1
00:00:06,707 --> 00:00:10,427
Speaker 1: You're listening to the Weekend Sport podcast with Jason Vine

2
00:00:10,747 --> 00:00:11,787
Speaker 1: from Newstalk ZEDB.

3
00:00:12,747 --> 00:00:15,227
Speaker 2: Here we go offer is Ryan Fox and Daniel Hillier

4
00:00:15,347 --> 00:00:17,747
Speaker 2: have sneaked inside the cut line to book their place

5
00:00:17,747 --> 00:00:19,907
Speaker 2: in the final two rounds at the Open Championship at

6
00:00:19,987 --> 00:00:23,387
Speaker 2: Royal Troon, with the cut ending up at six over par.

7
00:00:23,987 --> 00:00:26,907
Speaker 2: Ryan Fox's two over second round left him at four over,

8
00:00:27,347 --> 00:00:31,267
Speaker 2: while a late eagle helped Daniel Hillier finish at five over.

9
00:00:31,627 --> 00:00:35,347
Speaker 2: Kazumi Kobori finished in agonizing one shot outside the cut mark.

10
00:00:35,667 --> 00:00:39,787
Speaker 2: Michael Hendry was three shots further adrift. Just before we

11
00:00:39,907 --> 00:00:43,427
Speaker 2: move to the leaders. That eagle by Daniel Hillyer on

12
00:00:43,547 --> 00:00:48,587
Speaker 2: sixteen today was one of only two eagles all day.

13
00:00:48,707 --> 00:00:51,947
Speaker 2: On the sixteenth Dustin Johnson was the other one. I've

14
00:00:51,987 --> 00:00:54,867
Speaker 2: even got the stats here. Dustin Johnson a two hundred

15
00:00:54,907 --> 00:00:57,947
Speaker 2: and ninety eight yard drive, a two hundred and sixty

16
00:00:57,987 --> 00:01:02,147
Speaker 2: three yard approach and a twenty four foot put. Daniel

17
00:01:02,187 --> 00:01:05,707
Speaker 2: Hillier get this, a four hundred and nine yard drive.

18
00:01:06,427 --> 00:01:09,067
Speaker 2: Goodness me, a one hundred and fifty one yard approach

19
00:01:09,147 --> 00:01:12,507
Speaker 2: and an eleven foot part. So the two eagle makers

20
00:01:12,507 --> 00:01:16,627
Speaker 2: on sixteen today at Royal Troon, Dustin Johnson and Daniel

21
00:01:16,707 --> 00:01:19,547
Speaker 2: Hilliar it is not bad company. Meantime, a long berdie

22
00:01:19,587 --> 00:01:23,427
Speaker 2: put to finish has given Irishman Shane Lowry a two

23
00:01:23,467 --> 00:01:27,147
Speaker 2: shot lead after two rounds. The twenty nineteen champions two

24
00:01:27,227 --> 00:01:29,627
Speaker 2: under round has taken him to seven under. He is

25
00:01:29,707 --> 00:01:32,787
Speaker 2: too clear of the English pair of veteran Justin Rose

26
00:01:33,187 --> 00:01:36,907
Speaker 2: and round one leader Dan Brown. Let's bring in Scott

27
00:01:36,947 --> 00:01:41,587
Speaker 2: Taylor from talkSPORT, who's covering the Open Championship at Royal Troon.

28
00:01:41,787 --> 00:01:43,427
Speaker 2: Scott great to get the chance to check. Do you

29
00:01:43,427 --> 00:01:46,067
Speaker 2: tell us first of all about Shane Lowry second round?

30
00:01:46,787 --> 00:01:49,827
Speaker 3: Yeah, Shane Lowry excellent golf and the conditions at Royal

31
00:01:49,867 --> 00:01:53,907
Speaker 3: Trouned today were unlike yesterday. Yesterday was wet and cold,

32
00:01:53,987 --> 00:01:56,387
Speaker 3: but today was all about the wind. The mile an

33
00:01:56,387 --> 00:01:58,707
Speaker 3: hour of the winds were up to thirty mile an

34
00:01:58,747 --> 00:02:01,147
Speaker 3: hour come two or three o'clock in the afternoon. So

35
00:02:01,787 --> 00:02:04,467
Speaker 3: on day one we saw people having irons off the

36
00:02:04,507 --> 00:02:07,267
Speaker 3: tee on the first for example, today they were using wood,

37
00:02:07,387 --> 00:02:10,467
Speaker 3: so just shows you the impact of the wind. And

38
00:02:10,507 --> 00:02:13,987
Speaker 3: for Shane Larry to shoot a bogie three sixty nine

39
00:02:14,187 --> 00:02:18,107
Speaker 3: was sensational and he's asked every time in these conditions,

40
00:02:18,467 --> 00:02:20,827
Speaker 3: do you like playing in them? And don't you prefer

41
00:02:20,947 --> 00:02:23,347
Speaker 3: playing in them? But because he's played a lot in Island,

42
00:02:23,347 --> 00:02:25,787
Speaker 3: he actually says, well, I live in Florida now, so

43
00:02:26,227 --> 00:02:29,787
Speaker 3: these aren't actually my home conditions anymore. But for him

44
00:02:29,787 --> 00:02:33,627
Speaker 3: to provide that sort of spectacle in that level of

45
00:02:33,667 --> 00:02:36,867
Speaker 3: golf today with sensational given how the rest of the

46
00:02:36,907 --> 00:02:39,307
Speaker 3: field and some huge names, no doubt we'll talk about

47
00:02:39,667 --> 00:02:42,747
Speaker 3: in a minute, struggled massively and for Shane Larry two

48
00:02:42,787 --> 00:02:45,427
Speaker 3: shots off the lead, great position to win a second

49
00:02:45,507 --> 00:02:47,027
Speaker 3: Open in five years.

50
00:02:47,107 --> 00:02:50,547
Speaker 2: Just ten guys and read numbers after two rounds, which

51
00:02:50,587 --> 00:02:52,747
Speaker 2: I actually really like. I don't know about you, Scott,

52
00:02:52,747 --> 00:02:55,267
Speaker 2: but this is the kind of golf I love. None

53
00:02:55,267 --> 00:02:57,987
Speaker 2: of this, you know, twenty six understuff from the pgaight two.

54
00:02:58,027 --> 00:03:00,587
Speaker 2: You see sometimes this is a real taste for the

55
00:03:00,587 --> 00:03:01,867
Speaker 2: world's top golfers, isn't it.

56
00:03:03,307 --> 00:03:05,947
Speaker 3: Oh? Absolutely, And that's why I loved even the US

57
00:03:06,027 --> 00:03:10,827
Speaker 3: Open Pinehurst. That those conditions were brutal as well. And

58
00:03:10,867 --> 00:03:15,067
Speaker 3: it just the motto Truon is about as much as

59
00:03:15,067 --> 00:03:18,307
Speaker 3: skill and power as his precision, and that's exactly what

60
00:03:18,387 --> 00:03:20,467
Speaker 3: it is. And in linked golfers as well. You need

61
00:03:20,507 --> 00:03:22,627
Speaker 3: to be able to hit the ball far, but in

62
00:03:22,667 --> 00:03:24,467
Speaker 3: these winds you need to be able to manage the

63
00:03:24,507 --> 00:03:28,227
Speaker 3: wind conditions and find the fair ways regularly, and also

64
00:03:28,307 --> 00:03:31,307
Speaker 3: read the greens. The greens have been quite difficult to

65
00:03:31,347 --> 00:03:33,387
Speaker 3: read for a lot of golfers, having spoke to them

66
00:03:33,427 --> 00:03:35,747
Speaker 3: after their rounds. But I think one man who's putted

67
00:03:35,867 --> 00:03:38,627
Speaker 3: superbly this week has been Justin Rose. And I'm sure

68
00:03:38,627 --> 00:03:41,187
Speaker 3: we've touched on him in a sec but his tee

69
00:03:41,227 --> 00:03:43,827
Speaker 3: to green has been fantastic. But on the greens it

70
00:03:43,947 --> 00:03:47,587
Speaker 3: saw his putts to bury the eighteenth failure on today

71
00:03:47,627 --> 00:03:50,347
Speaker 3: that was sensational. But his putting game all week has

72
00:03:50,387 --> 00:03:53,107
Speaker 3: been up there with the very best.

73
00:03:53,627 --> 00:03:56,187
Speaker 2: Yeah. So he was three under today, joint bast round

74
00:03:56,227 --> 00:03:57,987
Speaker 2: of the day. A few guys shot three. And to

75
00:03:57,987 --> 00:04:00,227
Speaker 2: tell us about Justin Rose, is he the one most

76
00:04:00,427 --> 00:04:04,507
Speaker 2: likely you think to challenge Shane Lowry over days three

77
00:04:04,507 --> 00:04:04,867
Speaker 2: and four?

78
00:04:06,667 --> 00:04:09,427
Speaker 3: Yeah, Justin Rose. It's a really good, feel good story.

79
00:04:09,747 --> 00:04:12,427
Speaker 3: I'm slightly biased because he's actually from the same sort

80
00:04:12,467 --> 00:04:14,587
Speaker 3: of area of England as I am, really, so he's

81
00:04:14,627 --> 00:04:16,907
Speaker 3: quite a local boy. We both support the same football

82
00:04:16,947 --> 00:04:20,187
Speaker 3: team back in the UK, so he's always had a

83
00:04:20,187 --> 00:04:22,067
Speaker 3: soft spot for me. But this was a guy who

84
00:04:22,947 --> 00:04:25,947
Speaker 3: had to go through the Open qualifying to even reach

85
00:04:26,307 --> 00:04:29,187
Speaker 3: Royal Troon last week. So he went to one of

86
00:04:29,227 --> 00:04:32,307
Speaker 3: the qualifying events shot eight under part ended up coming

87
00:04:32,307 --> 00:04:35,187
Speaker 3: through that to even get to here. And it's quite

88
00:04:35,267 --> 00:04:38,307
Speaker 3: admirable that a guy aged forty three is still willing

89
00:04:38,387 --> 00:04:41,347
Speaker 3: to put himself through the hard yards to even compete

90
00:04:41,347 --> 00:04:43,907
Speaker 3: to Open championships. He's won one major, as you say,

91
00:04:43,947 --> 00:04:47,867
Speaker 3: at the US Opening in twenty thirteen, so you're always

92
00:04:47,867 --> 00:04:51,667
Speaker 3: seeing Ryder Cuch example Justin Rose as a clutch player.

93
00:04:51,907 --> 00:04:55,107
Speaker 3: The big moment Justin Rose turns up and I'd be

94
00:04:55,187 --> 00:04:57,787
Speaker 3: delighted to see him win a Cleric jug. There's been

95
00:04:57,827 --> 00:04:59,787
Speaker 3: a lot of talk over the past couple of years

96
00:04:59,787 --> 00:05:03,107
Speaker 3: in golf about live and perhaps Justin Rose could easily

97
00:05:03,187 --> 00:05:05,427
Speaker 3: have been on these players that in his forties now

98
00:05:05,667 --> 00:05:08,747
Speaker 3: could have gone to live set up his family for life.

99
00:05:08,787 --> 00:05:11,547
Speaker 3: But I think the fact that he still finds it

100
00:05:11,667 --> 00:05:14,347
Speaker 3: such an honor to play at major championships is just

101
00:05:14,427 --> 00:05:17,787
Speaker 3: a testament to the character of Justin Rose. So I mean,

102
00:05:17,827 --> 00:05:21,267
Speaker 3: Shane Larry's a fantastic person off the field as well,

103
00:05:21,387 --> 00:05:24,027
Speaker 3: but I'd love to see Justin Rose win a Claric

104
00:05:24,107 --> 00:05:24,547
Speaker 3: jug I.

105
00:05:24,587 --> 00:05:25,907
Speaker 2: Want to come back to the top of the leader

106
00:05:25,907 --> 00:05:27,627
Speaker 2: board in a moment. But you talked about some big

107
00:05:27,707 --> 00:05:29,867
Speaker 2: names who won't be there on days three and four.

108
00:05:30,707 --> 00:05:35,867
Speaker 2: Rory McElroy, can you what's he living over afterwards? Two

109
00:05:35,907 --> 00:05:38,347
Speaker 2: rounds so you know, well outside the cat line, what

110
00:05:38,467 --> 00:05:39,147
Speaker 2: happened to Rory.

111
00:05:41,787 --> 00:05:45,427
Speaker 3: Yeah, it's a very good question. It's the thing with Rory.

112
00:05:45,627 --> 00:05:47,987
Speaker 3: He started to turn it on right at the end

113
00:05:48,027 --> 00:05:50,467
Speaker 3: of his round. But it's been a theme of Rory McElroy.

114
00:05:50,507 --> 00:05:53,107
Speaker 3: When the pressure is not on, he plays really good golf,

115
00:05:53,147 --> 00:05:56,227
Speaker 3: but it's too little, too late, and he just his

116
00:05:56,307 --> 00:05:58,707
Speaker 3: body language after hitting a few bad shots. It just

117
00:05:58,707 --> 00:06:00,987
Speaker 3: didn't look like his week in the build up. But

118
00:06:01,347 --> 00:06:04,387
Speaker 3: I spoke to your colleagues as well and he looked

119
00:06:04,427 --> 00:06:06,747
Speaker 3: really relaxed in the build up. His press confor says

120
00:06:06,787 --> 00:06:09,347
Speaker 3: he was very relapsed. He was having a laugh. He

121
00:06:09,347 --> 00:06:12,107
Speaker 3: looked in a really good place. But one of the

122
00:06:12,147 --> 00:06:14,867
Speaker 3: things he and many other golfers will have pointed to

123
00:06:15,027 --> 00:06:19,467
Speaker 3: that his practice rounds were in very generous weather for

124
00:06:19,507 --> 00:06:23,787
Speaker 3: Scotland in July, whereas as soon as championship days come around,

125
00:06:23,827 --> 00:06:27,707
Speaker 3: there's swirling wins, there's conditions he's not practiced in before.

126
00:06:27,827 --> 00:06:30,987
Speaker 3: So to come up with a strategy sort of ad

127
00:06:30,987 --> 00:06:33,707
Speaker 3: hoc really and not go into the Open Championship on

128
00:06:33,787 --> 00:06:36,427
Speaker 3: what you plan to play because of the weather conditions

129
00:06:36,507 --> 00:06:39,427
Speaker 3: must be hard. But it's not just Rory, and I

130
00:06:39,427 --> 00:06:41,467
Speaker 3: think he's going to be given a spotlight given the

131
00:06:41,547 --> 00:06:44,747
Speaker 3: profile of player. But we've seen Ludvid Obert, We've seen

132
00:06:44,787 --> 00:06:47,667
Speaker 3: Bryson Deschambeau, we've seen Victor Hobland, So it's not just

133
00:06:48,187 --> 00:06:50,267
Speaker 3: Rory McRoy who's missed the cut. I think it's just

134
00:06:50,307 --> 00:06:53,187
Speaker 3: one of those bad weeks. And unfortunately for him, there's

135
00:06:53,227 --> 00:06:56,427
Speaker 3: not a major till the Masters now next year, so

136
00:06:56,507 --> 00:06:58,987
Speaker 3: that wait for am Agor will become eleven years.

137
00:06:59,347 --> 00:07:01,027
Speaker 2: Let's go back up to the top. We've talked about

138
00:07:01,027 --> 00:07:04,987
Speaker 2: Shane Lowry and Justin Rose. Who else is lurking Scott

139
00:07:05,027 --> 00:07:07,467
Speaker 2: and could potentially make a run in the third or

140
00:07:07,467 --> 00:07:07,987
Speaker 2: fourth round.

141
00:07:09,867 --> 00:07:12,307
Speaker 3: Yeah, the story for a lot of the people looking

142
00:07:12,307 --> 00:07:14,427
Speaker 3: at the leaderboard would look at Dan Brown. You know,

143
00:07:14,507 --> 00:07:18,147
Speaker 3: he's Open debut shot sixty five yesterday, not bad for

144
00:07:18,187 --> 00:07:21,067
Speaker 3: your first round of Open golf, and he's sort of

145
00:07:21,587 --> 00:07:25,747
Speaker 3: an unknown really, But in terms of potentially winning the

146
00:07:25,747 --> 00:07:28,827
Speaker 3: Cleric Juggle, Shane Lowry's in a fantastic position, so to

147
00:07:29,067 --> 00:07:34,107
Speaker 3: Justin Rose. But for me, Scotty Scheffler yesterday Pray played brilliantly,

148
00:07:34,267 --> 00:07:37,427
Speaker 3: shot a seventy one underpass shot of seventy today as well,

149
00:07:37,507 --> 00:07:41,107
Speaker 3: but his putting. If you ask someone to lip out

150
00:07:41,267 --> 00:07:45,707
Speaker 3: every hole deliberately, Scotty Scheffler didn't really have to look.

151
00:07:45,747 --> 00:07:47,867
Speaker 3: It felt like he left a few shots out on

152
00:07:47,907 --> 00:07:52,267
Speaker 3: the course, whereas a Shane Lowry or Justin Rose probably

153
00:07:52,267 --> 00:07:55,427
Speaker 3: played to their max to get their registered total, whereas

154
00:07:55,867 --> 00:07:58,307
Speaker 3: Scheffler you feel left a few puts out there on

155
00:07:58,427 --> 00:08:01,107
Speaker 3: round one and still only being five off the lead

156
00:08:01,147 --> 00:08:03,987
Speaker 3: with two rounds to play. I know it's very predictable

157
00:08:04,027 --> 00:08:05,507
Speaker 3: to say the world number one is doing with a

158
00:08:05,507 --> 00:08:08,547
Speaker 3: good shout of winning a major, but Scotty Shepherd's playing

159
00:08:08,587 --> 00:08:09,787
Speaker 3: some good golf. Yeah, well they.

160
00:08:09,787 --> 00:08:12,547
Speaker 2: World number one of these players for a reason. What score?

161
00:08:12,587 --> 00:08:17,267
Speaker 2: When's this? Scott seven under through two rounds? If Shane

162
00:08:17,347 --> 00:08:19,547
Speaker 2: Larry went par par, would seven underwin it? Or would

163
00:08:19,547 --> 00:08:21,667
Speaker 2: they need to need to go a bit lower than that?

164
00:08:23,147 --> 00:08:25,347
Speaker 3: I think you would go a little bit lower the

165
00:08:25,387 --> 00:08:28,187
Speaker 3: conditions tomorrow. It all depends on the conditions. The conditions

166
00:08:28,227 --> 00:08:30,827
Speaker 3: tomorrow look a little bit worse than today in terms

167
00:08:30,907 --> 00:08:33,107
Speaker 3: of there's a lot of rain about. There's going to

168
00:08:33,107 --> 00:08:37,107
Speaker 3: be more swirling wins, so to shoot even parr might

169
00:08:37,147 --> 00:08:39,067
Speaker 3: be a good score. We were actually having a chat

170
00:08:39,107 --> 00:08:41,547
Speaker 3: with some of the some of the golfers today and

171
00:08:41,827 --> 00:08:44,547
Speaker 3: one of the common themes was what would a scratch

172
00:08:44,627 --> 00:08:47,467
Speaker 3: golfer get on today's conditions, and a lot of the

173
00:08:47,467 --> 00:08:50,787
Speaker 3: pros were saying they probably would just about reach one hundred,

174
00:08:51,027 --> 00:08:53,707
Speaker 3: if not very high nineties, which shows you just how

175
00:08:53,747 --> 00:08:56,147
Speaker 3: tough it is out there. So I'd like to see

176
00:08:56,747 --> 00:09:00,827
Speaker 3: a sort of ten eleven twelve under part win this championship.

177
00:09:00,907 --> 00:09:03,227
Speaker 3: As you mentioned earlier, low scoring major is always the

178
00:09:03,227 --> 00:09:06,867
Speaker 3: best ones, so tomorrow will be tough and some looks

179
00:09:06,907 --> 00:09:08,827
Speaker 3: to be a little bit easier, so I'm looking at

180
00:09:08,827 --> 00:09:11,907
Speaker 3: around the sort of eleven twelve ten under part Mark.

181
00:09:12,107 --> 00:09:15,627
Speaker 2: Wonderful, Scott, thanks for joining us across New Zealand. Great analysis.

182
00:09:15,627 --> 00:09:17,947
Speaker 2: We look forward to seeing how rounds three and four

183
00:09:18,027 --> 00:09:19,667
Speaker 2: play out at Royal True thanks for your.

184
00:09:19,507 --> 00:09:22,667
Speaker 3: Time anytime, guys. Take care now you.

185
00:09:22,667 --> 00:09:25,307
Speaker 2: Take care too, Scott, Thanks indeed, Scott Taylor there from

186
00:09:25,427 --> 00:09:27,827
Speaker 2: talkSPORT in the UK. So yes, so Daniel Hillier and

187
00:09:27,907 --> 00:09:32,467
Speaker 2: Ryan Fox will play the weekend. Daniel Hillier is five

188
00:09:32,667 --> 00:09:35,427
Speaker 2: under the card. He will tee off at nine to

189
00:09:35,547 --> 00:09:40,947
Speaker 2: twenty tonight New Zealand time, and Ryan Fox is underweires

190
00:09:40,987 --> 00:09:44,427
Speaker 2: I just scroll up at around eleven twenty five he

191
00:09:44,587 --> 00:09:46,707
Speaker 2: is four under the card. So the two key wees

192
00:09:47,147 --> 00:09:50,547
Speaker 2: involved in the weekend Daniel Hillier and Ryan Fox. Unfortunately

193
00:09:50,587 --> 00:09:54,147
Speaker 2: Michael Henry and Kazuma Kabori have missed the cut.

194
00:09:55,067 --> 00:09:58,267
Speaker 1: For more from Weekend Sport with Jason Fine, listen live

195
00:09:58,347 --> 00:10:01,627
Speaker 1: to News Talk sed B weekends from midday or follow

196
00:10:01,667 --> 00:10:03,307
Speaker 1: the podcast on iHeartRadio