Shane Lowry mastered the conditions at a blustery Royal Troon to card an impressive 69 and take a two-shot lead into the weekend at The 152nd Open Championship.
The Irishman opened with a 66 but was faced with a much tougher test on day two, with high winds making life difficult for the entire field and the round ending with just ten players under par.
Lowry was the best of them at seven under, two shots clear of overnight leader Dan Brown, who followed up his 65 with a 72 on his Major Championship debut, and another Englishman in Justin Rose who carded a 68.
That matched the lowest round of the day which was also achieved by Billy Horschel, who sat at two under alongside fellow American Scottie Scheffler and South Africa's Dean Burmester.
Lowry is widely regarded as a master of links golf, having won his home open as an amateur over the links of County Louth as well as claiming his 2019 victory in this event at Royal Portrush.
He also has two Rolex Series wins and a World Golf Championships title to his name, with that CV always putting him among the favourites when he plays in the conditions he is used to.
On Friday, he carded five birdies and overcame a double-bogey on the 11th and was delighted to have put himself in an excellent position against the odds.
"I get to conditions like this and I know I can do it, I know I can deal with that," he said.
"There's an art... it's quite difficult to stand up there from 190 yards and make yourself hit a four iron as low as you can. It's quite difficult to tell yourself that.
"I feel like the three weeks I've had at home, the golf I've played in Ireland, coming here and doing my recce here a few weeks ago, I feel like that's all helped.
"Yes, I have felt quite calm and composed the last couple of days. I've felt really in my comfort zone. Yeah, I'm pretty happy with how things have gone.
“Sometimes you are in a frame of mind where you get on with it better than other times. This week in my head feels like that, where I think I’m ready to take what comes, take what’s given to me out there.
For the first time since 1951, the top three at the halfway stage of The Open are all from Ireland or the United Kingdom. pic.twitter.com/o1jH6dhaP3
— The Open (@TheOpen) July 19, 2024
“Anything that’s thrown at me, I feel like I’m ready to take it on the chin and move on. If I give myself a chance on Sunday I know I can do it and that’s as good a position to be in as any.”
Lowry made a perfect start with an approach to nine feet at the first and then played a beautiful pitch into the par-five fourth, although he gave that shot back after finding sand off the tee at the par-three next.
A tee-shot to 11 feet at the eighth helped him turn in 34 but he then pulled his second shot into the gorse on the 11th.
After taking a penalty drop, Lowry hit his fourth shot to around 10 feet to give himself a chance to salvage a bogey, only for his original ball to be found by a spectator.
That meant it was still in play and, after a long delay while it was determined where he could best take a drop, Lowry hit his approach just short of the green and eventually completed that double-bogey six.
But he bounced back with a two-putt gain on the 16th and holed a 20-footer for birdie on the last.
Brown was heading in the wrong direction when he hit a wayward second shot at the fourth and then failed to get up and down at the ninth to turn in 38.
But he holed an 18-footer at the tenth and took advantage of the par-five 16th before dropping a shot after going over the green on the next.
Rose played a smart pitch at the fourth and an excellent approach into the seventh and while he dropped his only shot of the week so far on the 12th, he took advantage of the 16th and holed a 40-footer on the last.
Horschel also had three birdies and a bogey, Burmester carded a 69 and World Number One Scheffler signed for a 70.
American pair Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele, Canadian Corey Conners and Australian Jason Day were the only other players under par.
