It’s tight at the top, with Lowry in a nine-way tie for 16th on 10-under.
The Offaly man has now carded back to back 68s, having opened with a 64.
He started on the front nine today, birdying the eighth, 11th and 13th, while he dropped a shot on hole 12.
Rory McIlroy missed the cut, while Seamus Power withdrew during his first round on Friday.
Italian veteran Manassero is poised to challenge for his first US PGA Tour title after conjuring seven birdies in a six-under par 64 to share the 54-hole lead with Fox.
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Fox also fired seven birdies and a bogey at TPC Toronto Osprey Valley, their 14-under par total of 196 putting the leaders one stroke clear atop a congested leaderboard, with 22 more players within four strokes of the lead.
On a day when as many as 11 players shared the lead at one point, Manassero was the first to reach 14-under with his sixth birdie of the day at the 15th.
He bogeyed 17, where he was in the left rough off the tee and missed a four-footer to save par, but he birdied the par-five 18th.
“It was a really good round,” Manassero said. “I missed the short one on 17, and I did miss a couple more short ones today. I try to think of them just like a shot really, like a driver, like a six-iron, whatever. It’s just a shot.
“It wasn’t that hard for me to stay focused into what I was doing and not ruining (it) at the end.”
Matteo Manassero (file photo). Ben Brady / INPHO
Ben Brady / INPHO / INPHO
Manassero, a five-time winner on the DP World Tour, is seeking his first US tour title. The 32-year-old Italian has revived his career after briefly walking away from the game in the midst of a prolonged slump. He claimed his first DP World Tour victory in more than a decade in March of 2024.
“It’s definitely made me more mature and much better perspective towards golf, which at one point was everything,” he said of the ups and downs of his career. “I have a better perspective towards, for example, a day like tomorrow.”
Fox, 38, is aiming to build off his first US PGA Tour title, captured in a playoff at the Myrtle Beach Classic last month.
He launched his round with three straight birdies and had five on the front nine, bouncing back from a bogey at 11 — where he was in the water — with birdies at 12 and 18.
- Stress-free golf -
“To be honest, everything went pretty right,” Fox said. “I drove it great. I think, if you do that round here, you give yourself lots of chances.
“Had a lot of good wedge shots, holed a few putts early. Just played really solid kind of stress-free golf for the most part.”
Americans Lee Hodges and Mat McCarty and Taiwan’s Kevin Yu were tied for third on 13-under 197.
Hodges bookended his seven-under 63 with eagles at the first and 18th, with three birdies in between.
Yu had eight birdies and a bogey in his 63 while McCarty had seven birdies in his 64.
Canadian Mackenzie Hughes and Americans Jake Knapp and Andrew Putnam were tied on 12-under, one stroke clear of a group of seven players on 11-under 199, while Lowry headlined a group of nine players on 200.
Fox said his victory last month had him feeling “more comfortable in my own shoes,” but he with so many within striking distance he said that Sunday promised to be a shoot-out.
“Obviously there’s a lot of good players behind me,” he said. “I feel like it’s going to take a pretty low (score) to get the job done.”
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Lowry stays four shots of the lead at Canadian Open after moving day 68
IRELAND’S SHANE LOWRY remains four shots off the lead after moving day at the RBC Canadian Open.
Lowry shot another round of 68 in to stay in contention in Toronto.
Italy’s Matteo Manassero and Ryan Fox of New Zealand share the lead on 14-under for the tournament.
It’s tight at the top, with Lowry in a nine-way tie for 16th on 10-under.
The Offaly man has now carded back to back 68s, having opened with a 64.
He started on the front nine today, birdying the eighth, 11th and 13th, while he dropped a shot on hole 12.
Rory McIlroy missed the cut, while Seamus Power withdrew during his first round on Friday.
Italian veteran Manassero is poised to challenge for his first US PGA Tour title after conjuring seven birdies in a six-under par 64 to share the 54-hole lead with Fox.
Fox also fired seven birdies and a bogey at TPC Toronto Osprey Valley, their 14-under par total of 196 putting the leaders one stroke clear atop a congested leaderboard, with 22 more players within four strokes of the lead.
On a day when as many as 11 players shared the lead at one point, Manassero was the first to reach 14-under with his sixth birdie of the day at the 15th.
He bogeyed 17, where he was in the left rough off the tee and missed a four-footer to save par, but he birdied the par-five 18th.
“It was a really good round,” Manassero said. “I missed the short one on 17, and I did miss a couple more short ones today. I try to think of them just like a shot really, like a driver, like a six-iron, whatever. It’s just a shot.
“It wasn’t that hard for me to stay focused into what I was doing and not ruining (it) at the end.”
Manassero, a five-time winner on the DP World Tour, is seeking his first US tour title. The 32-year-old Italian has revived his career after briefly walking away from the game in the midst of a prolonged slump. He claimed his first DP World Tour victory in more than a decade in March of 2024.
“It’s definitely made me more mature and much better perspective towards golf, which at one point was everything,” he said of the ups and downs of his career. “I have a better perspective towards, for example, a day like tomorrow.”
Fox, 38, is aiming to build off his first US PGA Tour title, captured in a playoff at the Myrtle Beach Classic last month.
He launched his round with three straight birdies and had five on the front nine, bouncing back from a bogey at 11 — where he was in the water — with birdies at 12 and 18.
- Stress-free golf -
“To be honest, everything went pretty right,” Fox said. “I drove it great. I think, if you do that round here, you give yourself lots of chances.
“Had a lot of good wedge shots, holed a few putts early. Just played really solid kind of stress-free golf for the most part.”
Americans Lee Hodges and Mat McCarty and Taiwan’s Kevin Yu were tied for third on 13-under 197.
Hodges bookended his seven-under 63 with eagles at the first and 18th, with three birdies in between.
Yu had eight birdies and a bogey in his 63 while McCarty had seven birdies in his 64.
Canadian Mackenzie Hughes and Americans Jake Knapp and Andrew Putnam were tied on 12-under, one stroke clear of a group of seven players on 11-under 199, while Lowry headlined a group of nine players on 200.
Fox said his victory last month had him feeling “more comfortable in my own shoes,” but he with so many within striking distance he said that Sunday promised to be a shoot-out.
“Obviously there’s a lot of good players behind me,” he said. “I feel like it’s going to take a pretty low (score) to get the job done.”
– © AFP 2025
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Golf In The Mix Shane Lowry