Lucas Herbert has lost his lead at The Open Championship, but he remains in contention to claim his first major title.
Herbert carded a record-equalling 62 in round two to climb to first place, but he now enters Sunday three shots behind leader Sam Burns.
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His second round was filled with drama, with the Australian missing a five-foot putt to hold the solo record at a major championship.
And Herbert followed that up with further drama in round three at Royal Birkdale, which he has since shed light on.
Lucas Herbert reveals rules official argument on day three of The Open
Herbert has explained the situation he found himself in on hole 17, having been in discussion with a rules official at The Open.
Also asked if his third shot there is in the top 10 shots he’s ever hit, the Australian said: “Well, obviously the two club lengths was right on the edge of where I could get a swing and get a decent lie, and it was like… we were literally arguing over a foot, but it was pretty important in the whole grand scheme of things.
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“Yeah, it all sort of worked out in the end, and I felt like they had so many different opinions of what was wrong, but eventually we sort of got there.
“Yeah, that shot, I kind of got a feeling when the ball sort of went down where I was, I was like, I feel like I can hit something really special here and try to get some momentum swinging back the other way. I had just made two bogeys.
“It was one of those shots you stood over, this is either going to be unbelievable or this could be the end of my tournament sort of thing, if I hit it straight into the bulrushes in front of me and run up some kind of double-digit score on that hole.
“I’m happy it came off. Yeah, I think that slots into the top 10 of shots that I’ve hit.”
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Remarkably, a similar discussion regarding the rules followed on hole 18, where Herbert has now confirmed the instance of a Temporary Immovable Obstruction (TIO) on the fence, not the grandstand as it was suggested by a member of the media.
He explained: “It was actually a TIO on the fence. But I don’t know whether I was comprehending it wrong or it was just explained wrong. I’m really not sure.
“I thought for a minute I was getting a TIO drop and then I was getting relief from an actual interference with my swing, which are kind of two different things.
“Yeah, it was kind of confusing. We got there in the end. Yeah, hit a really nice shot on the green there and managed to escape with a par.
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“I saw where my ball finished and I was like, I would have liked this 24 hours ago.”
Despite the drama, Herbert is in with a fantastic chance of success at Royal Birkdale, where he currently sits in a tie for fourth place.
He is out in the third-last group for the final round on Sunday, having been paired with Swedish superstar Ludvig Aberg.
Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images
Lucas Herbert takes LIV Golf form into The Open at Royal Birkdale
Herbert would very much represent a shock winner at The Open thanks to his major history, but also his presence on LIV Golf.
But he’s certainly been impressing this season, with the Australian currently fifth in the LIV Golf individual standings.
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The 30-year-old is behind only superstars Jon Rahm, Bryson DeChambeau, Joaquin Niemann and Tyrrell Hatton.
Representing Ripper GC, Herbert claimed his first league title with a wire-to-wire win at LIV Golf Virginia in May.
Read more: Adam Scott reacts as Lucas Herbert ties the major scoring record at The Open
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