Horschell and Schauffele in prime position too
Moving day at the 152nd Open Championship at Royal Troon in Scotland (17-21 July) certainly lived-up to its expectations when Ireland’s Shane Lowry slipped down the leaderboard from number one spot. Yet the surprise leader on day one, England’s Daniel Brown, came up trumps again with a fine third round to stay in touch on 3-under par. And fellow-countryman Justin Rose played another delightful round to tie with Brown. However, it was America’s Billy Horschell, a 37-year old from Florida, who shot a magnificent score of 69 to snatch the outright lead on 4-under par.
Saturday at the Open began with a little sunshine but later the clouds filled the sky and the rain came lashing down. With a great sea of umbrellas everywhere, Royal Troon was about to get even tougher. And, surprisingly, it was the Americans who performed really well in Ayrshire.
The 2020 Olympic Golf Champion, Xander Schauffele from California, who also won this year’s US PGA Championship, is well in the picture after shooting a 2-under par 69 to get to 3-under for the tournament.
Sam Burns, a 27 year old from Louisiana, produced some splendid golf to close-out with a 65 with eight birdies and so snatch a share of second spot on 3-under. Russell Henley from Georgia joined him with a 66. Another early surprise was Thriston Lawrence (RSA) who also created some superb golf at Royal Troon with a 65 to tie on 3-under.
So what happened to the Europeans on day three?
Alas, England’s Daniel Brown started his third round with a bogey – his fourth of the week. However, with his brother Benjamin as caddie, he pulled back on the third hole with a birdie to get back to 5-under. However, leader from Ireland, Shane Lowry was pulling away from him after a birdie at the 4th hole which got him to 8-under for the tournament.
Brown then birdied the sixth hole to get within two shots of Lowry. The next hole saw him hit a wild drive but he kept his cool and plopped it onto the green where he made par.
A few holes later they both finished in the left-hand bunker beside the green where Shane Lowry made a double-bogey and Daniel Brown made bogey. The match was really firing-up now especially as American Billy Horschell was also on 6-under in a tie for the lead with Lowry and Brown.
Brown continued to play so well at Royal Troon and made another birdie at the 12th where, alas, Lowry made a bogey. The Irishman suffered six bogeys on Saturday which meant a drastic descent down the leaderboard with a very disappointing 6-over par 77.
Daniel Brown made another birdie at the 16th hole to reclaim a share of the lead on 6-under. However, a bogey at the 17th cost him dearly. At the final hole, a double-bogey saw him slip into a share of second spot on 3-under.
The 18th hole was also a tragedy for Shane Lowry who had to cope with a wayward drive which he launched some sixty yards wide of the fairway. His second shot ended in the tribunes where he luckily got a free drop on his way to a relatively normal bogey.
The final day at the Open will be full of excitement just as always. How will American Billy Horschell fare today? Can Xander Schauffele win his second Major? How will Englishmen Daniel Brown and Justin Rose play today? Can Shane Lowry find his form again? There are so many questions and in a few hours’ time we will know who will be crowned the Champion Golfer of the Year for 2024.
Wendy Hoad
Editor
MAIN PHOTOGRAPH: England’s Justin Rose is still in with a chance of winning the Open.