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topicnews · July 18, 2025

British Open live golf scores, results, highlights from Friday’s Open Championship Round 2

British Open live golf scores, results, highlights from Friday’s Open Championship Round 2

The 153rd Open Championship takes place from Thursday to Sunday this week at Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland.

The famous links venue in County Antrim last hosted this event back in 2019, when Shane Lowry finished six strokes ahead of Tommy Fleetwood.

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Xander Schauffele triumphed at Royal Troon last year and is again among the favourites. Unfortunately, the action on the first day of play was thrown off by high winds. Some of the best golfers in the world missed more fairways than they hit, and the household names slid down the leaderboard. 

This allowed for those not usually in the spotlight to get their flowers finally. At the end of the first round, there were five golfers tied at the top, sitting at 4-under. Jacob Skov Olesen, Haotong Li, Matt Fitzpatrick, Christian Bezuidenhout and Harris English. Schauffele struggled, but is tied for 33rd at even par.

Rory McIlroy was second at last week’s Scottish Open, and came in with a ton of pressure in his return to his home course. He said it would be “just as emotional” to win at Royal Portush this year as it was when he played there for the first time in 2019. McIlroy went on to miss the cut that year, but this year heads into the second round tied for 20th at 1-under., and opened his second round with a birdie

The Sporting News is tracking all the action from Round 2 of the 2025 British Open below.

BRITISH OPEN HQ: Live Open leaderboard | The Open TV coverage | Thursday tee times

British Open leaderboard 2025

  Players Total score (round)
1. Brian Harman -5
T2. Tyrell Hatton -4
T2. Rasmus Hojgaard -4
T2. Harris English -4
T2.

Jacob Skov Olesen

 -4 (67)
T2. Haotong Li -4 (67)
T2. Matt Fitzpatrick -4 (67)
T8. Robert McIntyre -3
T8.  Lucas Glover -3
T8. Christiaan Bezuidenhout -3
T8. Sadom Kaewkanjana -3 (68)
T8. Matthew Jordan -3 (68)
T8. Scottie Scheffler -3 (68)
T14. Justin Rose -2
T14. Tony Finau -2
T14. Lee Westwood -2 (69)
T14. Nicolai Hojgaard -2 

Click here for the entire 2025 British Open leaderboard

JUMP TO HIGHLIGHTS: Round 1 | Round 2 | Round 3 | Round 4

British Open live updates, results, highlights from Thursday’s Round 1

All times ET.

Round 2

6:40 a.m. — English slips back on four and 2023 Open Champion Brian Harman is the outright leader, moving to five uinder at the seventh. McIlroy’s maddening round continues as he cards a bogey five at the fifth, moving him back out to one under.

6:15 a.m — We have an outright leader, with Harris English taking the birdie opportunity on the par-five second. The South African was within a whisker of extending his advantage on the third. 

McIlroy’s up-and-down round continues as he follows a bogey on three with a birdie on four. That was the first hole parred by Fleetwood today after picking up a shot on each of the first three holes to move to one under.

5:50 a.m. — McIlroy has scrambled to save par despite ploughing his drive into thick rough and taking a penalty drop. On the one hand, he misses out on a birdie opportunity that you expect will be gleefully taken by several men this morning, his playing partner Fleetwood for one, but it’s very impressive damage limitation.

Justin Rose is one off the lead after a birdie on four. Hojgaard dropped a shot at seven but bounced straight back to return to four under. His drive on nine is wayward, though.

5:25 a.m. — Rasmus Hojgaard is now one of seven players with a share of the lead. The Dane is two under through six today and we can expect plenty of morning movement, with the players out before lunchtime set to enjoy the better of the conditions.

Make that eight players sharing the lead, after Tyrell Hatton bangs in a birdie but on three. Oh, and here comes Rory! McIlroy trails a birdie of his own, far removed from his trials on the first yesterday, and is down to two under. Ryder Cup team-mate Tommy Fleetwood also trims his score to +1 with a birdie three to start. 

5:10 a.m. — Hello, and welcome to our live coverage of Round 2 of the Open Championship from Royal Portrush. There is now a seven-way tie for the lead, with Brian Harman joining the leaders after making birdie at each of the first two holes. Harris English is the next of the leaders out on the course in 10 minutes at 10:20 a.m. local time.

But now, here’s the man they’ve all come to see. Masters champion Rory McIlroy is slightly to the left off the first tee, into the light rough. But on a perilous hole with out of bounds on either side of the fairway, he won’t mind that.

Round 1

5:00 p.m. — Today’s action is wrapped. Round 2 will get underway on Friday at 1:35 a.m. ET as the battle for the cut line begins. 

4:15 p.m. — After parring on 18, McIlroy finished the round 1-under, and is sitting in a tie for 20th. 

3:38 p.m. — DeChambeau is going to have his work cut out for him in the second round. He heads into the 18th hole sitting at 6-over on the day, and will have to make up ground on Friday to make the cut. 

3:15 p.m. — English bogeyed No. 14 to re-join the pack at 4-under. 

2:43 p.m. — We have seen a crazy number of hole-outs from the first one. This one from McIlroy comes just short, keeping him at 1-under. Harris English has finally been the one to break the barrier and is 5-under through 12. 

2:15 p.m. — Harris English with his whopping sixth birdie of the day, and this one helps him tie the leaders of the first round. 

1:30 p.m. — Tom Kim is trying to make a run toward the top of the leaderboard. This impressive putt will certainly help. 

1:12 p.m. — Justin Thomas picked up back-to-back birdies, as he holed out from just off the green on No. 8. Unfortunately, those results were immediately erased by a double bogey on No. 9. 

12:51 p.m. — McIlroy had a rough start to his first round at the 2025 British Open. He missed three of his first four fairways out of the tee box, but kept miraculously recovering not to fall down the leaderboard. McIlroy nearly holed out on the par-5 number 7 and the birdie moves him to 2-under early. 

12:26 p.m. — We heard a lot about the high rough at the U.S. Open at Oakmont this year. It didn’t prepare Bryson DeChambeau for the overgrown hills at the British Open. Here he is in the thick of it, barely contracting his ball. Not only did it count as a stroke, but when DeChambeau finally contacted the ball, it only went a few feet to his left, getting at least into the lighter rough.

11:40 a.m. — Rai moves to a share of the lead! Back-to-back birdies move the Englishman to -4 for the day.

11:24 a.m. — Lucas Glover, the 2009 U.S. Open champion, is 3-3-3 through the opening three holes. Aaron Rai, who has recently climbed back to a career high of 20th in the world, is also one stroke off the lead.

11:15 a.m. — Take a bow, Angel Hidalgo!

10:52 a.m. — Rahm signs off for the day with a 70. To be just three shots back of the lead after dealing with those early weather conditions is a solid return. Meanwhile, McIlroy recovers with a birdie putt at the second after that initial mishap.

Lowry, the defending course champion, also cards a -1 finish. Scheffler’s birdie putt on the 18th swerves wide, so he will end the round just one shot off the leaders. Ominous.

10:44 a.m. — A magnificent putt from Lowry gets him back in the red with one hole to play. Rahm is on track to finish below par, too. Scheffler picks up a shot at the 17th and is now one off the lead. Some of the big guns are moving…

10:36 a.m. — Scheffler is barely an inch from finding the hole with a long approach at 17. What a shot that was. These later groups could well take advantage of the improving weather conditions out here.

10:32 a.m. — McIlroy starts with a bogey from barely three feet. There’s not much more than a murmur from the crowd. Best to chalk that one up to early jitters, and move on.

10:16 a.m. — Rory McIlroy gets a big cheer as he tees off. He finds some treacherous long grass but gets out of trouble with a brilliant approach. Tommy Fleetwood, another decent pick to challenge here, is also off and running.

9:51 a.m. — Bryson DeChambeau and Justin Rose get their rounds underway. It’s now 27 years since the Englishman finished in fourth place at this championship as an amateur. He couldn’t, could he?

9:29 a.m. — A birdie for Fitzpatrick gives the 2022 U.S. Open champion a share of the lead with two holes to play.

9:19 a.m. — Jordan makes par on 18 and is into the clubhouse with a 68, one behind the leaders.

9:10 a.m. — Agonising for Shane Lowry, who was victorious before a vociferous home crowd on this course at the 2019 Open. His put for birdie on 11 pulls up on the rim. The Irishman remains three shots back. Meanwhile, Sergio Garcia is on the march as back-to-back birdies take him to two under.

9:02 a.m. — Matthew Jordan holds his nerve to make par at 17. It’s been a superb round from the Englishman, who remains in a share of third with Fitzpatrick and Kaewkanjana, one off the lead.

8:42 a.m. — Scheffler drops a shot at the 11th to fall back to one under, but this has still been a good first round. Brooks Koepka makes birdie at the next hole to move to +2 for the day.

8:13 a.m. — Thailand’s Sadom Kaewkanjana is storming up the leaderboard. A sensational eagle putt on the fifth has him at -3 through the opening six holes.

It was almost as good as this from Darren Clarke.

7:48 a.m. — That’s a horrible bounce for Schauffele, who digs his approach out of the sodden rough only to see the ball cannon back off the lip of a rise near the ninth green. It does look like the rain is easing, if that’s any consolation.

7:40 a.m. — Haotong Li is on for a 67 without a single dropped shot. A terrific day’s work from the Chinese. His previous best performance at the Open came back in 2017, when he finished third, six behind winner Jordan Spieth.

7:34 a.m — Oh no, Lee Westwood! A routine par putt at the 14th bobbles wide, and he falls to -3 for the day. After not dropping a shot in the whole round to that point, that’s a real kick in the teeth.

7:31 a.m — “No, no… NO!” exclaims Lowry as his tee shot at the eighth swerves just a little too much and lands on the edge of the rough. Could’ve been worse, Shane. Meanwhile, the big screens out on the course are warning of a potential risk of thunderstorms. We’ll keep an eye on that…

7:22 a.m. — Colin Morikawa digs out a good approach from right in front of the spectators at the seventh. One thing is clear from the massed umbrellas behind him: the rain is hammering down right now. Those changeable conditions have settled into typically glorious UK coastal summer weather.

7:15 a.m. — Disappointment for Olesen as he bogies the 18th, but that shouldn’t detract from an excellent first round here. Westwood could get the clubhouse lead if he continues his form, though. And don’t sleep on Lowry and Rahm — they’re two under, error-free and on the march.

7:04 a.m. — Lee Westwood is on the march. His blemish-free round continues with a birdie at the 12th. Olesen shanked his tee shot at the 18th but ended up with a decent lie. He should come through at -5 at least.

6:52 a.m. — Chris Gotterup moves into a tie for fourth with a birdie at the 12th. Mickelson, rain coat discarded, is looking to get back below par before he finishes for the day. Sam Burns is at -1 after dropping a shot at the fifth. It’s been a good start for much of the American contingent.

6:28 a.m. — Olesen now sits at -5 through 16 holes. Li and Westwood are two strokes back. Shane Lowry, champion here the last time the Open was held at Portrush six years ago, is level with Scheffler and Schauffele at one under through the first four.

6:00 a.m. — Olesen still leads at the 13th. Scottie Scheffler makes the most of a brilliant tee shot at the third to join a large group tied for -1. The weather conditions might be changeable, but there are some good scores being built in this opening round.

5:46 a.m. — Jacob Skov Olesen is the first man at -4 today after an eagle at the 12th. After a front nine of one under, this is quite some first round from the Dane.

5:35 a.m. — “CAPTAIN AMERICA!” comes the cry from a spectator as Patrick Reed tees off. The ball ends up buried in the hardy grasses to the left of the fairway. Not much to marvel at.

5:30 a.m. — Defending champ Xander Schauffele overcooks his shot from the fairway on the second. Local broadcasters apologise for the language as he offers his, er, honest opinion on that shot. He might struggle to get up and down out of the rough to make par there.

5:24 a.m. — We’ll update the above leaderboard at the top of the hour, once we have a few more of the select groups out on the course. Lee Westwood has just missed an eagle putt by inches, but a (presumably!) easy birdie will take him to -3, which is a super start in these blustery conditions.

5:09 a.m. — The early leaderboard has Phil Mickelson in a tie for first at -2. Among that group is Matt Fitzpatrick, who picked up a double birdie on the par-five second.

At the other end, spare a thought for veteran K.J. Choi, who is at +9 through the first 12 holes.

5:00 a.m. — Good morning and welcome to Open weekend! Play started at Royal Portrush a few hours ago, but the main groups will be teeing off from around 10 a.m. local time. 

What channel is the British Open on today?

  • TV channel: USA Network
  • TV broadcast times: 4 a.m.-3:30 p.m. ET
  • Live streams: Peacock, Fubo

The British Open will air live on USA Network for the first two days of the tournament before shifting to NBC for Rounds 3-4. Televised coverage will begin at 4 a.m. ET on Thursday and Friday, with Mike Tirico, Dan Hicks, Terry Gannon, Steve Sands and Tom Abbott on play-by-play. NBC’s coverage for Saturday and Sunday begins at 7 a.m. ET.

Peacock will have live-streaming coverage throughout the tournament showcasing two morning groups and two afternoon groups each day. Peacock-exclusive programming also includes a Par-3 channel featuring the 6th and 16th holes.

You can also stream every round of the British Open live with Fubo, which offers a free trial to new subscribers.

Here is the full breakdown of the British Open TV schedule (all times Eastern):

Date Peacock only USA Network NBC/Peacock
Thursday, July 17 1:30-4 a.m. 4 a.m.-3:30 p.m. —
Friday, July 18 1:30-4 a.m. 4 a.m.-3:30 p.m. —
Saturday, July 19 — 5-7 a.m. 7 a.m.-3 p.m.
Sunday, July 20 — 4-7 a.m. 7 a.m.-2 p.m.

British Open tee times Thursday

Here are the complete British Open tee times for play on Thursday and Friday.

Round 1: Thursday, July 17

Time (ET) Group
1:35 a.m. Padraig Harrington, Nicolai Hojgaard, Tom McKibbin
1:46 a.m. Louis Oosthuizen, GUido Migliozzi, KJ Choi
1:57 a.m. Cameron Smith, Marco Penge, Justin Hastings
2:08 a.m. Jason Day, Taylor Pendrith, Jacob Skov Olesen
2:19 a.m. Phil Mickelson, Daniel Van Tonder, Ryan Peake
2:30 a.m. Max Greyserman, Byeong Hun An, Niklas Norgaard
2:41 a.m. Jordan Smith, Haotong Li, Dustin Johnson
2:52 a.m. Darren Clarke, Davis Riley, Lucas herbert
3:03 a.m. Kevin Yu, Jiulien Guerrier, Mikiya Akutsu
3:14 a.m. Thomas Detry, Chris Gotterup, Lee Westwood
3:25 a.m. Patrick Cantlay, Cameron Young, Mackenzie Hughes
3:36 a.m. Thorbjorn Olesen, Matthew Jordan, Filip Jakubcik
3:47 a.m. Henrik Stenson, Stephan Jaeger, Sebastian Soderberg
4:03 a.m. Kristoffer Reitan, Martin Couvra, Adrien Saddier
4:14 a.m. Takumi Kanaya, Justin Walters, Bryan Newman
4:25 a.m. Hideki Matsuyama, Ryan Fox, Matt Fitzpatrick
4:36 a.m. Sepp Straka, Ben Griffin, Akshay Bhatia
4:47 a.m. Sam Burns, Aldrich Potgieter, Brooks Koepka
4:58 a.m. Xander Schauffele, JJ Spaun, Jon Rahm
5:09 a.m. Shane Lowry, Collin Morikawa, Scottie Scheffler
5:20 a.m. Corey Conners, Wyndham Clark, Tom Hoge
5:31 a.m. Denny McCarthy, Nico Echavarria, Patrick Reed
5:42 a.m. Matti Schmid, Ryggs Johnston, Richard Teder
5:53 a.m. Dylan Naidoo, Darren Fichardt, John Axelsen
6:04 a.m. Justin Suh, Oliver Lindell, Jesper Sandborg
6:15 a.m. Sadom Kaewkanjana, Riki Kawamoto, Sampson Zheng
6:26 a.m. Stewart Cink, Matteo Manassero, Marc Leishman
6:47 a.m. Francesco Molinari, Jesper Svensson, Connor Graham
6:58 a.m. Zach Johnson, Daniel Hiller, Daniel Brown
7:09 a.m. Adam Scott, Rickie Fowler, Ethan Fang
7:20 a.m. Laurie Csnter, Elvis Smylie, Sergio Garcia
7:31 a.m. Andrew Novak, Matthieu Pavon, Matt Wallace
7:42 a.m. Davis Thompson, Dean Murmester, Rikuya Hoshino
7:53 a.m. Si Woo Kim, Shugo Imahira, Sebastian Cave
8:04 a.m. Michael Kim, Bud Cauley, John Parry
8:15 a.m. Matt McCarty, Shaun Norris, Angel Hidalgo
8:26 a.m. Keegan Bradley, Sungjae Im, Daniel Berger
8:37 a.m. Rasmus Hojgaard, Christian Bezuidenhout, Romain Langasque
8:48 a.m. Aaron Rai, Sahith Theegala, Harry Hall
9:04 a.m. Justin Leonard, Thriston Lawrence, Antoine Rozner
9:15 a.m. JT Poston, Chris Kirk, Carlos Ortiz
9:26 a.m. Brian Harman, Maverick McNealy, Joaquin Niemann
9:37 a.m. Russell Henley, Tyrrell Hatton, Min WoonLee
9:48 a.m. Robert Macintyre, Bryson DeChambeau, Justin Rose
9:59 a.m. Jordan Spieth, Ludwig Aberg, Viktor Hovland
10:10 a.m. Rory McIlroy, Justin Thomas, Tommy Fleetwood
10:21 a.m. Harris English, Nick Taylor, Tony Finau
10:32 a.m. Lucas Gover, Jhonattan Vegas, Tom Kim
10:43 a.m. Brian Campbell, John Catlin, Frazer Jones
10:54 a.m. Nathan Kimsey, Jason Kokrak, Cameron Adam
11:05 a.m. Daniel Young, Curtis Luck, Curtis Knipes
11:16 a.m. Younghan Song, George Bloor, OJ Farrell

Round 2: Friday, July 18

Time (ET) Group
1:35 a.m. Stewart Cink, Matteo Manassero, Marc Leishman
1:46 a.m. Francesco Molinari, Jesper Svensson, Connor Graham
1:57 a.m. Zach Johnson, Daniel Hillier, Daniel Brown
2:08 a.m. Adam Scott, Rickie Fowler, Ethan Fang
2:19 a.m. Laurie Canter, Elvis Smylie, Sergio Garcia
2:30 a.m. Andrew Novak, Matthieu Pavon, Matt Wallace
2:41 a.m. Davis Thompson, Dean Burmester, Rikuya Hoshino
2:52 a.m. Si Woo Kim, Rhugo Imahira, Sebastian Cave
3:03 a.m. Michael Kim, Bud Cauley, John Parry
3:14 a.m. Matt McCarty, Shaun Norris, Angel Hidalgo
3:25 a.m. Keegan Bradley, Sungjae im, Daniel Berger
3:36 a.m. Rasmus Hojgaard, Christiaan Bezuidenhout, Romain Langasque
3:47 a.m. Aaron Rai, Shaith Theegala, Harry Hall
4:03 a.m. Justin Leonard, Thriston Lawrence, Antoine Rozner
4:14 a.m. JT Poston, Chris Kirk, Carlos Ortiz
4:25 a.m. Brian Harman, Maverick McNealy, Joaquin Niemann
4:36 a.m. Russell Henley, Tyrrell Hatton, Min Woo Lee
4:47 a.m. Robrt MacIntyre, Bryson DeChambeau, Justin Rose
4:58 a.m. Jordan Spieth, Ludvig Aberg, Viktor Hovland
5:09 a.m. Rory McIlroy, Justin Thomas, Tommy Fleetwood
5:20 a.m. Harris English, Nick Taylor, Tony Finau
5:31 a.m. Lucas Glover, Jhonattan Vegas, Tom Kim
5:42 a.m. Brian Campbell, John Catlin, Frazer Jones
5:53 a.m. Nathan Kimsey, Jason Kokrak, Cameron Adam
6:04 a.m. Daniel Young, Curtis Luck, Curtis Knipes
6:15 a.m. Younghan Song, George Bloor, OJ Farrell
6:26 a.m. Padraig Harrington, Nicolai Hojgaard, Tom McKibbin
6:47 a.m. Louis Oosthuizen, Guido Migliozzi, KJ Choi
6:58 a.m. Cameron Smith, Marco Penge, Justin Hastings
7:09 a.m. Jason Day, Taylor Pendrith, Jacob Skov Olesen
7:20 a.m. Phil Mickelson, Daniel Van Tonder, Ryan Peake
7:31 a.m. Max Greyserman, Byeong Hun An, Niklas Norgaard
7:42 a.m. Jordan Smith, Haotong Li, Dustin Johnson
7:53 a.m. Darren Clarke, Davis Riley, Lucas Herbert
8:04 a.m. Kevin Yu, Julien Guerrier, Mikiya Akutsu
8:15 a.m. Thomas Detry, Chris Gotterup, Lee Westwood
8:26 a.m. Patrick Cantlay, Cameron Young, Mackenzie Hughes
8:37 a.m. Thorbjorn Olesen, Matthew Jordan, Filip Jakubcik
8:48 a.m. Henrik Stenson, Stephan Jaeger, Sebastian Soderberg
9:04 a.m. Kristoffer Reitan, Martin Oovra, Adrien Saddier
9:15 a.m. Takumi Kanaya, Justin Walters, Bryan Newman
9:26 a.m. Hideki Matsuyama, Ryan Fox, Matt Fitzpatrick
9:37 a.m. Sepp Straka, Ben Griffin, Akshay Bhatia
9:48 a.m. Sam Burns, Aldrich Potgieter, Brooks Koepka
9:59 a.m. Xander Schauffele, JJ Spaun, Jon Rahm
10:10 a.m. Shane Lowry, Collin Morikawa, Scottie Scheffler
10:21 a.m. Corey Conners, Wyndham Clark, Tom Hoge
10:32 a.m. Denny McCarthy, Nico Echavarria, Patrick Reed
10:43 a.m. Matti Schmid, Ryggs Johnston, Richard Teder
10:54 a.m. Dylan Naidoo, Darren Fichardt, John Axelsen
11:05 a.m. Justin Suh, Oliver Lindell, Jesper Sandborg
11:16 a.m. Sadom Kaewkanjana, Riki Kawamoto, Sampson Zheng

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