Shocking difference between the 2 open rounds that made history

SOUTHPORT, England – Lucas Herbert knew almost immediately.

“I'm very optimistic,” the 30-year-old Aussie said on Friday afternoon at Royal Birkdale. “I thought about it when I hit it about five feet on the 3rd hole. I'm a golfer anyway, so I know all the numbers, all the records, everything like that.”

Sam Burns, on the other hand, may not have known the history he made on Friday at the 154th Open Championship when it came and hit him in the face.

“I didn't know until they told me upstairs,” Burns said. “I didn't know that was the case.”

Seven golfers in history have now finished a major round with a score of 62. Two of them arrived on Friday morning … and are only 22 minutes apart.

First was Herbert, LIV's expert, who turned back to the clubhouse on the 16th green and the history he held firmly. He was nine under par, tracking the record major round 61and racked up nine birdies and not a single bogey.

This was a big deal for Mr. Herbert, who respects and knows golf history, records and traditions. As a child, Herbert once spent mornings circling a television set in Australia. The reason? He wanted to see what Chad Campbell would become first player for a record 62nd major at Augusta National.

Even though Campbell went on to shoot a then-record 63, a small part of Herbert was born that day. He began to believe in the possibility of professional golf – playing in the majors and setting records. He knew that morning and every morning that followed what it would take to set the record for scoring in one major round. That this morning, Friday morning, when Herbert bogeyed his final hole to slide from 61 to 62, tying the record for scoring in one major round with the last bogey.

“I thought about it, if one child is woken up by his parents to watch me finish this round because it's a broken record, that would be great, and it would make me white,” said Herbert. “I hope it happened. I hope some kid is disappointed that I shot 62 but I wasn't disappointed in the end.”

Next came Sam Burns, an up-and-coming American javelin thrower, who paved his way into the history of the major tournament. As he turned to the 18th tee, Burns had recorded three straight birdies and needed the final four to seal his bid for glory.

It would not be an exaggeration to say that Burns' mind was in deep trouble as he pondered his 18-year-old tee. As of seven days ago, he was preparing to pull out of the season finale because of his wife, Caroline, who was nine months pregnant with their second child.

“I thought there was a zero percent chance,” Burns said. “Brett, my agent, was like, I'll sign up just in case, but I said, 'You can, but I probably won't be able to play.'”

As luck would have it, Caroline gave birth to a healthy baby girl, Belle, on July 3, freeing Burns to make the trip across the lake during the opening ceremony 10 days later.

But that doesn't mean Burns entered the Open with his usual preparation. Before Friday's 62, he had never touched a golf club – understandable given the circumstances.

“[Caroline] awesome, super hero,” Burns said. “If it wasn't for that, I wouldn't be here.”

In other words, Burns' mind wasn't at all golfing as he walked out Friday morning … and he wasn't at all on the scoring record as he holed up on 18 to hit his third shot.

When his ball left the fairway and paused for a moment at the top of the butt before heading toward the hole, Burns' mind didn't go to the major league's 62. When it landed in the hole, he was happy … but not as relieved as the fans in attendance.

“I'd say I'm not a big fan of links golf,” Burns said modestly. “I haven't been good at links golf. It's not something I'm very used to. I do it maybe once a year. I don't know what to say.”

In the end, the score was even… but that was about it. It was impossible to miss the difference between the two golfers who set records on Friday, becoming the sixth and seventh players to hold a share of the single-round scoring record.

For one of those players, his last outing with a record on the line was a moment he will remember for the rest of his life … and not just as a good memory.

“It's very difficult when you have a major tournament record putt,” Herbert said. “I'm completely disappointed, and at the same time, I'm very proud today. It's holding two emotions there at the same time.”

To another? There is a chance that you have already forgotten it.

“Yeah,” Burns said, “I didn't know 62 was a record.”

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