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The Star
19-07-2025
- Sport
- The Star
Golf-McIlroy makes early charge as leader Scheffler starts third round
Golf - The 153rd Open Championship - Royal Portrush Golf Club, Portrush, Northern Ireland, Britain - July 19, 2025 Northern Ireland's Rory McIlroy hits his tee shot on the 1st hole during the third round REUTERS/Russell Cheyne PORTRUSH, Northern Ireland (Reuters) - Home favourite Rory McIlroy birdied three of his first holes to begin a third-round charge in perfect scoring conditions at the British Open on Saturday. The 36-year-old began the day on three under par after two up-and-down rounds, seven strokes behind midway leader Scottie Scheffler, but roars resounded across the Dunluce Links as he made just the start required to mount a challenge. With huge galleries swarming down the first fairway and massed around the green, McIlroy left himself a 36-foot putt for birdie and curled his effort into the cup. He was close to an eagle at the par-five second, settling for another birdie, and made up his third stroke of the day at the fourth after a superb approach left him a seven-foot putt. Northern Ireland's McIlroy, bidding to win the Open for the second time after his maiden title at Hoylake in 2014, was at six-under in a tie for fifth as world number one Scheffler began his third round alongside England's Matt Fitzpatrick who began the day at nine under. After two days of unpredictable weather, the weather gods relented on Saturday to encourage a feast of birdies. Early starter Russell Henley of the United States made five birdies and then an eagle on the 12th to rocket up the leaderboard to reach six under with four holes of his round remaining. England's Justin Rose had also reached six under after making five birdies in his opening seven holes. American Brian Harman, winner two years ago at Royal Liverpool, started two shots off the lead, but made a terrible start though as he made double bogey on his opening hole to fall back to six under. Scheffler safely made par at the first but Fitzpatrick dropped a shot after missing a short par putt on the first. (Reporting by Martyn Herman; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)
Irish Examiner
19-07-2025
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
'Moving Day' at Royal Portrush: the players to watch as Open leaders tee off
Saturday afternoon at the 153rd Open and the leaders are poised to get their rounds underway. This is 'Moving Day' but the hope will be that Scottie Scheffler doesn't move any further into the distance after his brilliance on Friday. It's still all to play for. Here we run the rule over some of the main ones to watch Scottie Scheffler: Understated on and off the course, the world number one took everyone by surprise earlier in the week by questioning the fulfilment that comes with striking a small dimpled ball around a few thousand yards of grass. Welcome to our world, Scottie. Less remarked upon was the fact that he had been asked about a slump. A slump! This just two months after his last win at the Byron Nelson in his home state of Texas and the fact that he had posted three top tens since. Still, there was no question that he was a smidgen off his imperious best. That changed on Friday here as he was inches away on the 18th from matching Shane Lowry's course record of 63 here from 2019. If he plays as he can he won't be beaten. Matt Fitzpatrick: US Open champion three years ago, the Sheffield man hasn't been able to follow that up. His tie for eighth at this year's US PGA was his first top-ten since the 2023 Masters, but there had been signs lately of a return to form. A good showing at the Genesis Scottish Open at the Renaissance Club last week served notice and rounds of 67 and 66 – the latter bringing three straight birdies and then another run of four-in-a-row – leave him just a shot off Scheffler and in the final group. Brian Harman: The 2023 champion golfer of the year at Royal Liverpool, with a dominant six-shot lead on the final leaderboard, Harman knows what Fitzpatrick has gone through in trying to rediscover that sort of high. The American's best major effort since has been a tie for 21st at last year's US Open but there was a first win since that Hoylake high with his victory at the Valero Texas Open back in April. A superb putter, Harman has the game and the experience to do this. Haotong Li: A Chinese trailblazer who became the first man from his country to lead a major at the halfway stage at the 2020 US PGA. It's eight years since he shot a closing 63 and finished third at The Open in what was only his third major. A four-time winner on the DP World Tour, he wasn't even ranked inside the top 500 in the world last year and Royal Portrush marks his first major appearance since 2022. He has dropped just one shot in 36 holes so far, on the tough par-four 14th on Friday. The Hojgaards: Apologies to Nicolai and Rasmus for lumping them in together but there is no getting away from the remarkable fact that two twin brothers start round three of an Open Championship inside the top ten. Rasmus, who saw off Rory McIlroy to claim the Irish Open at Royal County Down last year, is five shots off Scheffler after rounds of 69 and 68. 'Hopefully we'll have a good weekend,' Nicolai said, 'and maybe battle it out on Sunday.' Tyrrell Hatton: The foul-mouthed, combustible Englishman has the game to win a major and he is decently placed to do that this weekend. He sits on five-under par, five adrift of the leader, and he is giving himself plenty of chances with a high percentage of greens hit in regulation. One of 19 LIV Tour competitors this week, Hatton has been enjoying the odd pint of Guinness after work hours. A man with seven top-tens in the majors, he posted his best yet with a tie for fourth at the brutally tough Oakmont at the recent US Open. Robert MacIntrye: Another player who tends to wear his emotions on his sleeve, MacIntyre had a club bent over his knee and about to break already this week. That was on Thursday when he posted an even-par 72 having reached three-under through eight holes. He recovered in round two with a brilliant 66 and explained afterwards how he is comfortable with a course that he has always loved and with what he has to do. Came desperately close to winning his first major at the US Open this year. Rory McIlroy: Well, we couldn't very well leave him out, could we? Tied for 13th alongside reigning champion Xander Schauffele and more, the current Masters champion has acres of ground to make up on Svheffler and many more besides. Friday brought signs of improvement with his wayward driving and there have been some signs of the familiar McIlroy magic across the opening two days. Needs to go very low in round three to give himself a shot come Sunday.
Times
19-07-2025
- Sport
- Times
The Open leaderboard 2025 live: scores, updates from round 3 at Portrush
Brian Harman scored a fantastic second-round 65 yesterday and held the clubhouse lead for much of the afternoon on eight under until Matt Fitzpatrick finished. The American seems to play some of his best golf on links courses and won the Open at Royal Liverpool in 2023 by six strokes. Fun fact for you, he is one of three left-handed winners of the Open. The others? Bob Charles and Phil Mickelson. Anyway, the 38-year-old is looking to join an elite group of Americans to win two Opens in a three-year span (or less). Walter Hagen, Bob Jones, Arnold Palmer, Lee Trevino, Tom Watson and of course Tiger Woods have all managed it. Harman starts two back today The third round of the Open is under way and the first pairings are out on the course. Both starting on one over, Germany's Matthias Schmid and Canada's Corey Conners both find the fairway from the tee at the 1st. The conditions are perfect out there at the moment, so expect some of these early starters to climb the leaderboard this morning. If you need to be caught up on all of yesterday's action at Portrush make sure you have a read of Tom Kershaw's superb report: • Matt Fitzpatrick back at his best in time for Scottie Scheffler duel The Englishman's five-under-par second round has him one shot behind 'Tiger-like' American at Portrush, but Shane Lowry penalised after ball moves during practice swing In case you missed this yesterday, there was late drama at Portrush after the end of the second round as Shane Lowry was given a two-shot penalty. The local hero won the only major of his career here back in 2019, and his hopes of repeating that feat take a significant dent as he now starts on evens having made it into the clubhouse on two under at the close of play. Lowry was under investigation during his round yesterday after his ball appeared to move during a practice swing as he prepared to take his second shot at the par-five 12th from the rough. The Irishman made par on the hole, but his two-shot penalty turns that into a double bogey. Please enable cookies and other technologies to view this content. You can update your cookies preferences any time using privacy manager. 9.35 Matthias Schmid (Ger), Corey Conners (Can) 9.45 Sepp Straka (Aut), Hideki Matsuyama (Jpn) 9.55 Takumi Kanaya (Jpn), Adrien Saddier (Fra) 10.05 Henrik Stenson (Swe), Sebastian Soderberg (Swe) 10.15 Thomas Detry (Bel), Jacob Skov Olesen (Den) 10.25 Bryson DeChambeau, Nathan Kimsey (Eng) 10.35 Maverick McNealy, Thriston Lawrence (RSA) 10.45 Justin Leonard, John Parry (Eng) 11.00 Andrew Novak, Sergio Garcia (Spa) 11.10 Jesper Svensson (Swe), Francesco Molinari (Ita) 11.20 Riki Kawamoto (Jpn), Wyndham Clark 11.30 Shane Lowry (Ire), Jon Rahm (Spa) 11.40 J.J. Spaun, Dustin Johnson 11.50 Phil Mickelson, Jhonattan Vegas (Ven) 12.00 Viktor Hovland (Nor), Jordan Spieth 12.15 Russell Henley, Antoine Rozner (Fra) 12.25 Romain Langasque (Fra), Daniel Berger 12.35 Sungjae Im (Kor), Dean Burmester (RSA) 12.45 Matt Wallace (Eng), Akshay Bhatia 12.55 Jason Kokrak, Lucas Glover 1.05 Tommy Fleetwood (Eng), Justin Thomas 1.15 Aaron Rai (Eng), Rickie Fowler 1.30 Marc Leishman (Aus), Oliver Lindell (Fin) 1.40 Ryggs Johnston, Xander Schauffele 1.50 Kristoffer Reitan (Nor), Matthew Jordan (Eng) 2.00 Ludvig Åberg (Swe), Justin Rose (Eng) 2.10 Harry Hall (Eng), Christiaan Bezuidenhout (RSA) 2.20 Sam Burns, Lee Westwood (Eng) 2.30 Jordan Smith (Eng), Rory McIlroy (Nir) 2.45 Keegan Bradley, Nicolai Hojgaard (Den) 2.55 Tony Finau, Chris Gotterup 3.05 Harris English, Robert MacIntyre (Sco) 3.15 Tyrrell Hatton (Eng), Rasmus Hojgaard (Den) 3.25 Haotong Li (Chi), Brian Harman 3.35 Matthew Fitzpatrick (Eng), Scottie Scheffler Good morning and welcome to The Times' coverage of the third round of the Open at Royal Portrush. What a day it was yesterday, as Scottie Scheffler charged through the field to lead after his superb round of 64, and what a round for the Englishman Matt Fitzpatrick too who will start one shot off the lead today. They are paired up together and set to tee off this afternoon, but in the meantime we will have our eyes on the chasing pack to see if anyone can catch the world No1. Rick Broadbent, Stuart Fraser and Tom Kershaw are in place to bring us updates from the Causeway Coast, so sit back and enjoy!
NBC Sports
18-07-2025
- Sport
- NBC Sports
Brian Harman loves links golf, but it wasn't always that way
Brian Harman talks to Cara Banks about his impressive Round 2 showing at The Open Championship, where he's been able to rely on past experience at Royal Portrush. PORTRUSH, Northern Ireland – Brian Harman did not take to links golf at first. Despite his record as the 2023 Champion Golfer of the Year and another inspired 65 Friday at Royal Portrush to move into an early share of the lead, the left-hander's maiden experience with the ancient form of the game did not suggest he was destined to become a links aficionado. 'I played the [2006] Palmer Cup at Prestwick, and no, I didn't take to it. I played four matches, went 0-4, and I don't think I made it past like No. 14,' explained Harman, who made it to the 16th hole in one match but did go winless that week in Scotland. 'I got worn out. I couldn't understand because I kept trying to chip with a lob wedge, and I kept trying to chip it into the air. The ground being so firm was so unique that I just couldn't get adjusted to it.' His difficult introduction to links golf aside, he did come around in 2014 when he qualified for his first Open Championship. 'I won the John Deere Classic in '14 and was the last guy in the field at Liverpool that year. I wasn't super excited about coming over. I just didn't really fancy my chances,' he said. 'After I played that week, I was like, wow, I can't believe how much I enjoyed that. I love being able to hit these stingers off the tee that go a million yards. I don't know, I just really kind of took to it.' Harman finished tied for 26th at his first Open and was trending in the right direction heading into the '23 championship, with back-to-back top-20 finishes before his breakthrough at Royal Liverpool. For one of the game's more accurate players off the tee, links golf allows Harman to tap into an artistic side that is largely unused most weeks at PGA Tour events. 'I think that places like this force you to be a little bit more creative. It's not so much of an aerial attack. There's probably 10 different types of clubs, irons, drivers, woods that you can hit off the tee,' he said. 'There's different ways to attack into the green, and there's almost always a hill that will kind of kill a shot coming into the green. I just enjoy the creativity and trying to think your way around.'
Yahoo
18-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Hunter Harman stalking second British Open crown
Brian Harman said he "has the game" to win the British Open for a second time in three years after a brilliant six-under 65 on Friday shot the American to the top of the leaderboard. The 2023 winner of the Claret Jug made the most of the benign morning conditions on the Causeway Coast to card six birdies in a bogey-free round to move to eight under par. Two years ago at Royal Liverpool, Harman also pulled clear in his second round and was never reeled back in by the field on the way to sealing his first major by six shots. The best the 38-year-old has managed in seven majors since was tied for 21st at last year's US Open. Yet, the 5ft 7in (170cm) Harman's game is tailor made for the seaside links conditions, which are less beneficial for the booming big hitters off the tee than most courses on the PGA Tour. "I just enjoy the creativity and trying to think your way around," said Harman. "You can kind of do it your own way. "I love the golf over here. It suits me. Distance, of course, matters over here, but it doesn't matter as much as maybe some other tournaments, and it doesn't matter because the ground is so firm that the ball rolls." With dark clouds and driving rain rolling in for the afternoon starters on Friday, Harman is likely to go out in the final group come Saturday's crucial third round. But he is trying to stay calm, despite recognising that the chance to contend for majors does not come around often. "I'm not trying to be heroic or do anything crazy. I know that I've got the game to do it, and it's just a matter of executing and staying in my own head," he added. "I was quoted afterwards (winning the 2023 British Open) saying I'd spend the rest of my life trying to get in a position to feel this again because it is, it's the top of our profession, major championships. "Any time you can get in contention, have a chance to win, I mean, that's what we've all worked for our entire lives and you don't get that many opportunities to do that." Harman, nicknamed "The Butcher" due his passion for hunting, said he would celebrate his Claret Jug two years ago by mowing grass on his new tractor. His pro-hunting comments have previously drawn criticism from animal rights activists, but said he will "sleep like a baby" despite the furore, after a steak dinner to recover his energies for a big weekend ahead. kca/jc
