Who is Lucas Herbert? Aussie star who snatched British Open lead with record 28

Australian LIV Golf star Lucas Herbert surprised everyone at the 154th Open Championship on Friday, July 17, equaling a historic record with a front-nine performance at Royal Birkdale.

Herbert, who started the round even par after posting a 70 on Thursday, shot an amazing 6-under 28 on the front nine, tying the lowest ever front-nine total in the history of the Open Championship, a mark that was set by Denis Durnian at the same course in 1983.

The 30-year-old Victorian from Bendigo started hot right away, scoring birdies on each of his first three holes. He made additional birdies on No. 5, No. 7, and No. 9, finishing his memorable front nine with a 25-foot birdie putt from off the green at No. 9.

Herbert didn’t stop there, adding birdies at Nos. 11 and 12 to secure 8-under for his round and 8-under for the championship. At that point, he was eight shots under par without even a single bogey on Friday, July 17.

At the 14th hole, Herbert led by two strokes from overnight leader Jackson Suber, who had fallen down after making bogeys on holes six, seven, and eight, but managed to bounce back in the last nine holes.

Herbert, who is ranked No. 97 in the Official World Golf Rankings, has seven professional wins to his name on various tours, including the PGA and DP World Tour. He became part of the LIV Golf series in 2024 and plays for Ripper GC, which is an all-Australian team captained by the Open champion Cameron Smith.

For now, Lucas Herbert has emerged as a rising star, a man everyone at Royal Birkdale is chasing.