded with a stunning Friday 65 to sneak inside the cutline on the number.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Close
14 Comments
This is YOUR comments community. Stay civil, stay constructive, stay on topic.
Please familiarise yourself with our comments policy
here
before taking part.
Scheffler takes control of the Open with Lowry undone by missed putts and a fussy penalty
IT TOOK UNTIL Friday evening for Scottie Scheffler’s what’s-the-point-of-it-all-really nihilism to spread and take hold among the rest of the field at this Open Championship.
For Scheffler is in command of this golf tournament at its midway stage, thanks a Friday 64 that sees him take the solo lead, one shot ahead of Matt Fitzpatrick.
Scheffler left a putt on the final green inches short of the hole for what would have been a 63 that would have tied the course record, famously set by Shane Lowry during the third round of his triumph in 2019.
Lowry, as Scheffler’s playing partner, was watching on from the same green, but had enough going on without worrying about the status of his record. Lowry’s day was one of intense frustration: there was the familiar angst of terrific play from tee to green undermined by his putter, which was compounded by a two-shot penalty after his round.
Lowry couldn’t resist a smile as he was acclaimed by the grandstands on the 18th green, with Scheffler and Collin Morikawa hanging back in the fairway to afford him the moment. At that point, however, Lowry knew he wouldn’t simply be walking off to sign his card.
Walking up the 15th fairway, a rules official sidled over to Lowry and told him he would have to sit with the R&A after his round to review footage of an incident that occurred on the 12th hole. Taking his practice swing from the rough, slow-mo, zoomed-in footage showed Lowry’s swing hit a blade of grass that caused his ball to move. Lowry did not notice the ball move, and as he did not call the incident, tournament officials hit him with a two-shot penalty.
The only footage reviewed was a zoomed-in, close-up of the ball moving, but Lowry wanted to find an angle showing him looking at the ball, as he said this would prove he looked at the ball and did not believe it had moved. That footage was not forthcoming, and ultimately Lowry accepted the penalty as, he said, he wanted to protect his reputation.
“The last thing I want to do is sit there and argue and not take the penalty and then get slaughtered all over social media tonight for being a cheat”, he said.
And so the one-under round of 70 that was displayed on the scoreboard to the raucous grandstands on 18 was abruptly changed to a one-over round of 72, which leaves him on even-par for the tournament and fully 10 shots behind Scheffler.
“Look, we’ll see what the weather brings and see what happens tomorrow”, he said. “But I’ll go out there, I’ll be a little bit earlier than I thought I was going to be. I’m going to miss the Lions game now, which is disappointing.”
Lowry then walked away, his coach Neil Manchip offering a consoling pat on his shoulder.
It was a head-spinning few hours for Lowry, whose walk down the first fairway was met with the first burst of heavy rain of the day. But while it was difficult to play in the heavy showers, the softened course made life easier in between them. Lowry, however, saw too few putts drop to make the most of it all.
He saw a birdie putt from 13 feet slide by on the par-five second hole, though did pick up a shot on the third, which proved to be his only gain on the front nine, while a seven-footer on the par-five seventh drifted agonisingly by. For the second time this week, Lowry hit the worst of the day’s weather at the worst possible time, as the heavens opened to let loose great hammering, sheets of rain as he teed it up on 11, the hardest hole on the course. When his tee shot went left, the broadcast microphones picked up a couple of frustrated Lowry F-bombs. Having scrambled brilliantly to give himself 11 feet for his par, Lowry saw the putt come up one foot shy.
Then came the complication on 12, of which he was informed of on the 15th fairway, at which point he felt he was battling to make the cut at one-over par. He then birdied 15, had a brilliant long, arcing putt for birdie stop dead over the hole on 16. He would miss another birdie look on 17, however, to finish par-par before his fateful trip to the scorers’ tent.
A question in his post-round interview said the penalty had taken him away from the “fringes of contention.”
“Eight shots behind Scottie Scheffler isn’t in the fringes of contention the way he’s playing”, replied Lowry.
The first ominous signs came yesterday, as Scheffler hit just three fairways all day yesterday while getting the worst weather of the day during his round’s toughest stretch of holes, and yet he shot three-under.
Whenever the rain abated, he dismembered Royal Portrush. A birdie on one was followed by three-straight birdies on holes five through seven, and he picked up another shot on 10 before giving it back at the fiendish 11. And though he missed from 12 feet for birdie on the par-five 12th, he bounced back with a birdie on 13. He birdied the signature par-three 16th – known as Calamity Corner - for the second-straight day, and got lucky with his lie on 17 after he blew his tee shot way right. He wasn’t in the mood to overlook his break, sending his second shot to within 14 feet of the hole. He drained the putt.
The par on the last protected Lowry’s course record but was of cold comfort to the rest of the field.
Scheffler is one shot clear of Matt Fiztpatrick, who went one shot better than yesterday with an eight-birdie, five-under round of 66. Fitzpatrick caught fire at the turn, birdieing all of 10, 11, 12, and 13.
Elsewhere, Haotong Li hung tough for a second-straight 67 to keep himself in the mix, two shots off Scheffler and in a tie for fourth place with Brian Harman.
Lee Westwood went under par for the second day and is among the golfers tied for 12th at three-under, while defending champion Xander Schauffele is a shot further back at two-under, reacting to a double-bogey on 10 with three-straight birdies.
Lowry didn’t have a patent on the day’s frustration: Jon Rahm was seen tossing and kicking a club amid much general self-reproach, with a one-over round of 72 seeing him fall back to even-par for the tournament and likely out of contention.
Earlier, Rory McIlroy shot a two-under round of 69 to make the weekend at three-under, admitting he needs to get all aspects of his game firing to make a run up the leaderboard on moving day.
All of Pádraig Harrington, Darren Clarke, and Tom McKibbin missed the cut, while Bryson DeChambeau responded with a stunning Friday 65 to sneak inside the cutline on the number.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Golf ominous form Scottie Scheffler Shane Lowry the open 2025