In the fourth and final major of the season at the Royal Liverpool GC course in Hoylake, England, the American has a five-stroke lead over Tommy Fleetwood and six over Sepp Straka. Francesco Molinari out by cut
Brian Hermann, the absolute hero of the second day of The Open, was the fourth and last major of the season, leading by 132 strokes (67 65, -10), after making a void with a sprint 65 (-6) on the second day, which has already issued some unexpected decisions or caused big problems for some big names.
During the Royal Liverpool GC (par 71) at Hoylake, England, which is hosting the tournament for the 13th time, Guido Migliozzi moved up two places to remain in the top ranking, 11th with 141 (69 72, -1), while Francesco Molinari finished 92nd with 148 (73 75, +6).
Herman, 36, of Savannah (Georgia), two titles on the PGA Tour, the last in 2017, and two more successes in minor events, started under par after one round, then made four birdies in a row with a sudden burst from the second hole. He went 12 more under par and finished with an eagle on the 18th, with which he completed his 65, giving him a five-stroke lead over Tommy Fleetwood, second at 137 (-5), Sepp Straka six, third at 138 (-4), and Min Woo Lee, seven over 139 (-3) over Lee, Shubhankar Sharma and Jason Day. The big names included Jordan Spieth, seventh with 140 (-2), Rory McIlroy, the world number two, Max Homma and Windham Clarke, the winner of the US Open, the same score as Migliozzi. Right behind Victor Hovland, tied for 25th with 142 (par), while being twelve shots late, world number three Jon Rahm and Masters winner Matt Fitzpatrick, Xander Schoeffele and Cameron Smith, who defends the title, is tied for 39th with 144 (+2). Not to mention Scotty Scheffler, the world leader, who saved himself with a last-gasp feat, Brooks Koepka, who scored at the PGA Championship, and Patrick Cantlay, who saved the cut with a 145 (+3) with the last useful score, 62.i. Joining him is South African Christo Lamprecht, who along with Fleetwood and Grillo are tied for 62nd after a disastrous 79 (+8) after 18 holes. In any case, he is the only amateur left in the race.
Among the competitors, apart from Molinari, who fell to 145 (+3), were Colin Morikawa (146, +4), Tony Finau, Justin Rose and Sam Burns, all with scores identical to Blue’s, Phil Mickelson (151, +9), Justin Thomas (153, +11) and Dustin Johnson (155, +13). Also out was Travis Smith (150, +8), who had a moment of pride as he made a “hole in one” on the 17th hole (132 yards, 9 iron par 3), a feat that did not prevent him from being eliminated.
Guido Migliozzi playing a very smart match, resulting in 69 shots (-2) in the first round with two birdies without a bogey and 72 (+1) in the second round with two bogeys and a birdie after the first 14 holes in the final were parried. Francesco Molinari led under par (an early bogey and a birdie) on the first half of the course, then things fell apart with three bogeys and a double bogey at the 12th, before closing on a birdie at 75 (+4) and an early exit from the race.
Jackpot – $16,500,000 is up for grabs, the largest ever prize pool, which is $2,500,000 more than last year. The winner will receive $3,000,000 and will be able to play majors until age 60.
Tournament on Sky and streaming now The Open is broadcast live on Sky channels and streamed on Now. Day 3, Saturday 22 July, 12.45-21pm on Sky Sport Golf and Now.
In the photo: Guido Migliozzi