-
Paolo Uggetti, ESPN
HOYLAKE, England — When Brian Harman putt a 15-foot eagle putt on the 18th hole on Friday afternoon to score under 10, he changed the calculation of this year’s Open Championship at Royal Liverpool Golf Club. The weekend will now turn into a field-wide chase for Harman, who is leading second place five times as he searches for his first big win.
Who, if any, can track him? Here are six players to watch, starting Saturday:
As the wind picked up on Friday and the players struggled to stay near the top of the standings, the Briton fought a late draw and made three birdies in the ninth round to finish from the start: 5 under.
“It eventually became a grind,” says Fleetwood. “I really think for most of the round, I really felt like I played really, really well. I just never built any momentum and didn’t make any shots.”
Fleetwood is by far the favorite to catch Harman at some point this weekend and not just because he’s closest. He’s played one of the best golf games of his career this year (six top 10 finishes on the PGA Tour), enjoyed the support of the home crowd and probably won’t face pressure to hold a 54-hole lead.
As the weather deteriorates starting Saturday, Fleetwood – who said he watched Harman’s 4th game on Friday morning – will also thrive on his experience playing in this area and in this type of weather. He’ll need to perfect some of his shots (56th on the course in terms of tee shots), but if he maintains his solid approach (21st place) and scorching putts (5th) he’ll fit in well through the final day.
“We don’t know what conditions will bring,” Fleetwood said. “You just keep playing until it’s over and see where you end up.”
Like a shot fired from a cannon, Lee was here to compete in a big event. Lee started the day even and quickly took a 2nd lead behind bogey on holes 3 and 4. The Australian then fought back, hitting a rare eagle on the fifth par-5 before scoring another birdie on the ninth. Two more birdies in the ninth round took Lee all the way to the bottom three and tied in fourth.
Earlier this year, Lee was in the final group of the Players Championship with Scottie Scheffler who is leading by 2 strokes. It was a disappointing performance as Lee finished in sixth place, but valuable experience could pay off this weekend.
At TPC Sawgrass, Lee succeeded in hitting an iron from tee thanks to his speed and distance, and if the weather turns worse on Saturday, his irons will perform well on this course as well. Lee may not have had much of a big hit, but he has the playstyle and attitude to make some noise this weekend.
Lee isn’t the only Australian in the mix. The day that started Friday 1 ended after a solid 72nd inning and went on to win six birdies to move up the leaderboard and take fourth place after two innings.
Day, like Fleetwood, has played well this season, picking up seven top 10 finishes on the PGA Tour and taking his first tour win since 2018. Day has reborn this season but has struggled to translate his record into the pro leagues. Day finished 39th at Augusta and then missed the cuts at both the PGA Championship and the US Open.
“It was a bit disappointing,” Day said of his performances in the pro tournaments. “I’m a bit frustrated. But I think if I could come here this week, that would definitely change it.”
As for his chances, Day said the upcoming weather will bring back some of the players at the top of the table, which leads him to believe the open league is not just for him but for more players than just those near the top.
“I think I’ve got a number in my head but I won’t say it because usually when I say it I’m very wrong,” Day said. “I’ll keep pushing to that number.”
Despite being shot back nine times by Harman, McIlroy was unable to count. Especially when it feels like he’s played the first two days of his C-level game and is still taking the most shots from the tee than anyone on the court and one of the 23 underperformers.
Although his approach, putt and short play around the green were average or slightly worse, McIlroy’s eight-foot birdie on the 18th hole on Friday deserved a punch as he headed into the weekend with a chance and plenty of confidence.
“I could go back to number 9, but I don’t think there will be many players between me and the leader at the weekend,” McIlroy said. “I think if I can hit 3-, 4-, 5 below par tomorrow on Sunday, I’ll have a really good chance.”
Like Day, McIlroy believes harsher conditions will allow ice cream to take the lead, and the way he’s played irons since winning the Scottish Open last week gives the four-time major champion plenty of hope that he’ll be able to chase Harman.
“I’ve felt more comfortable over the last few years and I feel like I can perform in all conditions,” McIlroy said. “Whatever it throws at us over the next few days, I feel I’ll be prepared.”
For a moment over nine on Friday, it looked like Spieth would keep running to skyrocket to the top of the table. But after scoring three birdies up front, Spieth hit it all back at nine points behind to finish in his starting position, two points below and now eight points ahead of the leader.
It was a typical Spieth day, with ups and downs and alternating wild shots. The three-time big winner didn’t play hard, but he won’t make many mistakes and will need to keep his driver in check, which hasn’t been very precise this week (63rd in the field) to actually enter the dispute.
“If it gets tough, I’m definitely up for the challenge,” Spieth said.
Unlike Day and McIlroy, Spieth doesn’t seem to believe Harman will return to earth that much, which means a top 20 player would need to go low on both days. After Friday, Spieth didn’t feel good about her chances.
“I feel like I played as good or better than yesterday,” said Spieth, who was frustrated with his round. “It takes to really score. I understand a lot can happen at an Open, but eight shots is a lot of shots to find out a player is playing really well.”
Harman’s Georgia colleague overcame the latter nine at Hoylake in windy afternoon conditions with six birdies and just one bogey to finish 4 under and in the only third place going into Saturday.
Straka is close to a recent win at the John Deere Classic and a top 7 finish at the PGA Championship. At the US Open, however, he missed his chance. However, Straka was able to maintain the game despite losing shots on the court around the green. His approach, drive, and putt games are all in the top 15 for strokes in those categories, and his birdie on Thursday 18 could be the shot of the tournament.
Sepp Straka with a phenomenal chip over the bunker for a birdie on the 18th! 🔥
: @USAnetwork | #Opening pic.twitter.com/tAaQuq53cD
— Golf channel (@GolfChannel) July 20, 2023
“My game is in good shape,” Straka said Friday. “I hit the ball pretty well and then starting a couple of weeks ago, the hitter showed up, and hopefully I can keep that momentum going.”
