Open Championship 2026: Round 2, early highlights
Lucas Herbert and Sam Burns provided plenty of highlights early at Royal Birkdale. Here's a look at the best moments from their second rounds at the 154th Open Championship.
Video Transcript
Royal Birkdale on the west coast of England, about an hour and 20 minutes from Manchester, for the 154th Open, the 11th time the Open has come back here to Royal Birkdale.
The first was back in 1954.
Let's get you caught up with what's been going on.
Harry Hall at the second, hitting his second shot.
Plus seven, he needed it, and it's just perfection.
Back to plus five.
He'll be thinking about making the cut.
Harry fired up.
Tony, Pierson Coody hit a beauty with his second at one.
Yeah, well, for a very good tee shot, he's just set things up, but you've still gotta produce the goods.
And didn't he ever.
Three beautiful shots in the match group.
Off to a flyer.
21 Englishmen are in the field this week.
Matt Wallace is one of them.
Here's his second of five.
Really showed that old head on young shoulders, hitting an iron off the tee here and got rewarded- a beautiful second.
And then at the sixth, to get it back to four under par.
Yes.
Gets that one to fall.
Two shots back of the lead is Matt Wallace right now.
And the leader is Jackson Suber.
Straighten at the second.
Yes.
That's the six under.
That was after a nice par save at one where he kind of ran that birdie putt by a little bit.
So Jackson Suber still in control of things at the 154th edition of the Open.
One under par today.
Matt Wallace is under par as well.
Same with Pierson Coody, who just birdied the first.
Alex Smally at one point, Sam, was five under par yesterday, ended up with a double late.
Needed a two.
Coody.
I love that, fact you told us just now, Steve, that his- Coody for a birdie-birdie start.
It's not far away.
Oh, Mr. Coody.
Granddad will be watching.
So birdie on one.
Nice 70 yesterday, and he gets into the red straight away.
Dressed in red.
10 minutes uphill all the way to the hole.
Into the left turn in this as well.
Yes.
Races that one in.
So now three players tied for the lead at five under par.
So browned out, so parched.
If the guys like Adam Scott here should be able to get this on the green.
Gonna do better than that.
He's gonna have a great look at birdie.
Sam Burns easing one out the left rough at two.
Oh.
Oh, nice.
Three over par.
That is perfectly timed.
So he should be able to spin this without any issue, just a flip lob wedge.
That's how you play the first hole.
Jump up to the third, Bud Cauley, to join the top five.
Yes, indeed.
Lucas Herbert.
Chance to get to three under par.
Yes.
How's that start?
That'll do.
Yeah.
Up over the little shoulder, down the other side.
Fair bit of swing.
And very slow then very fast.
Always found those the hardest to judge.
Oh.
Hard for some, not for others.
That is a brilliant putt.
I was gonna say two putts there will be fine.
See Lucas Herbert here at five, green side.
Actually has a pretty handy short game.
Oh.
Very nearly a two.
He has no bounce on his way to see.
Really get this nipped.
He is a genius at this.
Oh.
As described.
Yeah.
Yesterday, the first birdie didn't come until the ninth for Rory McIlroy.
It's come on the second today.
The account is open.
One under on the round, building from yesterday.
Nacho Elvira here at two.
Oh.
Jackson Suber from the fairway at 14.
The kid's hanging in there, Tony.
Oh, he's done fantastically, hasn't he?
Started leaking a little earlier.
Back-to-back three putts and another bogey, and it's four back.
Well, the overnight leader, Suber, looks to take the lead back.
Two putts to tie at the top.
This is for eagle.
It's got, it's got the speed.
Just gonna tail off at the end, but lovely putt.
Beautifully judged.
Hanch tied second.
Lucas from the fairway at the ninth.
Fast, mate.
Fast.
That's okay.
Not bad at all.
Jackson Suber to grab a share of the lead once again.
That's a well-played 14th for Jackson.
He's back to even par on the day after that 65 yesterday.
Herbert from just off the green.
Did he do it again?
Yes.
Wow, what a round this guy's putting together, Sam.
Is that 28?
Mm-hmm.
Since the- Yeah.
Jackson Suber, that ball flew into the bunker, but it got out of its pitch mark.
Good shot.
Well, nice day.
McColley.
Boy, he and Lucas are just rolling along here today.
And Chavarria, birdie at four.
Oh, that'll go in.
Always nice to see them go in.
It's only six feet short of it, and it's not in it.
It's a bit like David Duval now.
What a shot.
Again.
What a shot again.
Red hot.
Coody now coming off that bogey at 11.
Looks good.
Good line.
Oh.
Oh, certainly well read.
Beautiful iron shot.
And he converts it.
Well done.
Great stuff.
Great stuff.
Now Morikawa.
He's coming back to the best as he was.
Oh.
Another beautiful iron shot.
This is again just off to the right.
I think it's just off right edge.
It's not outside the hole.
Oh, he's pushed it into the middle.
Birdie number seven on the day through 11 holes.
Look at that.
Wow.
Lucas Herbert now stretches his lead to two.
He's had quite a few, hasn't he?
Birdie opportunities from this distance.
Keeps putting good strokes on them, and some of them are gonna go.
Boy, the way he strikes the ball with those irons, Tony.
He's always been the guy who gives the impression that he's not too scared of anything.
Don't think he's gonna get overawed by the situation.
Well struck.
Beautiful.
Beautiful.
Opportunity after opportunity.
At 17 as we welcome in Kurt Byrum into the box.
Good to be back with you guys.
Going forward here with that wind out of the left.
Like three wood off that tight lie.
Oh, this is a beauty right here.
That's a very small target up there.
Well struck.
That hole must look like a basketball hoop to him right now.
Suber for birdie at 17.
To keep pace.
That'll help.
As we go down with McIlroy, just a 367 off the tee here at 8.
He loved the way he drove it yesterday.
Attacked the golf course with the driver.
Left himself a pretty easy second shot here at 8.
Hallelujah.
Speaking of, driver out for McIlroy at 9.
Drove it on here yesterday.
Yes, Rory!
He's got some wind behind again today.
Let's see if he can get close.
Better than close.
How good is this?
Right at it.
Two days in a row he's driven the ninth green.
He's having a great day.
This is right on it, too.
And is the distance good?
Oh.
It certainly is.
You know, when this boy gets hot, he is really hot.
Stayed under par.
Go on, Rory.
Oh.
Goodness me.
It's in.
Should've hit a drive harder.
Sam Burns.
Stepping up to 13th.
Well, this is a beauty.
Look at this baby here.
Oh, it might go in.
I'm not gonna say it.
Oh.
Come on.
And he's played it beautifully Oh, yes.
Never anywhere else.
Par five to come as well.
Nine under for his round.
Eight years ago at Carnoustie, Francesco Molinari hoisted the Claret Jug.
Long putt here at the third.
This whole location's been tough for the players to get to, but look at this.
Oh, Francesco.
From a long distance.
A bonus birdie for the Italian.
That left for a par to post a 61.
Sits in a little bit of a bowl.
This is coming down over the ridge, and now moving a touch left.
Can see it picking up speed right there.
Boom.
And a roar.
McIlroy on the move.
Disbelief.
He's disappointed obviously, but you gotta love the crowd kinda getting in behind him there and Bogey at the last to match it.
To 62, so he matches the low for the Open in a men's major championship.
Back out to the play at 17.
Second shot for Collin Morikawa.
Yeah, aimed at those stands to the left there- Come on and letting that wind drift it in.
It's a small target, but he is on target.
Look at how good this is gonna be.
Creeps over- High over that ridge over that ridge.
He's gonna have a tremendous look at eagle.
So down to the flat part of this bunker, kinda center part on that approach for Burns.
Back into the breeze is gonna help.
Got a chance.
It goes in.
How about that to finish off for Burns?
Go ahead and match it.
62.
Toughest part is getting the ball out of the hole, Jim.
I guess the easiest part was getting it to go in for most of the day.
So he ties the lowest 18 that we've seen in a men's major.
What a back nine.
Out to the play at 17.
The par five and the second shot for Cam Young.
Just a huge drive.
That is an eight iron for his second shot here.
Oh.
And he's gonna get it on the correct level.
That should come back around.
Oh.
Oh, my goodness, just literally one yard too far.
Back at 17, Cam trying to do what Wyndham just did.
Had to bump it into that hill.
Now a little bit downhill the rest of the way.
God, that is so well played.
So Cam handles his business there at the par five 17th.
Yeah, same direction as we felt yesterday, but not quite as fierce.
This is a wedge on the way for Young at 18.
Riding that wind from left to right.
Oh.
Right at it.
And able to stop that ball so quickly with just a wedge in his hand.
There it is.
Couple of significant wins already this season for Cameron Young.
He's got a lot of green to work with coming across.
Not supposed to be able to do that from where he was
