The Open: Lucas Herbert equals major history to lead as Bryson DeChambeau involved in Royal Birkdale rules drama
Lucas Herbert leads after a historic '62 round' at Royal Birkdale, with Bryson DeChambeau three back after being handed a two-shot penalty after his second round; Herbert and Sam Burns both equalled the lowest round in men's major history
Friday 17 July 2026 23:49, UK
Lucas Herbert holds a two-shot lead after an extraordinary second round at The Open, where two players equalled major history and Bryson DeChambeau was involved in a controversial ruling.
DeChambeau had his strategy questioned pre-tournament and arrived looking to avoid the 'Bryson Slam' of missing every major cut, with the two-time major champion responding by following an opening-round 67 with a birdie-birdie finish to a four-under 66.
It lifted him to seven under and within a shot of Lucas Herbert, who equalled the lowest round in men's major history despite bogeying the final hole of an eight-under 62, only for a lengthy rules review seeing DeChambeau handed a two-shot penalty for inadvertently improving his lie at the fifth.
- The Open: Latest leaderboard and scores
- Recap: The Open - second round as it happened
- Get Sky Sports or stream golf with no contract
Herbert leads Jackson Suber, Cameron Young and Sam Burns, who matched the Australian's 62, while a visibly frustrated DeChambeau dropped back to five under and three off the halfway lead.
A star-studded leaderboard sees world No 1 Scottie Scheffler, Tommy Fleetwood, Jon Rahm, Bob MacIntyre, Matt Wallace and Alex Fitzpatrick all within four of the halfway lead, as McIlroy sits seven behind after a three-under 67.
DeChambeau drama dominates after historic day
Two-time major champion DeChambeau returned to the par-four fifth with officials post-round to protest the decision, which was only officially confirmed over 70 minutes after he had walked off the 18th hole.
DeChambeau's initially bogey on the hole was turned into a triple-bogey seven and dropped him to a two-under 68, leaving him tied-fifth heading into the weekend despite Golf Channel reporting that he was still undecided on whether to continue in the tournament.
In a statement, R&A Referee Grant Moir said: "Bryson has been penalised two strokes for inadvertently improving the area of his intended backswing on the fifth hole when he was playing his second shot.
"Rule 8.1 restricts what a player may do to improve any of the protected conditions affecting the stroke, and this includes the area of the player's intended swing.
"So an improvement means to alter one or more of the conditions affecting the stroke so that the player gains a potential advantage for the stroke. I'll stress that this applies even when the action is accidental, as it was in Bryson's case."
Herbert and Burns match major history in record round
Six birdies in the first nine holes saw Herbert reach the turn in 28 and equal the lowest front-nine in major history, with back-to-back birdies from the 11th and another at the 16th taking him to nine under and put more records under threat.
Herbert failed to take advantage of the par-five 17th despite finding the fairway off the tee, going way left with his approach and missing a 10-foot birdie putt, then failed to convert a five-foot par putt at the last to become the first male to card a '61 round'.
"It was very cool to experience that, and the nerves coming down the stretch," Herbert told Sky Sports. "I felt the energy, everyone wanted it to happen and I felt like I kind of let everyone down, as everyone wanted to be part of watching that.
The Australian's round was just the sixth 62 in men's major history but was equalled less than 30 minutes later by Burns, who produced a three-birdie finish - including a 20-footer at the par-five 17th and bunker hole-out at the par-four last - to also get to eight under.
"I thought coming into the day if I could get it to red numbers for the golf tournament, that would be a pretty good spot," Burns said. "I think the finish there the last three holes was just a bonus."
Overnight leader Suber added a one-under 69 to ensure a Saturday pairing with Herbert, while Young and Gerard carded matching 67s to also get to six under ahead of Burns and DeChambeau.
McIlroy mixed four birdies with a lone bogey in an improved second-round 67, including him driving the par-four ninth green for the second successive day, with home favourite Fleetwood on the same score after birdieing three of his last five holes.
Just nine strokes separated all 78 players who made the cut, with PGA champion Aaron Rai (+2), US Open winner Wyndham Clark (+3), Justin Rose (+3), Matt Fitzpatrick (+4) and 2017 champion Jordan Spieth (+10) among those to make an early exit.
When is The Open live on Sky Sports?
Sky Sports is once again the exclusive home of The Open in the UK and Ireland, with wall-to-wall action from the final men's major of the year throughout the weekend on Sky Sports Golf.
'Saturday at The Open' will kick off the third-round coverage from 9am on Sky Sports Golf, with early play on Sky Sports+ and the Sky Sports App ahead of full coverage on Sky Sports Golf from 11am.
Featured Groups will also be available on Sky Sports+ or the Sky Sports App, with coverage then starting for Sunday's final round from 8am on Sunday on Sky Sports Golf.
Get the best prices and book a round at one of 1,700 courses across the UK & Ireland
