Lucas Herbert leads the Open Championship halfway through the second round after tying the major championship record of 62 Friday at Royal Birkdale Golf Club in Southport, England.

The Australian needed par at No. 18 to shoot the first 61 in major championship history, but his 5-foot putt to save par missed centimeters to the left of the cup.

The round brought him from even to 8-under-par 132 for the championship, two clear of Cameron Young (67) and first-round leader Jackson Suber (69).

And Herbert’s round wasn’t even the only 62 of the morning wave. Two groups behind him, Sam Burns holed out for birdie from the greenside bunker at No. 18 to cap a three-birdie finish for a bogey-free 62.

Burns shot up to 5 under for the week. South Korea’s Sungjae Im was also 5 under for the championship through the front nine. Bud Cauley (68) and England’s Matt Wallace (67) were in the clubhouse at 4-under 136.

Herbert, 30, was asked when he believed he could equal or better the record of 62.

“It’s not a great question because I’m too much of an optimist, and I thought it when I hit it to about 5 feet on the third hole,” Herbert said. “I’m a golf nerd anyway, so I know all the numbers, all the records, everything like that.”

Branden Grace of South Africa shot the first round of 62 at a major nine years ago, the last time The Open was held at Royal Birkdale. The list has since grown to seven 62s, including Herbert’s and Burns’ on Friday.

Burns’ 62 was a mirror image of Herbert’s. Whereas the Australian tied the major nine-hole scoring record with a 28 on the front nine, Burns went out in 2 under and made six birdies coming in — including a chip-in at No. 16 before the bunker holeout at No. 18.

“Yeah, it was in a good spot in the bunker, which you never know what you’re going to get in the pot bunkers here. So I was happy when I saw that when I walked up,” Burns said. “It was a tricky bunker shot because I had to land it in the fringe there and use the slope down to the hole. Definitely very lucky for it to go in.”

Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland improved on his opening 72 by five strokes, but left opportunities on the table with eight pars and one birdie on his back nine. His 67 lifted him to 1 under for the week.

Xander Schauffele rebounded from a bogey at No. 17 with a straightforward birdie at No. 18 to shoot 69 and head to the clubhouse on the current cut line at even par. The line is projected to move back by at least one shot. Schauffele’s run of 18 straight made cuts at major championships is the longest active streak.

Notables playing in the Friday afternoon wave include World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas, Englishmen Tommy Fleetwood and Justin Rose, Spaniard Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau, who briefly held a share of the lead Thursday before carding a 3-under 67.

–Field Level Media

Borrowing from an American sporting tradition, the winners of the World Cup will earn an extra prize this year: A championship ring — the first one awarded in World Cup history.

The players from either Argentina or Spain also will receive the traditional gold medals. The championship match is set for 3 p.m. ET Sunday at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.

FIFA announced the distribution of the “bespoke” rings and said in a statement that the gesture is “bringing one of the most recognisable American sporting traditions to the global game.”

The rings already have been designed to display the World Cup trophy on one side, with the other side to be customized for the winning team. After the final on Sunday, the head coach and captain of the winning team will be given a temporary ring to be replaced after the final ring is designed and created. The rest of the team will be presented with rings at a later date.

Only 2,026 numbered rings will be created, with 30 given to the winning team. The remainder will be sold to the public, with the price not announced.

If Argentina wins Sunday, they will become the first country to capture back-to-back World Cups since Brazil in 1962. Spain have won once, in 2010.

England and France play Saturday to determine the third-place finisher.

–Field Level Media

Rory McIlroy was hovering around the projected cut line at The Open Championship on Friday when favorable wind conditions opened the door for a more aggressive strategy.

With the wind behind him for the second consecutive round, McIlroy took out his driver on the 414-yard par-4 ninth hole. It led to a second consecutive birdie that got the world’s No. 2-ranked player back to even par for the day.

McIlroy added a lone birdie on his back nine to card a 3-under-par 67 at Royal Birkdale on Friday that moved him to 1 under for the tournament.

“The main objective today was to be here for the weekend, which I am,” McIlroy said. “I felt like I left a couple out there.”

That was especially true after he looked at the scoreboard and saw the 62s posted by Lucas Herbert and Sam Burns. McIlroy will be chasing at least seven shots when he begins his third round on Saturday. Herbert was atop the leaderboard after the morning wave at 8-under.

McIlroy has been inconsistent on the greens through 36 holes but has remained as aggressive as possible with his driver. The ninth hole was a perfect example, as he never considered trying to drive the green during practice rounds.

“Honestly, the practice rounds I played were in a completely different wind direction. I didn’t even think about it,” McIlroy said. “Then when I got on the tee yesterday and saw the wind, it was like, well, the corner on the right there to cover is like 335 (yards), and downwind it’s like, as long as I just strike it well, that should be fine.

“I’ve driven the ball so well the last two days. I think anytime I can get a driver in my hand, I’m going to try to.”

To put himself in contention on Sunday, the Northern Irishman needs to post an excellent score early and then hope the pack comes back to him a bit. In addition to the rounds posted by Herbert and Burns, Royal Birkdale yielded a 64 to Eric Cole during Friday’s morning wave, which also saw five players post 4-under 66s.

Like McIlroy, Cameron Young shot a 3-under 67 that put him at 6 under for the tournament and two shots back of Herbert.

“There’s a couple of guys up there, this will be sort of their first experience of playing in the lead at a major championship on the weekend,” McIlroy said. “There’s obviously some that are very experienced at it like Cam and like Sam as well.

“I think if I can get off to a decent start tomorrow, be 4- or 5-under for the tournament, I’ll be right in it.”

–Field Level Media