Lucas Herbert came tantalizingly close to a 59 before settling for the sixth round of 62 in major championship history Friday at the 154th Open Championship at Royal Birkdale Golf Club in Southport, England.
The Australian zipped in front by birdieing six of his first nine holes and eight of the first 12. He reached 9 under at No. 16, then saved par after a wayward approach at No. 17.
At No. 18, needing par to shoot the first 61 at a men’s major, Herbert’s drive missed right but he placed his approach shot just in front of the green. He putted onto the surface for his third stroke and left himself 5 feet for par and the record — but his attempt slid left past the cup, leaving him with his only bogey of the day.
The last time this championship was played at Royal Birkdale in 2017, Branden Grace of South Africa shot the first 62 in major championship history. Four rounds had matched that number in recent years, twice by Xander Schauffele, before Herbert added his name to the list.
Herbert, 30, began the day at even par and now stands at 8 under, holding a two-stroke lead over Jackson Suber as the Friday morning wave finished their rounds.
Herbert joined LIV Golf in 2024 and notched his first win in the league this past May in Virginia. But he has not done better than T40 at a major since tying for 15th at the 2022 Open.
He started his day by rolling in three straight birdies, the first two from 16 and 14 1/2 feet away. He nearly chipped in for eagle at the short par-5 fifth and tapped in his fourth birdie.
Then came the most impressive putt of the day, a 36-footer that broke left to right, then back to the left and found a perfect line to drop in the cup.
Herbert wrapped up the sterling front nine by chipping in for birdie at No. 9, wrapping up a 6-under 28. He tied Englishman Denis Durnian (1983, also on Birkdale’s front nine) for the lowest nine-hole score in Open history.
Back-to-back birdies at Nos. 11 and 12 formally put him on 59 watch, and he holed a 7-footer at No. 16 to reach 9 under.
After a long drive at the par-5 17th, Herbert missed the green far left toward the gallery. But he hit a terrific recovery shot out of a sandy dirt lie, his ball staying on the green and curling back to 10 feet, from where he would two-putt for par.
