Harman dominates Open leaderboard while McIlroy surges forward

Brian Harman takes lead at Open with early birdies, McIlroy follows.

American golfer Brian Harman had a strong start in the second round of the Open Championship, taking the lead on the leaderboard. Harman, who began the day one stroke behind the leaders, made a series of birdies on the second, third, fourth, and fifth holes to move three strokes clear at eight under par. He came close to an eagle on the fifth hole, with his chip hitting the flag. Harman maintained his steady play, making four consecutive pars to finish the front nine in 31 strokes. Although his momentum slowed on the back nine, he saved par with an impressive chip-in on the 12th hole. Harman remained at eight under with four holes left to play.

Meanwhile, the overnight leaders from the first round, Emiliano Grillo, Tommy Fleetwood, and Christo Lamprecht, faced some challenges. Grillo dropped back after a double-bogey and a bogey, but managed to recover and finish at four under with four holes remaining. Fleetwood and Lamprecht were set to tee off later in the day. Australian golfer Min Woo Lee made a move early on, carding a three-under 68 to reach three under par.

The tournament saw large crowds lining the fairways, with some spectators causing a brief interruption as Just Stop Oil protesters halted play at the 17th hole. However, officials quickly resolved the situation with the help of golfer Billy Horschel.

Rory McIlroy, a favorite among the fans, got off to a promising start with a birdie on the first hole. He continued to show his skills with a birdie on the fifth hole, putting him in contention at two under par. McIlroy, aiming for his second victory at Hoylake and fifth major overall, missed a four-foot putt for birdie on the third hole. His playing partner, Justin Rose, struggled with out of bounds shots and dropped to five over par. Jon Rahm, another player in McIlroy's group, had a solid start with back-to-back birdies but then had a bogey at the ninth hole.

England's Matthew Southgate, playing in the first group of the day, finished his round with an eagle on the 18th hole, putting him at one under par and taking the early clubhouse lead. Travis Smyth from Australia delighted the crowd with a hole-in-one on the 17th hole, but with a score of eight over par, he is unlikely to make the cut for the weekend. Defending champion Cameron Smith was set to begin his second round in the afternoon.