CAPTION: File photo of Indian star Shubhankar Sharma, who put in a stellar third day run in the 152nd Open Championship at Royal Troon on Saturday. Image courtesy X. Rahul Banerji
Even as a host of big names headed for the exit at the 152nd Open Championship at Royal Troon, Shubhankar Sharma not only survived the Friday cut in blustery conditions at 6 over par 148, but then made the most of Moving Day to battle his way up the leaderboard on day three.
Among the early starters on Saturday after finishing one stroke above Friday’s cut line that fell at 7 over par 149 with 80 players surviving into the weekend, Sharma climbed 44 places with a third round 4 under par 67 to provisionally occupy a share of 25th place in the year’s final major. At 2 over 216 (76-72-67), he is nine strokes behind overnight leader Shane Lowry of Ireland.
Sharma started strongly on Saturday with four birdies in his first six holes but two dropped shots kept him down to 1 under par 34 at the turn. On his return nine, Sharma would pick up four strokes against a double bogey but two birdies in his final three holes gave the 27-year-old a solid finishing kick.
With rain forecast for later on Saturday and just 10 players under par after 36 holes, Shubhankar is well placed for a Sunday push, much like at Royal Liverpool last year where he was tied for fourth after 36 holes before finishing in a tie for eighth.
Saturday though was not kind to a host of stars. Past champions Tiger Woods (79-77) and Rory McIlroy (78-75) led a parade to the exit amongst whom were 2024 US Open champion Bryson DeChambeau (76-75), 2023 FedEx Cup winner Viktor Hovland (75-77), 2022 Open winner Cameron Smith (80-74), Sweden’s Henrik Stenson (77-73), Italian Ryder Cup star Francesco Molinari (73-78), Englishman Tommy Fleetwood (76-75), and rising stars Ludvig Åberg (75-76) of Sweden, Korean’s Joohyung ‘Tom’ Kim (76-77), and Indian-American star Sahith Theegala (77-79).
Faced with the toughest conditions on the first two days, Tiger said the lack of preparation had held his game back. His 14 over 156 was the highest 36-hole total since the US Open in 2015 and his third missed cut at the majors this year after finishing dead last at the Masters.
“I just wish I was more physically sharp coming into the majors,” Woods said. “It tests you mentally, physically, emotionally and I just wasn’t as sharp as I needed to be. “I was hoping I would find it somehow. I just never did, and consequently my results and scores were pretty high.”
McIlroy, looking to recover from a final day meltdown at the US Open and a 7 over 78 on Thursday at Royal Troon, ruined his chances with an early triple bogey. “Obviously got off to the worst start possible today, being 6-over through six. But then played the last 12 holes pretty well, bogey-free. If I need to remember something about this week, it'll be the last few holes that I played.”
Added DeChambeau, who struggled through the opening two days, “I didn’t play bad. I just didn’t have things go my way, Like I said at the beginning of the week, you put marbles in a blender and you shake it up and that’s kind of what happens out here. I’m happy with the way I played and I really don’t have the Open fully figured out yet.” The exit from The Open is probably the end of Tiger’s 2024 season though he plans to play the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas in December. The 15-time major winner was 44-over par in the year’s four majors, finishing last in a field of 60 at Augusta National and missing the cut at the other three.
At the Genesis Invitational in Los Angeles which also he hosts, Tiger withdrew from the second round with fever. “Hopefully next year will be a little bit better than this year,” he said philosophically. “I’m just going to keep getting physically better and keep working on it.”