Shane Lowry backed up an opening 64 with a well-crafted 68 to remain very much in contention in the RBC Canadian Open at TPC Toronto in Ontario. The Offalyman, enjoying a hugely consistent season which has seen him reach 12th on the both world and FedEx Cup standings, reached the midpoint on 132, eight under par, four adrift of clubhouse leader Cameron Champ.
Lowry, who has four top-10s including two runner-up finishes on the PGA Tour this season, overcame an opening bogey to his second round to claim three birdies – at the 13th, 15th and fifth holes – to be at the business end of proceedings headed into the weekend.
With the US Open at Oakmont next week – where he finished tied-second behind Dustin Johnson in 2016 – on the horizon, Lowry found only seven of 14 fairways off the tee but found a little rhythm with his iron play and putter to stay within reach of Champ, who followed up an opening 62 with a 66 for 128.
Champ only got into the field late as a reserve (he was eighth alternate last Friday) but made the most of his fortune with a bogey-free 36 holes.
“For me it’s just a refresher to kind of be free in a sense, to feel somewhat of a freedom,” said Champ who has openly spoken of battling mental health issues in recent years. The American hasn’t had a top-10 on the PGA Tour since the Sanderson Farms championship in 2023.
A three-time winner on the PGA Tour, his last win coming in the 3M Open in 2021, Champ – once as high as 63rd in the world but currently ranked 420th – remarked of his light touch approach headed into the weekend: “I don’t need to tinker with anything or mess with anything. I might hit some cool-down stuff or stuff like that. I’m mainly going to get rest, hang out, relax, and get ready for tomorrow.”
In the Tenerife Open on the Ladies European Tour, Lauren Walsh – the Castlewarden, Co Kildare player who is in her second season on the circuit – claimed the lead at the halfway mark in her bid for a breakthrough title after adding a 68 to her opening 67 for a 36-holes total of nine-under 135, giving her a two-shot lead over Singapore’s Shannon Tan after 36 holes.
