American Brandt Snedeker has equalled Adam Scott’s course record at Royal Lytham and St Annes to take a stranglehold on the 141st British Open.
Snedeker played superbly on Friday to compile six birdies in an another unblemished round to charge four strokes clear of the field after his 64 moved him to 10 under for the championship.
Incredibly, the 31-year-old – who had missed all three previous attempts at making the Open cut – has yet post a bogey on a course littered with 206 bunkers and protected by ghastly rough that has punished the bulk of his would-be challengers.
“That’s pretty impressive. It’s unbelievable, really,” Australian Geoff Ogilvy told AAP after dragging himself back into the tournament with his own two-under 68.
Ogilvy is 10 shots adrift of the runaway leader, with England’s world No.1 Luke Donald (68), American Steve Stricker (71) and New Zealander Steve Alker (69) the next best of the morning starters, all at two-under.
World No.2 Rory McIlroy all but threw away his chances of a maiden Open triumph with a second-round 75 that left the 23-year-old Northern Irishman at two over and just under the projected cut line.
“It wasn’t the best day out there,” McIlroy said after notching three bogeys and a double and only two birdies.
“I was doing pretty well just to hang in there around par on the front nine and making a double on the ninth there was sort of the turning point in the round and I couldn’t really recover from that.”
Trying to replicate New Zealand great Sir Bob Charles’ famous win at Lytham 49 years ago, fellow Kiwi Alker had three birdies on the back nine to post his second successive one-under round at the Lancashire links layout.
With his wife Tanya carrying his bag, Alker picked up shots on 13 and 15 before closing in style with a great birdie at the tough par-4 18th.
“I’ve got my family here this week, so we’re just keeping it relaxed,” Alker said.
“My wife is working for me. She’s on the bag this week. We’re just trying to have a little bit more fun this week.
“I made a couple of good putts. I hit good shots to where the pin was. There’s a lot of tough pins that are on slopes and the back of the green, so it was tough.
“I just played smart and holed a couple of good putts for birdies.”
Apart from that, Alker said his strategy around the pot-filled course was simple, really.
“Yesterday I kept my nose clean and I stayed out of all the bunkers,” he said.
“Today with the different wind early on a hit it in a couple of fairway bunkers, a little bit of rough.
“But over the last two days I think I’ve been in maybe two fairway bunkers. So that’s not too bad.”
