(833) 317-6278 
The 11th hole at Royal Troon is one of the toughest in major championship golf, named "The Railway" thanks to a set of train tracks marked out of bounds all down the right side.For over 30 minutes of his round at the Open Championship on Friday, it looked as though the challenging hole might derail Shane Lowry's hopes. However, not even a smother-hook into the gorse, a lengthy discussion with his caddie about where to drop, and an eventual double-bogey could stop Lowry's charge to the top of the leaderboard in Scotland.The Irishman righted the ship with four straight pars and birdied holes 16 and 18 to post 7-under and hold a two-shot lead in the clubhouse as the afternoon wave of players hit the course in windy conditions.Lowry pointed to his patience throughout the process as one reason the ordeal barely set him back."I felt like through that whole process of that 20 minutes, it was whatever it was, of taking the drop, seeing where I could drop, and I felt like I was very calm and composed and really knew that I was doing the right thing, and I felt like Darren (Reynolds, caddie) did a great job too, just kind of - he kept telling me, 'We have loads of time,'" Lowry explained in the press center. "To be honest, I was happy enough leaving there with a 6. It was not like - it wasn't a disaster. I was still leading the tournament."Lowry didn't have any time to sulk about his issues on No. 11, as the 12th hole at Royal Troon was playing as the third toughest Friday - a lengthy par 4 straight into the wind. He admitted afterward that two quality shots to find the green there helped him steady things for the inward stretch."I think the 12th hole for me was key. Twelve was playing very difficult, straight into the wind. I hit driver, 4-iron there too, the best shots I've hit all week, to about 30 feet and made par there," Lowry said. "From then on, I felt like down out of the left coming in, it was playing quite difficult, but I felt like you could give yourself chances on the way in, and that's what I did."Lowry held the lead heading to the closing par 4 at Troon and once again hit an excellent approach to birdie the final hole and punctuate his round.Friday marks five years to the day that Lowry held the 36-hole co-lead at the 2019 Open at Royal Portrush, an event he went on to win by six strokes in epic scenes with the local crowd. While he can lean on that experience, he was quick to downplay the idea that any of the chasers were worried about his current form."I'm not sure Scottie Scheffler is too worried about anyone with the form he's in. He's obviously on the leaderboard, and he's one person that people are going to be talking about," Lowry said. "I see Justin Rose going well, and this guy Daniel Brown. I've never played with him, but obviously he had a great day yesterday and looks to be going all right today."Lowry now faces a lengthy break, as he will be out late Saturday afternoon to continue the quest for his second career major victory.
Dane Belbeck is a Supervising Editor for theScore, a sports media company. With a focus on college football, Dane covers a wide range of topics including player commitments, game analysis, and previews of upcoming matchups. His articles provide insights and updates for sports enthusiasts looking to stay informed about the latest news in the world of college football.
