There are 36 holes remaining in the British Open after half the players went home after Friday’s round.
The wind continued to blow throughout Friday’s round, creating havoc at Royal Troon.
Shane Lowry followed up a five-under 66 with a two-under 69 to take the lead at seven under par, by two strokes. He is one of 12 players at even par or lower.
These conditions have been challenging for some of the world’s best players.
Fifteen scores were 79 or lower on the par-71 course, with the average score on Friday being 74.4.
In the second round at Royal Troon, competitors recorded three eagles and 341 birdies, 609 bogeys and 108 double or less bogeys.
To qualify for the 152nd British Open weekend, players had to be six over par or lower.
There are a number of popular players leaving Scotland early, so let’s take a look at who won’t be playing this weekend.
— Akshay Bhatia: (76-73; +7)
— Keegan Bradley: (74-75; +7)
— Will Zalatoris: (76-73; +7)
— Henrik Stenson: (77-73; +8)
— Nick Taylor: (75-76; +8)
— Tyrrell Hatton: (73-77; +8)
— Min Woo Yi: (71-80; +9)
— Tommy Fleetwood: (76-75; +9)
— Ludwig Oberg: (75-76; +9)
— Bryson DeChambeau: (76-75; +9)
— Tony Finau: (71-81; +10)
— Viktor Hovland: (75-77; +10)
— Tom Kim: (78-75; +11)
— Rory McIlroy: (78-75; +11)
— Cameron Smith: (80-74; +12)
— Tiger Woods: (79-77; +14)
— Sahith Sigala: (78-80; +14)
— Wyndham Clark: (78-80; +16)
It will be a shock to see players like Rory McIlroy, reigning U.S. Open champion Bryson DeChambeau, Viktor Hovland and Ludvig Auberg head home on Friday.
McIlroy and Oberg finished tied for fourth at last week’s Genesis Scottish Open, which shows how difficult links golf can be when the weather isn’t at its best.
Tiger Woods struggled on both days, missing the cut in a major for the third consecutive tournament.
Keegan Bradley and Akshay Bhatia missed the target by just one stroke.
At the British Open, some big-name golfers walked away without any prize money.
Which golfer on this list impressed you the most?
Savannah Lee Richardson is a golf staff writer for SB Nation Playing Through. Follow us for more golf articles. Follow You can follow us on all major social platforms. You can also follow us on Twitter Follow Her Instagram account is @golf_girl_sl.
