Day 2 Highlights

:00:35. > :01:13.COMMENTATOR: Spieth, Koepka and Kuchar leading the way, 5-under par.

:01:14. > :01:18.So it is America leading the way after day one of this year's Hope

:01:19. > :01:24.Championship but can we say the same at close of play today? Welcome to a

:01:25. > :01:28.very windy Royal Birkdale. As blowy as it is now, nothing compared to

:01:29. > :01:34.what we've been told to expect later this afternoon. Can't wait. Before

:01:35. > :01:36.we see how the wind is affecting play, here's Andrew Cotter with a

:01:37. > :01:43.quick round-up with the best of yesterday. On day one the honour of

:01:44. > :01:51.the opening tee shot went to the 1998 champion Mark O'Meara, getting

:01:52. > :01:55.an eight, it was that kind of day. Things improved with the newer crop

:01:56. > :02:01.of Americans, Jordan Spieth was bogey free and good enough for five

:02:02. > :02:05.birdies in his opening 65. Brooks Koepka hasn't played a tournament

:02:06. > :02:11.since his first major win last month. Eagle from the sand on 17. 65

:02:12. > :02:19.format Kuchar also, who found his birdies in his outward nine of 29 --

:02:20. > :02:26.for Matt Kuchar also. Ian Poulter was 6-under, a runner-up a few years

:02:27. > :02:31.ago and with the confidence of old. But problems with the big names, the

:02:32. > :02:36.final round at Troon is a distant memory. Mickelson, not a single

:02:37. > :02:43.birdie on his way to 73. McIlroy was fired over after six holes, but four

:02:44. > :02:46.birdies on the back nine, 71 and hope for better things on day two --

:02:47. > :03:03.was 5-over after six holes. Impressive scoring by Paul Casey too

:03:04. > :03:10.and Ian Poulter and it was an Open data remember for Osteen Connelly. A

:03:11. > :03:15.drama free day for the three at the top, just one bogey between them.

:03:16. > :03:20.The same can't quite be said for Rory McIlroy, 5-over par after his

:03:21. > :03:25.first six holes, but what a recovery down the back nine. He's one of the

:03:26. > :03:30.early starters today and Ken Brown has been checking his final

:03:31. > :03:34.preparations. Thank you, Rory is on the first tee over the bridge there.

:03:35. > :03:41.Different conditions and what a good day it was for him in the end, after

:03:42. > :03:45.being 5-over par early on he eventually went round in 71. The

:03:46. > :03:50.wind is blowing 180 degrees difference. If you look at the

:03:51. > :03:53.flags, they were blowing the opposite yesterday. The 1st hole

:03:54. > :03:59.yesterday was into the wind but today it is virtually down breeze.

:04:00. > :04:03.The weather forecast, medal of the day, strong wind, cold as well, soap

:04:04. > :04:07.will be the toughest day of the week but you never know on the links,

:04:08. > :04:09.things can change so quickly. McIlroy wanders off, fingers crossed

:04:10. > :04:19.he has a good day today. The early tee times are the ones you

:04:20. > :04:25.want today. Fowler and Scott hoping to make up ground, they are out with

:04:26. > :04:29.birthday boy Paul Casey at 8:25am. Then the first of the leading trio,

:04:30. > :04:34.Matt Kuchar getting underway after them. Richie Ramsay is looking for

:04:35. > :04:41.another good round, along with New Zealand's Ryan Fox. Can McIlroy

:04:42. > :04:44.continue his sensational comeback? He goes out with Dustin Johnson and

:04:45. > :04:50.former Masters champion Charl Schwartzel. Into the afternoon, just

:04:51. > :04:54.after 1pm, Sweden's Alex Noren and Scotland's Russell Knox, alongside

:04:55. > :05:02.Ian Poulter who finds himself right amongst it. The final two overnight

:05:03. > :05:06.leaders, bogey free Jordan Spieth yesterday, hoping to repeat that,

:05:07. > :05:11.along with the defending champion Henrik Stenson. Just after 3pm, the

:05:12. > :05:16.US Open champion Brooks Koepka is hoping for back-to-back Majors.

:05:17. > :05:21.Tommy Fleetwood is looking for a better day in front of his home

:05:22. > :05:27.support. Let's see how some of the early starters were faring. Joost

:05:28. > :05:32.Luiten with a tee shot on the par-3 4th hole, the Dutchman last made it

:05:33. > :05:38.to the weekend's played at The Open Championship back in 2012 but that

:05:39. > :05:43.tee shot would leave him for birdie, which would put him on 3-under par.

:05:44. > :05:46.Overnight leader Matt Kuchar dropped a shot on the second but here he is

:05:47. > :05:57.with his third shot on the par-4 3rd hole. In it goes to move him back to

:05:58. > :06:01.5-under par. Back to the par-3, Sergio Garcia, who got lucky with

:06:02. > :06:06.the lie of that drive but still a tricky shot. Still looking at a drop

:06:07. > :06:12.shot there. Frustration showing from the Spaniard. Would he live to

:06:13. > :06:16.regret that? His shoulder may play a part of this week. A dropped shot

:06:17. > :06:23.for Garcia but his shoulder didn't seem to bother him on what has been

:06:24. > :06:26.today a driveable par-4 5th hole, his eagle putt from the back of the

:06:27. > :06:32.green, in it goes, back to 2-over par. Back to the overnight leader

:06:33. > :06:38.Matt Kuchar, looking for back-to-back birdies on the 4th

:06:39. > :06:45.hole. Down the hill it goes, and in it goes. Matt Kuchar takes the

:06:46. > :06:51.outright lead on 6-under par. Early on it is Kuchar out in front with a

:06:52. > :06:56.1-shot lead. Connelly continuing his fine start, he is level over the

:06:57. > :06:59.first ten holes. The birdie four Joost Luiten takes him to within

:07:00. > :07:08.three. Let's go out on the course with Ken Brown, Peter let -- Peter

:07:09. > :07:14.Alliss. On the tee, from Northern Ireland,

:07:15. > :07:22.Rory McIlroy. APPLAUSE

:07:23. > :07:25.A whole new day and McIlroy is hoping for more the golf he produced

:07:26. > :07:44.on the back nine yesterday than the front.

:07:45. > :07:51.The wind has totally switched around, straight downwind, the 1st

:07:52. > :08:01.hole today and McIlroy with a 3-wood. A long way down the fairway,

:08:02. > :08:05.a long way down there. Yes, the Canadian, Connelly. You think with

:08:06. > :08:10.this wind he will go lower and lower. That's working well so far

:08:11. > :08:19.for him. The first birdie of the day here on the 11. Huget tee shot, 372

:08:20. > :08:33.yards with a 3-wood -- a huge tee shot. Maybe he was laying up. That's

:08:34. > :08:39.lovely. And it's the short game that's going to be most tested in

:08:40. > :08:45.these blustery conditions. That is a gem to get McIlroy up and running.

:08:46. > :08:56.Casey now, a big putt to save par on the sixth. No. Struggles early on

:08:57. > :09:03.for him, three shots coming in the opening six holes, back from

:09:04. > :09:13.4-under, to 1-under. Now, Rickie Fowler. Gets one bag, -- bag,

:09:14. > :09:18.disappointed with his round yesterday. Such a good player in

:09:19. > :09:26.these conditions. Solid start. Oh, hello. The chicken appears to have

:09:27. > :09:36.laid a human! Such a difficult hole, the sixth, back into the breeze.

:09:37. > :09:45.Shortened it a bit, 485. A long, long second for the American.

:09:46. > :09:54.Sending its sky-high. Oh. That's stuck in the down slope in the

:09:55. > :10:01.rough. That's trouble. A peddler for a possible birdie four McIlroy -- a

:10:02. > :10:06.tiddler. In she goes. Finishing with two birdies last night and getting

:10:07. > :10:15.one to open today's proceedings. Back on the path. Looking back to

:10:16. > :10:26.the seventh tee. -- back on par. Elevated tee, very difficult in

:10:27. > :10:32.these crosswinds. Makes it impossible to keep the ball down.

:10:33. > :10:39.That one is going to hang on to the left-hand side of the green. Left to

:10:40. > :10:51.right breeze whipping across the second green. Sit, sit! There is a

:10:52. > :10:55.big divot there. Oh McIlroy has the ball under control this morning.

:10:56. > :11:00.5-under for the last six holes he's played, if you take the end of his

:11:01. > :11:05.first round, so looking good again. Not looking so good, Kuchar. This is

:11:06. > :11:10.so awkward, gripping down on the metal of the shaft. It's all right,

:11:11. > :11:26.but that for his par. Gorgeous second shot in from McIlroy

:11:27. > :11:33.here on the second. Great opportunity to open with two

:11:34. > :11:35.birdies. Oh it was close, you can tell by the crowd reaction. Didn't

:11:36. > :12:00.hit it. Rickie Fowler, from the distant

:12:01. > :12:08.horizon for his two on the seventh. What a putt from Fowler. Suddenly, a

:12:09. > :12:14.few birdies and Fowler making a move in the right direction. Two birdies

:12:15. > :12:22.in a row. Almost eight smile. You know it's called when Mickelson has

:12:23. > :12:25.his two gloves on. He suffers from arthritis but usually plays well

:12:26. > :12:34.with two gloves. That will do nicely. He needed something special

:12:35. > :12:43.today. 73 yesterday. Kuchar, for four on the sixth. That was up and

:12:44. > :12:53.down. He was in the munchies on the right-hand side, gripping write-down

:12:54. > :13:06.on the steel. What a save. Once more, Paul Casey struggling for his

:13:07. > :13:20.par. Another one. He's all at sea, KC. Slipping further and further

:13:21. > :13:30.down the board. Four bogeys in his opening seven holes. Mickelson on

:13:31. > :13:36.the first. Oh, lovely. You used to hate the challenge of links golf but

:13:37. > :13:43.he loves it now -- he used to hate. The par save from Kuchar keeps him

:13:44. > :13:47.on 6-under par, he is the outright lead over the two leaders who have

:13:48. > :13:51.yet to go out but look at Connelly, the 28-year-old Canadian in his

:13:52. > :14:05.first Open Championship. Just two shots back. COMMENTATOR: Austin,

:14:06. > :14:14.Lee, grew up in Texas, likes these conditions but struggling here --

:14:15. > :14:23.Austin Connelly. Dropping a shot. McIlroy, big tee shot on the third.

:14:24. > :14:29.The wind is from the right. Another one, right at the stick. McIlroy,

:14:30. > :14:33.all cylinders firing in the opening holes here. Look at him trying to

:14:34. > :14:53.get himself going. Calmly dropping one on 13. So, here

:14:54. > :15:01.we are, Maureen. Needs this to keep the momentum going. Playing well,

:15:02. > :15:05.needs to follow up with the putts. The jaunty stride is back and

:15:06. > :15:09.McIlroy is back. Three wonderful irons on the opening three holes

:15:10. > :15:13.have yielded two birdies and he moved to 1-under. Dicks birdies in

:15:14. > :15:24.his last eight holes now, taking the end of the first round -- six

:15:25. > :15:31.birdies in his last eight holes. Classic posture and swing, Charl

:15:32. > :15:46.Schwartzel. Oh and nearly the ultimate result. Kuchar, then, to

:15:47. > :15:50.save par on the eighth hole. A mis-judgement. Straight into the

:15:51. > :15:57.wind today, eight, and Kuchar, it has taken his toll. Short of the

:15:58. > :16:03.green in two and he will slip back. Testing chip for McIlroy from the

:16:04. > :16:13.back of four. This is going to be a bumble into the bank. Oh just took a

:16:14. > :16:24.bit of the sting out of it. Finely judged.

:16:25. > :16:37.Now, Schwartzel. Steady as she goes so far, par, par, par. Beautiful tee

:16:38. > :16:43.shot and this is for two. So, there we go. Charl Schwartzel goes

:16:44. > :16:44.alongside Jordan Spieth and Brooks Koepka, later starters, just one

:16:45. > :17:01.behind Matt Kuchar. Enormous drive from Bubba. Looked

:17:02. > :17:08.like a flick with his most lofted club. Yesterday it was five and

:17:09. > :17:16.four. What a chance. Oh, lovely. Fresh out of there. A little bit

:17:17. > :17:20.cold. Strong breeze. Kuchar, his putter grip, up his left arm, very

:17:21. > :17:27.effective and into the back of the cup. One slipping away to have a

:17:28. > :17:35.four way tie at the top of the leaderboard. Bubba. Lovely iron

:17:36. > :17:42.shot. Tight into the second hole, taps in for his birdie. 3-under,

:17:43. > :17:47.only two behind now. That's how we stand with Kuchar dropping back into

:17:48. > :17:51.the group on 5-under par. Precious few birdies but there was one on the

:17:52. > :17:56.fourth for Schwartzel, so he is alongside Kuchar, Koepka and Spieth.

:17:57. > :18:04.Bubba Watson making a nice move as well. Now, Schwartzel's second to

:18:05. > :18:18.the fifth. Out of a good lie, from the fairway.

:18:19. > :18:25.Well, don't know what happened to that one. Neither does he. He must

:18:26. > :18:32.have flown the green. Now, Rory McIlroy. Made a great start. He's

:18:33. > :18:39.missed a putt as well. Could have been sensational. Skip back to just

:18:40. > :18:50.playing golf. That's more like it. Oh, study, study. -- steady, steady.

:18:51. > :18:57.So crisply struck, you can see the ball spinning. 12,000 rpm, with a

:18:58. > :19:03.well struck wedge like that, off the clubface. Busy out on the Bay, Kent.

:19:04. > :19:09.A good day for electricity with those windmills. Do you know how

:19:10. > :19:16.fast the tips of them spend? 200 mph. No wonder it gives the birds a

:19:17. > :19:25.fright! This does not look good, Ken, for Schwartzel. No. Oh, it's

:19:26. > :19:31.awful stuff. You can go back as far as you like. He can go to the sixth

:19:32. > :19:40.tee or he can play it again. Mickelson. Didn't have the happiest

:19:41. > :19:52.of days yesterday. And not enjoying this 3rd hole very much.

:19:53. > :20:10.Schwartzel, the joint leader, has taken an unplayable lie on the

:20:11. > :20:14.fifth. This is his fourth. He has a chance of getting down in two. Not

:20:15. > :20:29.bad. Now, there is a bit more of a skip

:20:30. > :20:38.and a dance in Rory's step. Yesterday he was in all sorts of

:20:39. > :20:48.trouble. This is to go 2-under. Good try.

:20:49. > :21:13.Matt Kuchar at the 9th hole. The shot. Birdie putt.

:21:14. > :21:22.Six, for Schwartzel, out of nowhere. The shortest par for on the golf

:21:23. > :21:30.course. -- par four. He will be so cross. More than a breeze, Ken. It

:21:31. > :21:37.is and they think it may strengthen later on too. Wouldn't make a monkey

:21:38. > :21:43.of our course today. In trouble again. Second on the sixth. Smashing

:21:44. > :21:53.it towards the fairway and hoping for the best. And... No, just lost

:21:54. > :22:02.the other side. Suddenly a nice round is getting very untidy. The

:22:03. > :22:14.best part of 500 yards long and Rory has 173 left. The wind from the

:22:15. > :22:18.left. The wind is just taking it towards the flag. What they

:22:19. > :22:29.marvellous shot, gathering to the hole. Quality.

:22:30. > :22:38.From the United States, Kent Bulle. A new name to me and I'll tell you

:22:39. > :22:42.what, if he keeps doing that, he'll be one of the greats in the game.

:22:43. > :22:50.Well done, that was for birdie on the first. Massive Sadler this would

:22:51. > :22:56.be for Schwartzel if he cannot it in. Double bogey on the 5th hole.

:22:57. > :22:59.This is for a brilliant par on the sixth, having found the rough off

:23:00. > :23:15.the tee. Can he read it? Moments ago he was tied for the lead

:23:16. > :23:18.and now he is joint tenth. Not many preliminaries with Rory, just

:23:19. > :23:26.straight up and hit. Not many practice strokes, I've never seen

:23:27. > :23:29.him take one. A good view here. Yeah, right in the middle. The

:23:30. > :23:34.middle of the middle. What a good start. Keep it going for the next 12

:23:35. > :23:52.holes or so. Lee Westwood. He's got to be

:23:53. > :23:57.careful. He needs this to go up the level of the grain. It has bounced

:23:58. > :24:02.an and it couldn't, could it? It is! Right into the heart of the cup.

:24:03. > :24:13.From 2-over to level, in one good white. Magic. -- good swipe. Worth

:24:14. > :24:19.another look, Ken. A nice, smooth swing. The fifth. A nice receptive

:24:20. > :24:20.green. The pitch checked nicely. It looked destined for greatness and

:24:21. > :24:32.then suddenly, here we go. Well, that went straight in the

:24:33. > :24:34.middle. Ken has been checking on the width and the size of the holes.

:24:35. > :24:46.What's he got to say? Let's have a look at the hole. Take

:24:47. > :24:54.the flag out. Measure the diameter. It is a funny thing, the Diana

:24:55. > :24:59.putter of a hole. Four and a quarter inches. In 1829, eight member

:25:00. > :25:05.decided, can we standardise the hole size? He got a bit of drainpipe and

:25:06. > :25:13.that is why it is that width. But can you believe it, if you go to

:25:14. > :25:20.your local hardware store, from 1829, the rule was adopted by the

:25:21. > :25:23.R If you purchase a bit of drainpipe to this day, it is still

:25:24. > :25:30.four and a quarter inches in diameter. Hard to believe. I'm a big

:25:31. > :25:39.hit at parties! Did he say he is a good man at parties? You can bet he

:25:40. > :25:51.is! The seventh, 177 yards. The wind off the left.

:25:52. > :26:12.A little shy, but OK. On the smaller dance floor.

:26:13. > :26:35.I hate those three putts. Like Charley Hoffman, a bandy legged

:26:36. > :26:40.stance, face to the breeze. Nicely done, Charley. First birdie,

:26:41. > :26:51.3-under. Massive crowd out and a lot of them are following Rory. Nicely

:26:52. > :26:59.done. Another hole safely negotiated. A couple of four

:27:00. > :27:24.The par-3 12th hole, rich Iraq and see. -- Richie Ramsay. Hitting right

:27:25. > :27:28.today. Fine effort. McIlroy, widening his stance here on the

:27:29. > :27:38.eighth tee. Trying to draw it off the bunkers. It's got to turn a bit

:27:39. > :27:47.more. Just lovely. Nothing finer than McIlroy in full flow. Second

:27:48. > :28:00.most difficult hole, the 12th, at the moment. The short par-3, yards.

:28:01. > :28:11.What can Kuchar do? -- 168 yards. Absolutely beautiful shot,

:28:12. > :28:17.crackerjack. Cries of" Kuch!". 174 yards, a blistering drive from Rory

:28:18. > :28:25.on. No one has yet made a birdie on this hole. -- on eight. Can he get

:28:26. > :28:35.it past the front bunker? Oh, so nearly. He didn't like the way it

:28:36. > :28:45.rolled around the back of the bunker. Could be in an awkward spot.

:28:46. > :28:48.Richie Ramsay has reached the 12th. A good, solid shot here into the

:28:49. > :28:58.heart of the green leaving him with a birdie putt. So difficult, you

:28:59. > :28:59.have to allow for the wind and sometimes it doesn't affect the

:29:00. > :29:23.ball, sometimes it does. Kent Bulle. Well done. He got in

:29:24. > :29:33.because he won the Argentine Open. He is 3-under. Charley Hoffman. I

:29:34. > :29:40.swear his parting stance is getting wider! Another one is going begging

:29:41. > :29:48.-- his putting stance. Still a good of work to do. He will slip back.

:29:49. > :29:53.This could be nasty, Ken. Just depends where it's gone in the

:29:54. > :29:58.bunker. It's bound to be towards the back, settling down, not much green

:29:59. > :30:02.to work with. Don't be greedy here, the green is running away from you.

:30:03. > :30:11.Make sure you're at least putting on the next one. The wind helps. Yes,

:30:12. > :30:19.what a shot, what a shot. Go on. The wind stopped it running out. He

:30:20. > :30:22.thought he had it for a moment. Yes, there is pleasure in his play today,

:30:23. > :30:28.you can see he's really engaged in the battle. He was yesterday, mind

:30:29. > :30:36.you, but it wasn't happening on the front nine. Kuchar's putting has

:30:37. > :30:40.been great. This is an 12. Oh, gosh, I didn't think it was great off the

:30:41. > :30:48.blade but then I thought it was going to drop. Agony.

:30:49. > :31:07.Tiddler for McIlroy after a fabulous bunker shot on eight. Well done.

:31:08. > :31:16.Putting on a show this morning, is Rory.

:31:17. > :31:24.Bubba Watson's second was rather fortuitous. It bounced back down

:31:25. > :31:30.onto the shorter stuff. That is a great little chip, and in. My

:31:31. > :31:36.goodness, not many birdies on the sixth today and that was an unlikely

:31:37. > :31:46.one from Bubba Watson. He marches up the leaderboard now, four under par,

:31:47. > :31:49.fourth place. McIlroy's second to the ninth, 192 yards, such a

:31:50. > :32:03.difficult hole today, back into the breeze. You can see the pin all the

:32:04. > :32:09.way over on the right. He is hitting it beautifully. Another one down the

:32:10. > :32:18.flag, controlling it so well. Just a little bit shy. Kuchar, 193 today,

:32:19. > :32:27.the 14th. Huge stands around this green. Come on. Listen to him,

:32:28. > :32:41.listen to the man. It is getting closer. Dutifully controlled shot in

:32:42. > :32:44.these conditions. If McIlroy can steer this little one home he will

:32:45. > :32:50.have covered his last 18 holes in seven under par. And he does it and

:32:51. > :33:00.he is a much happier man leaving this green today than he was

:33:01. > :33:04.yesterday when he was 5-over. Are rather difficult day at Royal

:33:05. > :33:07.Birkdale to say the least. Matt Kuchar in the sanctuary of the

:33:08. > :33:14.clubhouse with five holes to go. Ian Poulter and Justin Thomas among the

:33:15. > :33:19.latest to start. Rory Mcllroy's name creeping onto the first page of the

:33:20. > :33:27.leaderboard. Bubba Watson has missed the green on the seventh. I can't

:33:28. > :33:49.think that's what he intended. McIlroy on the tenth, dogleg, just

:33:50. > :33:53.looking to put anion down between the bunkers. He seems to be pleased

:33:54. > :34:00.with things. Hitting it well. Settle down. Misjudgement from McIlroy,

:34:01. > :34:06.that bunker shouldn't have come into play with an iron. The bunkers do

:34:07. > :34:11.have a habit of gathering on links golf courses, McIlroy has just found

:34:12. > :34:17.that out. Ken has been looking at just that things.

:34:18. > :34:25.Let's look at Birkdale bunkers, these little pots are fantastic, not

:34:26. > :34:30.the deepest, on The Open, some are shallow and give you a chance with

:34:31. > :34:33.lovely grassy banks. Let's look at this rake in the bunker.

:34:34. > :34:38.Interesting, please place the rake in the centre of the bunker. The

:34:39. > :34:43.rake is on a little stand so perhaps the ball will run past it. Haven't

:34:44. > :34:48.seen that before, not sure if for this week. Let's look at this one.

:34:49. > :34:52.They are quite greedy little bunkers so the ball can trickle in and go

:34:53. > :34:57.there and go up the bank and they all get gathered into the sand

:34:58. > :35:01.bunker. You can see how awkwardly they can lie, there are quite small,

:35:02. > :35:05.from there you would get an 8-iron onto it but if it gets snarled up in

:35:06. > :35:09.this position on the bank you can have a devil's own job to get it

:35:10. > :35:15.out. These are wonderful that the bunkers, not as deep as we have seen

:35:16. > :35:18.sometimes, but they are still greedy and very nasty. COMMENTATOR: McIlroy

:35:19. > :35:25.in one of those bunkers on the tenth, but to the 14th Figo, and

:35:26. > :35:32.Kuchar, after that beautiful tee shot, a chance to lead on his own

:35:33. > :35:36.again. -- to the 14th we go. Yes... No.

:35:37. > :35:50.So, in it goes and any pars today are very gratefully received, all

:35:51. > :36:10.pars on the back nine for Kuchar, remains 5-under. This is for par. It

:36:11. > :36:15.was an aggressive stroke. That's the ball of Rory McIlroy on the tenth.

:36:16. > :36:23.Is left himself some 130 yards up the hill. He's got to get this up

:36:24. > :36:35.pretty go all the way back to the flag.

:36:36. > :36:48.Well, as Ken was saying, they are very greedy bunkers but he's given

:36:49. > :36:51.himself an angle for a four. 15, the first of the two par-5s. Matt

:36:52. > :37:06.Kuchar, ideal position. That's a great shot, right online,

:37:07. > :37:14.creeping up onto the edge of the green. So, McIlroy into the bunker

:37:15. > :37:20.on the right off the tee, could only get it to hear. Downwind, got to nip

:37:21. > :37:26.it through to get any control. The wind is beginning to gust.

:37:27. > :37:32.APPLAUSE Just being carried on a little more,

:37:33. > :37:37.that for his par. This is where it ended up for Bubba Watson.

:37:38. > :37:49.Very lucky to get a good lie, can he get any control? Of course he can,

:37:50. > :37:53.lovely from Watson. Right, now, not a single bogey on his card today.

:37:54. > :38:07.Down the slope. Yes, they roar before it drops. He

:38:08. > :38:12.knew it, they knew it, he's doing everything well today even when

:38:13. > :38:21.things go slightly awry, as they did, finding the bunker from the

:38:22. > :38:23.tee. Stays at two under par. Watson for an adventurous par on eight.

:38:24. > :38:32.Pulled it. Back-to-back bogeys, there we are.

:38:33. > :38:56.Schwartzel for his par. His partners are struggling, but

:38:57. > :39:07.McIlroy going along nicely. Schwartzel back to 1-under. Kuchar,

:39:08. > :39:12.eagle putt on the 15th. A little bit timid, timid, downwind on the 15th,

:39:13. > :39:17.a lot of birdies and a good few eagles as well today. Just a little

:39:18. > :39:23.bit ragged over the last couple of holes, McIlroy, in the bunker on the

:39:24. > :39:33.tenth and loose with the iron on the 11th. Hoping for the grab now but on

:39:34. > :39:44.it goes. Testing his putter at the moment. Now, Kuchar, can he get

:39:45. > :39:51.birdie at 15? Two lovely shots onto the front of the green. Of course he

:39:52. > :40:00.can. Sweet as a nut. He always keeps trundling along. McIlroy, every putt

:40:01. > :40:04.is a big putt but he's played so well, misjudged his second shot into

:40:05. > :40:09.the 11th and came up 10-15 yards short of the green, not a very good

:40:10. > :40:12.chip. This is frustrating when you have played so well and you start,

:40:13. > :40:19.if indeed that's going to be the case, dropping shots.

:40:20. > :40:23.You've got it. CHEERING

:40:24. > :40:28.That was a wonderful putt, learned a lot from Dustin Johnson. Should have

:40:29. > :40:37.done. Well done. Calm down, just got to hit the green. You've got two

:40:38. > :40:38.holes to go and you are playing beautifully.

:40:39. > :40:43.Matt Kuchar is out in front after that birdie on the 15th, Koepka and

:40:44. > :40:47.Spieth hoping perhaps for the winter die down as they go out this

:40:48. > :40:53.afternoon. Rory Mcllroy two under par. Good round from Austin

:40:54. > :40:57.Connelly, very impressive from the youngster. The Canadian who grew up

:40:58. > :41:03.in Texas. Anything around par today would see him moving up the

:41:04. > :41:08.leaderboard. One of the deepest bunkers on the course on the 12th.

:41:09. > :41:13.It looks to be lying OK for McIlroy. You've just got to dab it up over

:41:14. > :41:24.the top and let it land pretty close to the top and eased down to the

:41:25. > :41:31.hole. He should be able to do this OK. Gently but firmly enough to get

:41:32. > :41:36.it up. That may be too hard. No, it isn't. That is a gem of a shot. The

:41:37. > :41:40.players are brilliant now, years ago there were four or five people who

:41:41. > :41:47.you would say were good bunker players. Wonderful to watch, great

:41:48. > :41:52.skill. Bubba Watson has had also are problems on the night, way left of

:41:53. > :42:00.the green with his second. Long, long putt. For his par.

:42:01. > :42:12.Kuchar on the 16th. Straight downwind, a little bit off the left.

:42:13. > :42:20.So many instructions. That's going down. If you are just a little bit

:42:21. > :42:26.out the wind accentuates the mistake and blows it further of course. Now,

:42:27. > :42:30.to finish off his good work from the sand. Beautiful three. He's making a

:42:31. > :42:40.few mistakes at the moment but when he does he is making amends. Still

:42:41. > :42:48.3-under for his round. Fitzpatrick, opening hole. And that could be, if

:42:49. > :42:58.it bounces up very nice... Yes, indeed. Beauty. Kuchar, having

:42:59. > :43:05.played out of the bunker on the 16th, this is for a par. This is to

:43:06. > :43:12.stay ahead of the field. No. That drifted away to the right very, very

:43:13. > :43:22.quickly. The shot has gone. Good drive, misdirected second, dropped

:43:23. > :43:28.shot. Onto the first tee comes Ian Poulter. 67 yesterday, still

:43:29. > :43:32.listening to the very Best of Aber, and psyching himself up for what

:43:33. > :43:42.will be an interesting day on the links. Could be a little Chopin..

:43:43. > :43:49.This will be a tricky little shot. Anything left will catch the bunker.

:43:50. > :43:54.Do you go straight at it? Do you hope for the best? Excellent shot.

:43:55. > :44:03.Imagination and nerve. Good play. Ramsay. Come on. Just grabbing and

:44:04. > :44:23.stopping. Just one extra hop. Everything was going very well for

:44:24. > :44:32.McIlroy on the first nine holes, and suddenly at the 10th, on every green

:44:33. > :44:36.he has had a difficult putt. He's done it all so far. Can he do it

:44:37. > :44:51.again? He can't. He was never happy with that one and it was not well

:44:52. > :44:58.struck. Shot dropped. Kuchar, birdie putt at the 17th, playing right back

:44:59. > :45:02.into the wind. 17th and 18th back into the wind, lots of fives and

:45:03. > :45:17.sixes and a couple of sevens, very different from yesterday. 5-under

:45:18. > :45:20.for Kuchar. The people queueing to get into the chorus. Massive

:45:21. > :45:26.galleries we have had this week. Nice to see. It looks like the

:45:27. > :45:33.American customs department, doesn't it? Just going a bit quicker. Richie

:45:34. > :45:40.Ramsay for a birdie and he gets it. Well done.

:45:41. > :45:49.APPLAUSE Two under, first birdie today, one

:45:50. > :45:55.dropped shot. McIlroy. A handful of holes left to play. Here he is at

:45:56. > :46:02.the 15th. Downwind, find the fairway, don't go over there...

:46:03. > :46:12.Nobody's moving. It can't be that wide, surely. It looks as if he is.

:46:13. > :46:33.Richard Ramsay has found the centre of the fairway at the last. How well

:46:34. > :46:39.he has played but that one leaking off to the right. Kuchar resets

:46:40. > :46:53.ready for his third here at the last. He drove into the bunker. Just

:46:54. > :47:04.pop it out. He has played so well. He's got to get up-and-down to drop

:47:05. > :47:09.only one shot here. Slimline Bubba Watson on 12. This putt will come in

:47:10. > :47:19.on the shoulder, on the left-hand side. Perfectly judged by Bubba

:47:20. > :47:26.Watson. He's had a few ups and downs but it's a pretty tidy card

:47:27. > :47:37.nonetheless, even par. To the 18th and Richie Ramsay. Down in two for

:47:38. > :47:43.an even par 70. Is he going to do it or is he going to do one better?

:47:44. > :47:49.What a beauty. That is a round and a half. One birdie at the 17th and one

:47:50. > :47:52.bogey. Kuchar needs to get up-and-down at the last to drop just

:47:53. > :48:05.one shot. That is a stout effort but he made

:48:06. > :48:09.untidy progress down the right-hand side of this hole via a bunker and

:48:10. > :48:15.it's going to be a disappointing finish for the American. Five, five,

:48:16. > :48:27.five. He's just going to tidy this one away. 71 today, that drops him

:48:28. > :48:35.back to 4-under par, good, solid golf in difficult conditions. Matt

:48:36. > :48:39.Kuchar, leader in the clubhouse, 65, 71, 4-under par, the two leaders

:48:40. > :48:45.Spieth and Koepka yet to start their round.

:48:46. > :48:52.Matt Kuchar walks of the 18th green, signed for 71, I'm joined by golf

:48:53. > :48:55.correspondent Iain Carter who has followed Kuchar around the links. It

:48:56. > :49:00.was steady but a little bit disappointing. He will be

:49:01. > :49:04.disappointed because he gambled off the tee at 18 and put it into the

:49:05. > :49:09.bunker and could only splash out and that ultimately led to him dropping

:49:10. > :49:11.a shot at the last but otherwise a very accomplished performance. The

:49:12. > :49:15.conditions are so is testing out there this morning. If you'd given

:49:16. > :49:18.him a 71 at the start of the day he probably would have taken it. You

:49:19. > :49:23.felt all of the conditions around the whole of the course, how is it

:49:24. > :49:33.differing from hole to hole command how much do you feel yourself being

:49:34. > :49:37.buffeted and losing balance. The number of times the players are

:49:38. > :49:40.backing off. The differential in terms of the clubs you will take

:49:41. > :49:45.going downwind compared to what you will be hitting into the wind is

:49:46. > :49:49.probably a three or four club differential, it's really tough out

:49:50. > :49:53.there. Tough just walking around. Matt Kuchar has played around it,

:49:54. > :49:58.1-over par for today, 4-under for the tournament, in the clubhouse in

:49:59. > :50:03.the lead at the moment and he has met Rishi Persad down there.

:50:04. > :50:10.One quarter today, in the context of the conditions how good is it? It is

:50:11. > :50:14.really challenging out there, 20, 30 mph winds, seemed every hole had

:50:15. > :50:18.some form of crosswind, neither straight down zero straight in, hard

:50:19. > :50:24.of the left or hard right. I remember sitting up on the 12 hole,

:50:25. > :50:27.par-3, 160 two yards and hitting a five irony aiming at the people 30

:50:28. > :50:34.yards left of the green and watching the thing slowly come around and hit

:50:35. > :50:37.the middle of the green. It is challenging to force yourself to

:50:38. > :50:40.play so far no in the wind is so strong. Did you at any point feel in

:50:41. > :50:47.complete control of the ball out there? No, just talking about two

:50:48. > :50:52.footers. And them that you had to play for the win, even on the putts,

:50:53. > :50:55.there were a number of putts with right-to-left break where the wind

:50:56. > :50:58.was strong enough to make them break left to right. There is so much

:50:59. > :51:03.adapting there has to be done in these conditions.

:51:04. > :51:10.COMMENTATOR: He drove into the rough and popped it out to here, this is

:51:11. > :51:19.his fourth to the par-5 15th, the wind whistling in from the left. It

:51:20. > :51:30.is spinning. Spinning up in the air a little, getting caught by the

:51:31. > :51:42.breeze. Kent Bulle on the tenth. Solid play so far. One birdie, one

:51:43. > :51:52.bogey. Lovely shot. Lascaux Bourne but don't get excited, Scots, it is

:51:53. > :51:57.Glasgow, Kentucky. -- Glasgow born. His approach putting has been

:51:58. > :52:09.immaculate today. Managing to get up-and-down and only drop one shot.

:52:10. > :52:23.That is fairly tidy. This is to save his par. Kent Bulle. Well done. As

:52:24. > :52:29.the greens start to dry out these don't get any easier. Don't rush it,

:52:30. > :52:36.Rory. Take your time, head still. This is for a bogey. Well done. I

:52:37. > :52:39.say well done, it's the easiest hole on the course, wasn't what he

:52:40. > :52:47.anticipated. It could have been worse. Let's look at the leaderboard

:52:48. > :52:52.in the second round of The Open Championship, Koepka and Spieth are

:52:53. > :52:58.the leaders, both round in 65 yesterday. Yet to start. Matt Kuchar

:52:59. > :53:03.is the clubhouse lead at 4-under. Let's hear from Richie Ramsay.

:53:04. > :53:09.Well played, round of 70 today, how good a round was that? As good as

:53:10. > :53:13.I've played this year. It's very tough out there. Putting is a

:53:14. > :53:19.challenge, the ball is not moving but it sort of oscillates a little

:53:20. > :53:24.bit and club selection is very tough. The wind is gusting at times

:53:25. > :53:27.and that's probably the toughest thing, standing there trying to pick

:53:28. > :53:32.a club and commit to it when the wind sort of dies down and gusts

:53:33. > :53:34.back up, that's the hardest thing about being on the golf course

:53:35. > :53:43.today. COMMENTATOR: Cabrera-Bello on this

:53:44. > :53:52.most difficult 13th hole, it has caught a lot of the players out.

:53:53. > :53:58.Term. Yes. He has turned into a very good putter indeed, holing out very

:53:59. > :54:04.well this week and last. It is a long walk back to the 16th tee.

:54:05. > :54:07.McIlroy is ready to go with the driver. He lost to the right of the

:54:08. > :54:20.15th, which led to a dropped shot. That is down the hay diddle diddle

:54:21. > :54:43.my huge drive over the crosswalk. Fitzpatrick at the 5th off the

:54:44. > :54:46.fairway, so should get some spin on this back pin. Lovely shot, crisply

:54:47. > :55:00.struck. Poulter has managed to get his

:55:01. > :55:03.stance. That is meat and drink to him.

:55:04. > :55:15.APPLAUSE Just a little flip of the wrists

:55:16. > :55:19.left here. Huge tee shot for McIlroy, the flag is on 30 yards. I

:55:20. > :55:23.have to say I think the flag positions today have been terrific.

:55:24. > :55:24.They haven't been hidden, they are given the players a sporting chance

:55:25. > :55:39.in these difficult conditions. That was a huge error from McIlroy,

:55:40. > :55:44.he airmail to the green. His touch has deserted him momentarily over

:55:45. > :55:47.these last few holes, after the brilliance of the outward 31.

:55:48. > :55:51.Poulter has taken a long look at this one. That tells you that

:55:52. > :55:59.conditions are not easy to get balanced over the putt. This is to

:56:00. > :56:13.save his par at the 3rd. Hebert that in confidently. -- he put that in

:56:14. > :56:21.confidently. Another tester for Kent Bulle. He pushed it. That is two

:56:22. > :56:30.bogeys in the last three holes. Back to 16. Up and over the slope for

:56:31. > :56:35.McIlroy. That's tidy enough but disappointing having had a second

:56:36. > :56:39.shot in of no more than 70 yards or so. The second most birdies holed at

:56:40. > :56:48.the 5th, and a chance for Fitzpatrick to enter that number.

:56:49. > :56:58.I think as the day has gone on these greens have sped up, the grass grows

:56:59. > :57:03.a little but it has dried out. So, disappointing par and he moves on to

:57:04. > :57:12.the treacherous sixth. Front bunker at the 14th, chipped it out to here,

:57:13. > :57:17.so he has this for a bogey. Absolutely nowhere, his tee shot was

:57:18. > :57:29.almost perfect, he's going to take a double bogey. Rory steps into this

:57:30. > :57:33.short par putt. In she goes. Steadying the ship somewhat after

:57:34. > :57:40.dropping a couple of shots in the last three.

:57:41. > :57:43.Well, Koepka and Spieth still in the century of the clubhouse enjoying

:57:44. > :57:48.sitting up there at 5-under par. Matt Kuchar put in a fine round to

:57:49. > :57:54.be tucked in behind them. Poulter is out on the course making his way.

:57:55. > :57:58.Scotsman Richie Ramsay with a fine 70 and Matt Fitzpatrick, the young

:57:59. > :58:03.Englishman, is currently at two under. You can see the flags there,

:58:04. > :58:09.the wind freshening. The forecast says it could gust up to 40 miles

:58:10. > :58:14.per out. It looks like it is getting their too, my goodness. It's going

:58:15. > :58:27.to be quite an afternoon's play with this breeze. -- 40 mph. Look at

:58:28. > :58:32.those numbers, Maureen. 27 mph. It was about 17 at this stage when the

:58:33. > :58:36.players played their round this morning. Poulter walks into the ball

:58:37. > :58:42.for the third time on the fifth. The Caddy has said 105, that's his

:58:43. > :58:50.landing number. The wind is howling behind, big bounce. Well done.

:58:51. > :59:03.McIlroy's second into 17. This green has three distinct tiers, the trick

:59:04. > :59:11.is to find the one the flag is on and he has done that. Needs to throw

:59:12. > :59:20.the anchors on. Fitzpatrick for par. It just dribbles away. So,

:59:21. > :59:30.offsetting his opening birdie, and he goes back to 1-under. That mount

:59:31. > :59:34.in front of McIlroy is a good four and a half, five feet and then the

:59:35. > :59:39.green is running away from him a little bit. He looks like he might

:59:40. > :59:44.do a bumpy one rather than a high one. There she goes, up and over.

:59:45. > :59:57.Lovely shot. Great imagination, great skill.

:59:58. > :00:06.Outside chance of a birdie four Cabrera-Bello, 15. Oh! He's got it.

:00:07. > :00:13.He's missed a few short ones and suddenly a tram liner goes in at 15.

:00:14. > :00:15.That is a reward for perseverance, the first birdie of the day for the

:00:16. > :00:26.Spaniard. A little bit of left-to-right.

:00:27. > :00:30.Straight in. McIlroy, a birdie again, his first since the sixth. He

:00:31. > :00:42.gets going in the right direction once more. One hole to go.

:00:43. > :00:54.Bubba, let's see how steady he stays over this one. Yes. So, four

:00:55. > :00:57.birdies. Double bogey on ten just be railed him. But good play from

:00:58. > :01:14.Watson. -- just derailed him. Fitzpatrick, very upright. This is

:01:15. > :01:23.the par-3. McIlroy. Not a bad lie. Straight at the clock. Oh, what's he

:01:24. > :01:32.done. Sit. He's OK. Got away with it.

:01:33. > :01:44.Fitzpatrick, having given the first Schult a bit of a race, this is to

:01:45. > :01:50.save par -- given the first putts a bit of a race. Look how far past it

:01:51. > :01:56.has gone. It's the short putts that get difficult in particular. I'm

:01:57. > :02:01.settling in these gusts. So, the story of the day for McIlroy.

:02:02. > :02:07.Contrasting fortunes yesterday on the front nine and back and so too

:02:08. > :02:09.today because the front nine was far better, starting with this

:02:10. > :02:17.beautifully measured approach at the 1st hole. That would bring an

:02:18. > :02:22.opening birdie and McIlroy was a different player. So composed.

:02:23. > :02:28.Finding the heart of the fairway and the greens on most holes. The 3rd

:02:29. > :02:32.hole. Having just missed a short birdie putts on the second, leaving

:02:33. > :02:40.a similar distance on the third and he rolled it in. The 6th hole, 490

:02:41. > :02:45.yards, into the wind, slightly from the left, the toughest on the course

:02:46. > :02:56.but McIlroy, a beautiful drive again and the second shot to match, if not

:02:57. > :03:02.better, his third birdie in an outward nine of 29. But when he made

:03:03. > :03:08.a mistake he was able to recover. Par on the tenth and similar on the

:03:09. > :03:17.11th, a bit wayward off the tee and he had to hole this for par to keep

:03:18. > :03:24.the momentum. Short swing on the 13th and 15th. The 17th, into the

:03:25. > :03:34.wind, huge drive, iron over to the back and a delicate touch. As it was

:03:35. > :03:41.yesterday, a birdie on the 17th and McIlroy, still in the red figures.

:03:42. > :03:47.Great ovation for McIlroy as he comes up to the final green.

:03:48. > :03:53.Miserable day yesterday. The sad and nine holes were pretty good. Today,

:03:54. > :03:57.apart from a couple of little pick-up 's, has been first class. --

:03:58. > :04:12.a couple of mistakes. He is astonished the wind took it

:04:13. > :04:19.that way. The last one took it the other way. The wind is gusting 35

:04:20. > :04:39.mph, steady 25, 30. Long birdie putts for Rory McIlroy.

:04:40. > :04:48.I'm sure he likes it, is it getting there? I knew he'd hadn't quite hit

:04:49. > :04:58.it. But it is a days work well done for Rory McIlroy. Soren Kjeldsen, he

:04:59. > :05:05.has a chance to make part -- to go sub par. And he takes it, so steady,

:05:06. > :05:11.very accurate. He will draft his way around this golf course. McIlroy,

:05:12. > :05:20.final shot of the day. A round of 68. Devilish conditions. He's right

:05:21. > :05:25.back in the Championship. 5-over after six of his opening round and

:05:26. > :05:36.still with a chance. When he teed off on Thursday, he was 20-1 and

:05:37. > :05:41.then he drifted to 150-1 after a few holes of his opening round. Now he

:05:42. > :05:52.is just 6-1, to win the Championship. Dustin Johnson. He

:05:53. > :05:59.will be here. To play another day. But it is a long way back for him.

:06:00. > :06:06.No doubt that Rory McIlroy was the star of the show. Brooks Koepka and

:06:07. > :06:12.Jordan Spieth are going out very shortly to do battle in these

:06:13. > :06:16.conditions. Kuchar with 71, Ian Poulter is just beginning his round

:06:17. > :06:22.and further down we see McIlroy, after that 68, and that will move up

:06:23. > :06:29.the leaderboard as the day goes on and these conditions continue.

:06:30. > :06:32.Watching the finale, Ken Brown. 2-under par for McIlroy today,

:06:33. > :06:36.1-under for the tournament. Incredible turnaround since the

:06:37. > :06:41.opening six holes yesterday. Reflected in his betting odds for

:06:42. > :06:44.the tournament which have tumbled. Ken Brown, you've stepped outside

:06:45. > :06:50.the commentary box. Much more like the old McIlroy today. His front

:06:51. > :06:54.nine was breathtaking, out in 31, hardly missing. The back nine was

:06:55. > :07:01.more scrappy but he chipped and putted beautifully. Overall he will

:07:02. > :07:04.be pleased, a superb round of golf, showing his qualities, striking the

:07:05. > :07:08.ball and his short game was particularly good on the closing

:07:09. > :07:15.holes. The leaders are just about to go out, two of the three leaders,

:07:16. > :07:20.Koepka and Spieth. They will take yesterday's play again. But perhaps

:07:21. > :07:25.a bit less experience on the links in this weather for the Americans?

:07:26. > :07:31.They will have less experience than some players, certainly Rory, the

:07:32. > :07:34.wind has freshened. Kuchar's for under par will probably be the top

:07:35. > :07:39.of the leaderboard and both players would probably take level than that.

:07:40. > :07:43.A very demanding afternoon with some grey clouds, so it might rain. The

:07:44. > :07:49.morning starters will have an advantage. So far only four players

:07:50. > :07:55.have broken par today. Both on great form, with wins in their last

:07:56. > :07:58.tournament. Spieth, two Majors in his career, could he make it a third

:07:59. > :08:15.at Royal Birkdale? On the tee from the USA, Jordan

:08:16. > :08:20.Spieth. APPLAUSE

:08:21. > :08:25.Is interesting to see how he copes with today's conditions. I believe

:08:26. > :08:32.the weather has softened a little bit. The wind doesn't seem as

:08:33. > :08:35.strong. It varies so much around the course. 5-under, lovely round

:08:36. > :08:52.yesterday, 65. And off he goes. Scampering down the fair way, just

:08:53. > :08:59.off into the light rough. He's OK. Ritchie is with Rory McIlroy. I did

:09:00. > :09:03.what I wanted to do, get in and finish under par for the first two

:09:04. > :09:07.days and see what the guys do this afternoon. Speaking of this

:09:08. > :09:11.afternoon you only the fourth player to come in under par. Is that

:09:12. > :09:16.surprising or expected in these conditions? Expected, it is very

:09:17. > :09:23.tough, difficult to get the ball close to these pins. It's the

:09:24. > :09:27.toughest wind we are going to play with, Southeast and how strong it

:09:28. > :09:33.is. Anything even par is a good score. Bubba, coming towards the end

:09:34. > :09:41.of his round and what a mixed round it's been. That's going to make it.

:09:42. > :09:54.You're never bored when Bubba's about. Thomas Pieters. On the

:09:55. > :10:05.opening green. Just a light touch. Yes. If he gets going... He could do

:10:06. > :10:15.something. Level par is good but the opening birdie, he is 2-under.

:10:16. > :10:20.Spieth's second shot to the first. Huge drive. That's a marvellous

:10:21. > :10:26.again. One person who's missing the action today is a good friend of

:10:27. > :10:32.mine today, Michael Hoare Saul. He went on holiday to Portugal last

:10:33. > :10:36.week. Captain of this club, he slipped in the shower and broke a

:10:37. > :10:42.bone in his leg and he's in a pretty bad way in hospital. We wish him

:10:43. > :10:46.well. A lot of his friends at the club miss him and the bar. Phil

:10:47. > :10:52.Mickelson on the final hole, and it will be his final one. This is for

:10:53. > :10:58.par. Sad to see. Last time we saw him at The Open Championship, great

:10:59. > :11:09.round against Henrik Stenson last year. 10-over par, it is farewell to

:11:10. > :11:11.fill. -- Phil Mickelson. Spieth, for birdie on the first. Looking for the

:11:12. > :11:36.perfect start. He got it too. Pieters. For a birdie on the second.

:11:37. > :11:44.Got it. This fellow is very dynamic when he gets going. He can really

:11:45. > :11:59.turn it on. Great prospect. Spieth on the second.

:12:00. > :12:08.Oh, he's missed that. Did he miss it? Start in the top I think. Don't

:12:09. > :12:18.know where it is. He said get lucky, I'm not sure it did. Watson's bunker

:12:19. > :12:24.shot on the last hole. Always an adventure when you watch Bubba play.

:12:25. > :12:29.All over the course but he can put together a good round. Spieth to

:12:30. > :12:40.save par. Is the magic wand working as well as yesterday? Looks like it.

:12:41. > :12:50.25 putts in his 65. 6-under having birdied the first. Brooks Koepka.

:12:51. > :13:11.Second to the 1st hole. Slightly firm bounds. The green runs away

:13:12. > :13:18.from you. -- slightly firm bounce. Bubba for his par. Two double

:13:19. > :13:26.bogeys, three bogeys and five birdies. Jordan Spieth leading by

:13:27. > :13:33.one by virtue of his birdie on the first. Brooks Koepka is playing the

:13:34. > :13:42.first. 68, McIlroy. Wonderful stuff on the front nine, 31 shots. Zach

:13:43. > :13:49.Johnson, 66, the best round of the day. Bubba Watson, 72. A mixture of

:13:50. > :13:54.everything, how would you describe the round? A great round at the end

:13:55. > :13:59.of the day. Started pretty good. We knew about the wind and then the

:14:00. > :14:04.middle holes were going to be tough. The golf course isn't designed for

:14:05. > :14:07.this kind of wind. I just hung on. I got a couple of good putts and pars

:14:08. > :14:15.and then I made birdies on the stretch. All in all it was a good

:14:16. > :14:17.day. As long as Icahn Stadium round even par -- as long as Icahn Stadium

:14:18. > :14:26.round even par. I haven't had a high finish year so

:14:27. > :14:30.it is a good start. I don't know what the group in the lead going to

:14:31. > :14:37.do now. When you are around Rory McIlroy you are doing all right. He

:14:38. > :14:52.is 1-under, I think I'm doing OK. Spieth, medium short iron.

:14:53. > :14:59.Thomas Pieters country. Brooks Koepka should have learned a bit

:15:00. > :15:10.from his playing partner, Matsuyama. Slow from here. Give it a good bash.

:15:11. > :15:18.Ian Poulter, three to get here on the ninth hole. Uphill and down

:15:19. > :15:24.dale, across the green and into the hole. CHEERING

:15:25. > :15:31.What they save that was. We talk about momentum, you need a lift now

:15:32. > :15:36.and again and he is 3-under. Look at the reaction of defiance on the

:15:37. > :15:46.hill. Almost as pleased as he is. -- the reaction of the fans. Great fans

:15:47. > :15:50.here. Henrik Stenson, par putt. No. He was a bit unlucky. Couldn't get a

:15:51. > :15:58.decent stance in the bunker. Couldn't get at it. Gary Woodland at

:15:59. > :16:13.the elbow on the 5th hole. Started with four nice pars. Nice bounce.

:16:14. > :16:19.Oh, well! We've seen a feud two bowl on the 5th hole. -- a few twos. As

:16:20. > :16:39.the rain comes down. Can he find another single putts?

:16:40. > :16:43.No. -- single putt. Dropped broke on the third and two tied at the top

:16:44. > :16:58.now, Spieth and Koepka. Thomas Pieters, backing off this

:16:59. > :17:02.putt and I don't blame him. We might see the stance is widening as the

:17:03. > :17:07.round goes on. Trying to drill it in the back, that doesn't work here at

:17:08. > :17:14.Royal Birkdale. Eight shot squandered. Very short. Sudden thing

:17:15. > :17:21.is -- suddenly everything has changed, it is very unpleasant -- a

:17:22. > :17:26.shot squandered. You have to gird yourself as a player. Same for ever

:17:27. > :17:35.one at home. Nevertheless, rather painful. This is as good a test...

:17:36. > :17:41.Over the bunker. Oh, my goodness gracious me! Don't tell me! I

:17:42. > :17:46.thought that was going to go in. Landed it on the only sixpence he

:17:47. > :17:53.could land it on. One of the best shots we've seen today. Brooks

:17:54. > :18:00.Koepka. So strong, he can play it out. A terrific shot. That might be

:18:01. > :18:02.the shot of the day. Amazing. Needed a touch of good fortune to get the

:18:03. > :18:19.control. Magical recovery. Richard Bland, coming up short here

:18:20. > :18:23.on the second. Oh, that's a great run. Being Leishman, off to a

:18:24. > :18:34.terrific start, par, birdie. He moves to 4-under. -- the Englishman.

:18:35. > :18:44.Ian Poulter, who will be trying to fire it into the heart of the green,

:18:45. > :18:48.regardless of the flag position. Tilting from right to left. It

:18:49. > :19:03.should come back off the cushion. Well, hopefully this will complete a

:19:04. > :19:12.magical up and down from Brooks Koepka. Great par. Wonderful par

:19:13. > :19:21.there. Blustery conditions, giving us an opportunity to see some

:19:22. > :19:27.terrific saves by these players. Now, back to the 12th hole.

:19:28. > :19:36.Left-to-right, uphill a little bit for Ian Poulter. Get it in there and

:19:37. > :19:43.get in she does. The Poulter is back. His first birdie of the day,

:19:44. > :19:49.she is one of the league, currently held by two Americans, Spieth and

:19:50. > :19:53.Koepka. Ian Poulter creeping up the board, alongside the finished Matt

:19:54. > :19:56.Kuchar. Richard Bland from Southampton has made a good start as

:19:57. > :20:01.well but it is still the Americans out in front. Everyone trying to get

:20:02. > :20:07.their hands on the Claret Jug. Guess who has already done that?

:20:08. > :20:17.Have a look at this. You really can't believe it. I'll put it on

:20:18. > :20:22.here. Open it up. Look at that, The Open Trophy. You must wear these

:20:23. > :20:26.gloves to take it out of the box. I feel like I'm some sort of petty

:20:27. > :20:31.criminal, I don't want to leave my fingerprints. Here it is, I must be

:20:32. > :20:36.careful it comes out in one piece. Look at that. Look at that, look at

:20:37. > :20:41.that, The Open trophy. It's fantastic. , bit closer, you can see

:20:42. > :20:51.the names of the winners written down there. Who's going to win it?

:20:52. > :20:57.Somebody. There we are. Returned by Henrik Stenson. He had his house

:20:58. > :21:02.burgled yesterday when he was on the course, stealing his clothes for the

:21:03. > :21:09.week while he was playing. But the Claret Jug is back. Chris Wood, when

:21:10. > :21:14.he was last here in 2008 he was right up near the leaders, as an

:21:15. > :21:20.amateur. 5-over par, flirting with the cut. He may need a birdie. He

:21:21. > :21:30.may have a birdie or better! Oh, what a way to finish! There we are,

:21:31. > :21:36.who is Justin Rose? ! There we are. Congratulations from Mark Bunn era.

:21:37. > :21:46.Certainly making the cut now -- from Mark O'Meara. Jordan Spieth,

:21:47. > :21:59.splashing out of the bunker to hear. This is for par. Difficult hole

:22:00. > :22:04.safely negotiated. Few sheltering under umbrellas but those who can

:22:05. > :22:08.are applauding Mark O'Meara, a final walk up the 18th in The Open

:22:09. > :22:17.Championship, this is his final Open and fitting it should be here, after

:22:18. > :22:22.winning in 1998. Stenson, one foot in. Both feet in now. Awkward on the

:22:23. > :22:50.seventh. No, not to be. A shame for Marco

:22:51. > :22:56.Romero but one of the most impressive rounds of the day, a

:22:57. > :23:04.round of 70. The 60-year-old takes his leave of The Open Championship.

:23:05. > :23:08.First shot yesterday, out of bounds, but 70, today, more representative

:23:09. > :23:13.of what Mark Bunn era can do and has done in golf. The 1998 champion --

:23:14. > :23:20.of what Mark O'Meara can do. Untouchable at times. Winning the

:23:21. > :23:26.Masters and The Open. Very fitting that he says farewell to The Open

:23:27. > :23:35.Championship here, where he had one of his greatest days.

:23:36. > :23:45.Kang for birdie on the second. Those just starting their rounds must be

:23:46. > :23:49.wondering... Well, if they keep doing that, the pain of the rain may

:23:50. > :24:02.not be too bad, but it looks pretty horrid. Stenson. Yes, beauty. But it

:24:03. > :24:17.was a dropped shot. Hardy, hardy souls. The umbrellas

:24:18. > :24:23.today, they knew the outlook. Raining quite heavily overnight and

:24:24. > :24:30.settling nicely tomorrow, gentle winds. Richard Bland. Can he go to

:24:31. > :24:37.5-under? He certainly can. So, Richard Bland leading the home

:24:38. > :24:45.challenge. He joins Jordan Spieth and Brooks Koepka at the top of

:24:46. > :24:48.things. Richard Bland has only once played in The Open Championship

:24:49. > :24:54.before and that was at Birkdale in 1998 when he missed the cut but now

:24:55. > :25:04.he is 5-under par and sharing the lead with Jordan Spieth and Brooks

:25:05. > :25:10.Koepka. Thomas, quadruple bogey putt for him and even that doesn't drop.

:25:11. > :25:22.Up to the quintuple. That is a nine on the 6th hole for Justin Thomas.

:25:23. > :25:45.It's All Gone Pete Tong. -- gone wrong. Spieth, his third to the

:25:46. > :25:50.eighth hole. Oh, yes. Oh, no. If it stayed where it was earlier it would

:25:51. > :25:55.have been brilliant. Chance for par. If you look and the card of Brooks

:25:56. > :26:02.Koepka, par, par, par, you would think it had been steady, but not

:26:03. > :26:15.so. He has been scraping and scrambling. Needs to get up and down

:26:16. > :26:24.for par here. Spieth, for par at the 8th. Trouble off the tee. All is for

:26:25. > :26:39.given. Give these players are patient,

:26:40. > :26:45.there is some good scoring coming because it is flat calm, these

:26:46. > :26:51.greens are soft. Koepka to save par at the 6th. No, so he slips out of

:26:52. > :26:56.the tie for the lead, it is now just Spieth and Bland at the top. Koepka

:26:57. > :26:59.has been living on the edge and he finally drops a shot. 1-over for his

:27:00. > :28:09.round, back to 4-under par. Bland. Richard Bland, Oh. Didn't hit the

:28:10. > :28:16.tree, did he? It came out, I thought it had shattered the tree. I'm lucky

:28:17. > :28:32.there. -- he was unlucky there. Matsuyama. Nicely done. No great

:28:33. > :28:45.theatrics, but on he goes. One bogey and one birdie. Poulter to join the

:28:46. > :28:48.leaders. Flawless card so far, all pars and one birdie on the 15th.

:28:49. > :29:07.He's pushed it, has he? Ooh! Just trying to cling on. Nice

:29:08. > :29:15.reception from the crowd. 1-under, just four behind. Eilidh is with Ian

:29:16. > :29:19.Poulter's father. It must be nice, despite this weather, to watch him

:29:20. > :29:26.playing well? It is always nice to watch him. Obviously the father-son

:29:27. > :29:32.relationship, we can get vibes off each other. We know that he's been

:29:33. > :29:36.through a tough time lately, nearly losing his card, problems off the

:29:37. > :29:41.course but he looks so focused and last week he had a good week at the

:29:42. > :29:46.Scottish. Where has this changed mentality come from? I had to have a

:29:47. > :29:52.word with him! Not really, he's worked hard on his game. Everything

:29:53. > :29:56.is being sorted out behind the scenes, which is brilliant. He has

:29:57. > :30:02.his injury out the way and he's really playing solidly. I'm so happy

:30:03. > :30:06.with him, it's good. Long may that continue. What are you like when you

:30:07. > :30:10.are watching him play, do you feel more nervous than him? I've watched

:30:11. > :30:17.him for so many years, it's tough, you know. I feel emotionally drained

:30:18. > :30:24.when he does. It's a tough one to call. When he's on a high, I am.

:30:25. > :30:30.It's father and son. It's amazing. Amazing. Better let you go and

:30:31. > :30:34.follow him because he may need some more support over the last few

:30:35. > :30:44.holes. Ian Poulter is up there on 4-under par. He's heading the 16th.

:30:45. > :30:53.Joint leader, chopped out of the bush, his third to the par-4 sixth,

:30:54. > :30:58.and he has done pretty well. Nice forward bounce, easy up-and-down

:30:59. > :31:06.from there. Going with one of his less lofted wages off the back foot.

:31:07. > :31:13.See what he can produce, big bank to come up, dig into it at least once.

:31:14. > :31:38.He will have that to save his par. High towering shot. This pin was

:31:39. > :31:43.almost impossible to get this morning, easier to get at the flag

:31:44. > :31:56.with a soft putting surface and some breeze. Bland is still 5-under.

:31:57. > :32:04.We have seen this putt two or three times today. There is a little bit

:32:05. > :32:05.of movement. If you don't get the pace just right, it can fall away

:32:06. > :32:52.like that. Spieth always looks busy. It is really hammering down at the

:32:53. > :32:58.moment. This is monsoon like. Stenson cracks one and runs for

:32:59. > :33:13.cover. The shell is don't last long. Only half a day! Where is Noah when

:33:14. > :33:22.you need him? Spieth, in the bunker on the left, played out sideways to

:33:23. > :33:29.hear, it is on its way. It has come back. Lucky boy. That ain't easy

:33:30. > :33:40.from there. It could be a six coming up. Look at it. It is snowing now!

:33:41. > :33:48.Lovely. Better take cover quickly. Look at those raindrops. Raindrops

:33:49. > :33:54.keep falling on my head. Spieth has played three strokes, this is his

:33:55. > :34:09.fourth at the 10th and he's trying an up and under. He has played a

:34:10. > :34:16.delightful one. What an par. Clipped it away, nice soft bounce,

:34:17. > :34:25.co-leader. Smarter than the average bear. Look at the way he slid under

:34:26. > :34:31.it, let the bounce do the work. Stenson. I don't think play will

:34:32. > :34:38.last much longer, he's playing through wet bits, dry bits, wet

:34:39. > :34:46.bits. Difficult to judge, how much the moisture will take out of it. It

:34:47. > :34:51.has run pretty well. Amazingly well. Did I hear a siren? If it was it was

:34:52. > :34:54.a squeaky one. As the ring comes down at Royal

:34:55. > :34:59.Birkdale Matt Kuchar safely in the clubhouse at 4-under par but it is a

:35:00. > :35:04.four way tie for the lead, speed, Koepka and Bland out on the course,

:35:05. > :35:07.Ian Poulter dropped a shot down to 3-under par, along with Hideki

:35:08. > :35:12.Matsuyama, but a good round from Richie Ramsay on 2-under par. It was

:35:13. > :35:19.just a ten minute delay for the rain, so play got back under way

:35:20. > :35:23.pretty swiftly. The greens are soft, he can fly this

:35:24. > :35:34.all the way back to the flag, Stenson. Second to 11. He loves it.

:35:35. > :35:42.He loves it. It had a bit of spin on it. Man, wasn't that good to watch?

:35:43. > :35:45.They can even clap watching while holding their umbrellas. Bland, who

:35:46. > :35:55.had a bit of trouble off the tee. This is to save his par at the 8th.

:35:56. > :35:59.Will he get the pace right? Good for pace and just misjudging the line.

:36:00. > :36:05.Doesn't break quite as much up the hill. Now, can Jordan Spieth

:36:06. > :36:11.adjusted to the changing pace of the greens. And rocket this in for

:36:12. > :36:24.birdie and get to 5-under and the lead? There is your answer. Didn't

:36:25. > :36:27.take him long to adjust. Indifferent approach shot, capped off with their

:36:28. > :36:44.wonderful putt. 5-under, he is. Third shot for Matsuyama, in the

:36:45. > :37:02.bunker off the tee, advanced it to here, at least we can see it.

:37:03. > :37:09.Settle. Pretty good from there. Spieth, the leader on his own at

:37:10. > :37:19.5-under. Having a good year this year, two wins under his belt. He

:37:20. > :37:25.sends that soaring high into the sky, and another lovely iron shot,

:37:26. > :37:31.stone cold dead for Spieth. He is within a whisker of moving to

:37:32. > :37:43.6-under. Matsuyama, down the hill, on ten, he went bunker, rough,

:37:44. > :37:49.green. Nearly one putt par but two putt bogey, so he will drop back,

:37:50. > :37:55.now at two under. This is very nearly like Seve's chip from between

:37:56. > :38:00.the bunker is. Slightly different pin position but very similar. Soft

:38:01. > :38:21.green. Who loves you, baby? Slow putt up the hill for Stenson

:38:22. > :38:26.here on 12. He is finding his range. Another one drops in the front lip

:38:27. > :38:30.for Stenson. He's on a bit of a mini charge, birdied the last two holes,

:38:31. > :38:44.and the defending champion doesn't want to let go of that trophy. Long

:38:45. > :38:50.par putt for Bland, who came tracking up the right-hand rough.

:38:51. > :38:55.Another roll. Yes! Suddenly the putts are beginning to fall from

:38:56. > :39:01.everywhere. Out in 34, level par, keeps him at 3-under, three back.

:39:02. > :39:14.Tiddler on the 12th for Jordan Spieth to get to 6-under. That is a

:39:15. > :39:18.two shot lead with the simplest of putts. He's had 16 putts in the

:39:19. > :39:25.first 12 holes today, scrambled well, played a good shot, made the

:39:26. > :39:28.most of it. Poulter at the last. The mightiest of auroras, round in 70,

:39:29. > :39:40.very impressive stuff. One birdie, one bogey, and at 3-under, currently

:39:41. > :39:45.three behind. 67, 70. I bet he has dead enjoyed that, Terry. I'm sure

:39:46. > :39:49.he did, it was a real test of character out there for Ian Poulter

:39:50. > :39:54.but he scrambled so well to stay in the hunt. This was his third shot at

:39:55. > :39:57.the par-4 eighth and he put that in for an par, but I think he thought

:39:58. > :40:04.he was getting something a little better. To the par-4 ninth, this

:40:05. > :40:08.long putt to save par. Would he dropped a shot? Of course he

:40:09. > :40:18.wouldn't. Level par at the turn, nine straight pars so far. Onto the

:40:19. > :40:25.par-3 12th, his tee shot landing right on the green, so this for

:40:26. > :40:30.birdie. It swung to the right and in it went, celebrations for Poulter,

:40:31. > :40:39.he moved to four under. Birdshot now onto the par-4 13th. It would go

:40:40. > :40:45.close. It would go very close. It wouldn't quite drop. Another par for

:40:46. > :40:51.Poulter. He did drop a shot on the par-4 16th to move back to 3-under

:40:52. > :40:55.but on the final hole, his third shot, went close, great scrambling

:40:56. > :41:00.from Poulter, knocked it in to save par to finish the day on 3-under

:41:01. > :41:04.par. As things stand, Jordan Spieth with a two shot lead in front

:41:05. > :41:09.through 12 holes on 6-under, Kuchar warm and dry in the clubhouse on

:41:10. > :41:12.4-under par with the man who was overnight leader alongside him,

:41:13. > :41:19.Brooks Koepka. There is Poulter after that 70 3-under par. Let's

:41:20. > :41:25.hear from the Englishman. How do you enjoy the challenge of posting that

:41:26. > :41:28.70 today? Yeah am I enjoyed it a lot. Open Championship, golf is

:41:29. > :41:33.always interesting, and through the years we always get a few that play

:41:34. > :41:41.really tough, this being a very tough day on the golf course, 35 mph

:41:42. > :41:45.gusting wind, wind switch on 13 which went in off the right to down

:41:46. > :41:52.off the right and all of a sudden it cooled down 20 degrees. It was a

:41:53. > :41:58.crazy hour to finish the round. They kind of stopped play, or allowed us

:41:59. > :42:02.to finish the hole we was on because there was some casual water on the

:42:03. > :42:07.greens and they wanted it to soak through, and it normally does on

:42:08. > :42:11.links golf courses. It was a crazy day, I just had to hang tough and

:42:12. > :42:16.try and commit to shots and there is only one blemish on the card.

:42:17. > :42:28.Spieth in the sand. He has something to do to save his par. Koepka for

:42:29. > :42:31.the first birdie of the day, possibly. He took a long while to

:42:32. > :42:35.get started on the birdie run yesterday, and then when he did he

:42:36. > :42:42.didn't lose the habit. Left to right. Oh no. Golden opportunity

:42:43. > :42:57.missed there. Spieth for par. When he gets on a roll he seems to

:42:58. > :43:04.hole every single one of those but that will be a dropped shot. He will

:43:05. > :43:15.be back to 5-under shortly. Brooks Koepka looks to be lying pretty

:43:16. > :43:25.well, plenty of green to play with. That's OK. Travels on a little bit.

:43:26. > :43:39.Justin Thomas has not enjoyed today. That nine on the 6th hole. Here on

:43:40. > :43:47.the 14th he nearly has a hole-in-one. Every cloud. Hideki

:43:48. > :43:50.Matsuyama having his troubles on the back nine. This is to save par on

:43:51. > :44:02.the 13th. I just sense the conditions have got

:44:03. > :44:08.a little more difficult in the past half an hour or so, calmed down for

:44:09. > :44:18.a while but the wind has lifted and the rain is near enough ever

:44:19. > :44:25.present. This is for an par for Koepka to remain at four under. Not

:44:26. > :44:34.to be. There have been a few casualties in this hole.

:44:35. > :44:41.Jordan Spieth ready for his second on the 15th, just a bit of wind from

:44:42. > :44:51.the left helping a fraction. There is a low chaser. It might work well.

:44:52. > :44:56.What is shot from Jordan Spieth. There we go, thing of beauty,

:44:57. > :45:03.scuttling down the fairway and that is for an eagle. That was a links

:45:04. > :45:05.shot. Now, Matsuyama, the wind has picked up a bit, hard from the left

:45:06. > :45:19.here. APPLAUSE

:45:20. > :45:29.Stunner from Matsuyama. Beautiful control in these conditions. Well, a

:45:30. > :45:35.slightly unconventional second has brought Jordan Spieth to hear. This

:45:36. > :45:41.is for eagle. Line and pace, line and pace. What a wonderful three

:45:42. > :45:48.from Jordan Spieth. 7-under par, three shot lead.

:45:49. > :45:53.Matsuyama desperately seeking birdies.

:45:54. > :46:03.Found one, back to 1-under, three bogeys in the last four made him

:46:04. > :46:07.unhappy but that's better. So, this soggy and blustery day, the leaders

:46:08. > :46:14.are beginning to stretch out, Jordan Spieth three clear of Matt Kuchar,

:46:15. > :46:18.Koepka and Bland on 3-under par but the last time Jordan Spieth had this

:46:19. > :46:22.kind of lead in a major was the Masters last year, and you may

:46:23. > :46:28.remember what happened. Danny Willett taking advantage. A long way

:46:29. > :46:33.to go, Spieth three in front. Good position here for a Spieth to

:46:34. > :46:45.attack this pin, plenty of landing area, just a little breeze behind.

:46:46. > :46:55.Landing very softly down breeze. Now, Richard Bland, this is his

:46:56. > :47:10.third shot on the 13th. He has taken an unplayable. Chase it on, chase it

:47:11. > :47:17.on. Hard work on the 13th for Bland. He takes a long look but once he has

:47:18. > :47:22.decided he's no-nonsense. Practice strokes behind the ball, a few quick

:47:23. > :47:40.looks and the ball is on its way. He has a chance to plant himself in

:47:41. > :47:44.a good position here. The fourth shot of Richard Bland. He

:47:45. > :47:52.took a bit of a gamble with his third, just over the cross bunker.

:47:53. > :47:56.Drawing it into the 13th pin on the left side. My goodness, this is

:47:57. > :48:00.going to be a big number now. Spieth, four footer. His umbrella

:48:01. > :48:19.has gone. No. Well... He looks at the hole, he

:48:20. > :48:27.doesn't feel comfortable, the whistling wind across this green not

:48:28. > :48:30.helping him. Looks at the hole, bangs it in. The mistake from the

:48:31. > :48:40.good position on the fairway, still leads by a couple. Big drive for

:48:41. > :48:47.Gary Woodland at the last. Trying to draw it into that right pin. That

:48:48. > :48:55.was a lovely shot. The percentage play, the centre of the green pin

:48:56. > :48:59.high. Now, Richard Bland, his trial continues on the 13th, fifth shot.

:49:00. > :49:11.Not much greener to play with. Beautiful, though. Poggi? It is

:49:12. > :49:19.going to be a double -- bogey?. Gary Woodland, this is for a 68. It

:49:20. > :49:27.hasn't turned quite as much at the end as he thought. 69. Only the

:49:28. > :49:33.fifth person today to break par. The first one for quite a long while.

:49:34. > :49:37.This afternoon has been tricky. 70, 69, 1-under, five behind. A good

:49:38. > :49:46.chance for Richard Bland to bounce back after that double bogey on the

:49:47. > :49:50.13th. Oh! Yes! That's the way to do it. Impressive to come back on the

:49:51. > :50:00.14th after a horrible time on the hole before. Now, Jordan Spieth has

:50:01. > :50:12.said this is playing about as if it were 190 yards. It is into the wind.

:50:13. > :50:19.156 to the flag. Narrow target. He has missed it. Not too badly. He's

:50:20. > :50:24.not sure where it has finished because it sort of disappeared. He

:50:25. > :50:33.thinks he has hit it over the back. Matsuyama then on the 16th. Rolling

:50:34. > :50:37.it well, yes! 2-under, and Hideki Matsuyama moves up alongside Richie

:50:38. > :50:45.Ramsay and Richard Bland. That will do nicely. Well, from down in that

:50:46. > :50:50.little hollow, Spieth hit a little short. The greens are getting

:50:51. > :50:56.slower. This is for his par. And in she goes, could have been worse,

:50:57. > :50:58.loose tee shot, it is an par, he will take the three shot lead down

:50:59. > :51:13.the last. Bland taking a cut at his fourth

:51:14. > :51:19.shot. That is a good one. Sit down. He may yet save his par. A lot of

:51:20. > :51:26.holes have been slightly adventurous for him in the last half an hour.

:51:27. > :51:40.Trying to bring it in from left. Go, go, go. It is actually not a bad

:51:41. > :51:44.miss there. Now, Bland with a good shot to the 15th, but it was his

:51:45. > :51:47.fourth. It would be a good save, wouldn't it?

:51:48. > :51:57.It would have been but remains conditional and its a shotgun from

:51:58. > :52:02.Richard Bland, double bogey on the 13th, birdie on the 14th, Biraghi

:52:03. > :52:11.here, so ups and downs. Still 1-under. -- bogey. The old

:52:12. > :52:16.windscreen wiper going. I thought 4-under par could be the leading

:52:17. > :52:27.school today. It's not going to be. -- score. Spieth down to 6-under...

:52:28. > :52:32.Perhaps... So close. He will tap that in and lead into the weekend of

:52:33. > :52:37.The Open Championship, finishing here in front of a feud damp and

:52:38. > :52:40.hardy souls, but at the weekend it will be brighter, it will be busier,

:52:41. > :52:45.and it may well be Jordan Spieth coming down the stretch to a first

:52:46. > :52:51.Open Championship. He's put himself in a wonderful position, 69 to 65,

:52:52. > :52:57.master of the elements and leading The Open.

:52:58. > :53:02.When Jordan Spieth gets his nose in front he is a difficult man to

:53:03. > :53:06.shift. The overnight leader showed he meant business right from the

:53:07. > :53:14.start. This is his second shot into the par-4 first. That was close

:53:15. > :53:18.enough for an opening birdie. As conditions worsened, he did drop

:53:19. > :53:22.shots at both the third and ninth and it looked like he would drop

:53:23. > :53:31.another at the 10th, but how about this for an par save. It seemed to

:53:32. > :53:41.spur him into life. He had another birdie opportunity at 11 from quite

:53:42. > :53:47.some distance. But in it would drop. Level par for the day. Onto the

:53:48. > :53:54.par-3 12th, he birdied this hole yesterday. Would his tee shot give

:53:55. > :53:59.him an opportunity to do it again today? A bit of backspin command yes

:54:00. > :54:06.it would. Back-to-back birdies for a Spieth, moved to 6-under par, two

:54:07. > :54:13.clear of the rest. The second shot here on the 15th. It was low and he

:54:14. > :54:20.fired it right towards the green, on it galloped. Look where this one

:54:21. > :54:27.would end up. Close enough for an eagle for a Spieth. He did go on to

:54:28. > :54:29.drop a shot at the 16th so he signed for a 69 and here he is speaking to

:54:30. > :54:41.Rishi Persad. Can you tell us what you think the

:54:42. > :54:44.value of your score today was? It was good, maybe even better than

:54:45. > :54:51.yesterday. It was really tough out there today. We had brief periods of

:54:52. > :54:55.hour-long intermissions when we could take some respite from the

:54:56. > :54:59.rain when it died down but overall it would look scrappy and it did.

:55:00. > :55:04.There was no way for it to look pretty today. I think I stole a few.

:55:05. > :55:09.Even though the conditions were bad, I didn't quite play the way I played

:55:10. > :55:12.yesterday, but I stole a couple with a chip-in and an eagle. That's what

:55:13. > :55:17.you need to stay on top in this tournament.

:55:18. > :55:23.American Jordan Spieth out in front on his own on day two of The Open

:55:24. > :55:29.Championship, 6-under par, a two shot lead over fellow American Matt

:55:30. > :55:32.Kuchar. A great couple of days for England's Ian Poulter, he's in the

:55:33. > :55:37.top ten entering the weekend of the opened the first time in 15 years,

:55:38. > :55:42.alongside US Open champion Brooks Koepka on 3-under par, and also a

:55:43. > :55:46.good couple of days for Scotland's Richie Ramsay, 2-under par for the

:55:47. > :55:49.Championship. To under par was the score for Rory Mcllroy around the

:55:50. > :55:56.links today and doesn't that look like a good round now? 1-under for

:55:57. > :55:59.the Championship, just back from the leader Spieth. Some selected others

:56:00. > :56:06.to take a look at. We have the round of the day from former open champion

:56:07. > :56:11.Zach Johnson, for under par took him to 1-over. Masters champion Sergio

:56:12. > :56:14.Garcia one shot further back on two over alongside defending champion

:56:15. > :56:18.Henrik Stenson. Tommy Fleetwood makes the weekend of an Open

:56:19. > :56:23.Championship for the first time in his fourth time of asking. Missed

:56:24. > :56:26.cuts, 2008 champion around Royal Birkdale, Padraig Harrington won't

:56:27. > :56:32.be over the weekend, and neither will Phil Mickelson was part of

:56:33. > :56:36.great shoot out at Troon last year. It did get a little wild out there

:56:37. > :56:41.today. But 1-under today for Jordan Spieth is a very impressive round of

:56:42. > :56:45.golf. Ken, what impressed you most about what Jordan did out there

:56:46. > :56:49.today? He called it scrappy but he would have taken it when he saw the

:56:50. > :56:52.forecast this morning. It was an unusual day starting with a howling

:56:53. > :56:56.wind, die down to nothing and warmed up and then the wind picked up. It

:56:57. > :57:00.was a scramble, club selection not easy but the key to his success was

:57:01. > :57:05.his putting, he reads the greens well, he was errant off the tees but

:57:06. > :57:09.generally it was a high quality and professional round. Anything really

:57:10. > :57:12.around par was good today and a few players went out there and hit some

:57:13. > :57:17.of the worst weather but they must feel like anything around par was

:57:18. > :57:23.good today. Rory was exceptional, I must say. He went out this morning

:57:24. > :57:28.and went out in 31 and showed his real quality ball striking. One of

:57:29. > :57:33.the examples was at number six, a fantastic drive, very tricky par-4

:57:34. > :57:36.and look at the shot, big rainbow shape, faded into this right-hand

:57:37. > :57:40.pin and that was a crackerjack and he produced lots of those on the

:57:41. > :57:43.front nine but on the back nine it was different, he lost his long game

:57:44. > :57:48.but then he said quality with his chipping and putting. Lots of

:57:49. > :57:51.awkward spots. Superb round and it got him right back into the

:57:52. > :57:55.tournament. He called it one of his best rounds at The Open Championship

:57:56. > :57:58.which says a lot for McIlroy. Somebody like Ian Poulter, great

:57:59. > :58:03.round of golf, right in amongst it again after a good weekend last

:58:04. > :58:06.weekend at the Scottish Open. He had the same problems, the rain poured

:58:07. > :58:10.down in the middle of the round, the wind picked up, club selection was

:58:11. > :58:13.tricky and he used his great skills of scrambling around, the quality of

:58:14. > :58:18.his play on links courses has always been good and he has the quality on

:58:19. > :58:23.the green. Ian Poulter played a quality round. It was so easy today

:58:24. > :58:27.to hit one or two errant shots and get a double bogey. It is all set up

:58:28. > :58:30.to be a very exciting weekend, and everybody will be glad to know that

:58:31. > :58:36.the weather is supposed to be better tomorrow. We will have highlights

:58:37. > :58:43.again tomorrow night on BBC Two at 8pm of all of Saturday's play, live

:58:44. > :58:47.coverage on Radio 5 live, out on the course from midday. On the BBC sport

:58:48. > :58:52.website there is live text and in play videos. As the wind blew and

:58:53. > :58:56.the rain lashed down at Royal Birkdale it was Jordan Spieth who

:58:57. > :58:59.held his nerve but he will have to be on guard as there are plenty

:59:00. > :59:11.waiting in the wings to pounce on the young Texan.

:59:12. > :59:15.When I think of the world we inhabit, everyone will think,

:59:16. > :59:18.Yeah. And it wasn't, it was done by hand