When Royal Birkdale’s links are baked firm under dry skies and devoid of wind, golf history tends to accelerate. During the second round of the 154th Open Championship, that acceleration arrived in duplicate. Australia’s Lucas Herbert and America’s Sam Burns carved their names into the record books on Friday, July 17, 2026, each signing for an 8-under 62 to match the lowest single-round score in men’s major championship history.
It was a day that belonged to historical milestones, dramatic collapses on the closing stretch, and a contentious rules controversy that completely altered the leaderboard heading into the weekend.
The Anatomy of the 62s at Royal Birkdale
Before Friday, a 62 had been recorded five times in major championship history (with historical tallies noting select additions across recent seasons like Valhalla in 2024). Crucially, South Africa’s Branden Grace set the original major benchmark at 62 during the third round of the 2017 Open Championship—right here on the very same Southport layout.
Playing in pristine, fast conditions with no wind, Herbert went on an early tear. The 30-year-old Australian carded birdies on each of his first three holes, adding further gains at Nos. 5, 7, and 9 to make the turn in 6-under 28, tying the record for the lowest nine-hole score in Open history. Herbert stood at 9 under heading into the par-4 18th hole, playing as the most difficult test on the course. After a wayward drive into the native area on the right and a drop from under a security railing, Herbert chipped to five feet but missed his par putt for his only bogey of the day. He finished with a 62, putting him at -8 overall.
“I’m disappointed, but in the same breath extremely proud. It’s a good problem to have to be disappointed with 62 in a major,” Herbert said, as quoted by ouest-france.fr.
Sam Burns matched the feat earlier in the day, bouncing back from an opening 73 to card his own 62, rocketing up the leaderboard to 5 under par.
DeChambeau’s Rule 8 Disgrace and Drama
While Herbert secured the solo lead, the biggest talking point of Friday evening centered on Bryson DeChambeau. Initially, the two-time major champion walked out of scoring having signed for a brilliant 4-under 66, placing him at 7 under and just one stroke back of Herbert.
Then came the knock on the door from R&A officials.
DeChambeau was summoned back to the par-4 fifth hole to review an incident from earlier in the day. After pulling his tee shot right into heavy native vegetation, television replays caught the American trampling down long grass around his ball prior to hitting his second shot. Following a heated, expressive debate on the course with rules officials, chief rules referee Grant Moir assessed DeChambeau a two-stroke penalty under Rule 8.1a.
“Bryson has been penalized two strokes for inadvertently improving the area of his intended swing,” Moir explained, emphasizing that the rule applies even when the action is completely accidental. The penalty converted DeChambeau’s bogey 5 on the hole into a triple-bogey 7, dropping his round from a 66 to a 68, and his tournament total from 7 under down to 5 under—three strokes behind Herbert.
The ruling sparked immediate controversy. DeChambeau, visibly frustrated, offered no comments in the scoring tent and reportedly threatened to withdraw from the tournament in protest before ultimately committing to start Saturday's third round.
The Contenders and the Cut Line
With DeChambeau pushed back to 5 under alongside Sam Burns and Si-woo Kim, and chasing a trio of Americans at 6 under (Ryan Gerard, Jackson Suber, and Cameron Young), the chasing pack remains dense and volatile.
Defending champion Scottie Scheffler (-4) and Masters champion Rory McIlroy (-1) safely navigated the cut line. McIlroy rebounded brilliantly from an opening 72 with a Friday 67. “I think the main goal today was to still be in it this week, which we are,” McIlroy noted via tvasports.ca.
On the French front, Victor Perez played a steady brand of links golf, following up his opening 68 with a 69 (-1) to sit comfortably in a tie for 13th place at 3 under total, making him the lone tricolore to survive the cut after Antoine Rozner (+2) stumbled with a bogey on the 18th.
| Position | Golfer | Country | Score | Round Totals |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lucas Herbert | AUS | -8 | 70 - 62 |
| T2 | Ryan Gerard | USA | -6 | 67 - 67 |
| T2 | Jackson Suber | USA | -6 | 65 - 69 |
| T2 | Cameron Young | USA | -6 | 67 - 67 |
| T6 | Sam Burns | USA | -5 | 73 - 62 |
| T6 | Bryson DeChambeau | USA | -5 | 67 - 68 |
| T8 | Scottie Scheffler | USA | -4 | 68 - 68 |
| T8 | Jon Rahm | ESP | -4 | 69 - 67 |
As Moving Day dawns at Royal Birkdale, the narrative is split: Herbert’s quest to turn a historic 62 into major hardware, and a fired-up DeChambeau looking to channel his scoring brilliance past the lingering shadow of Rule 8.
Sources
These sources formed the evidence pack for this article. Links open the original publisher; inclusion does not imply endorsement.
- golfplanete.com original
- tvasports.ca original
- By: Zephyr Melton original
- golf.lefigaro.fr original
- players.bio original
- ouest-france.fr original
