Ryan Fox has now etched his name alongside Lucas Herbert and Sam Burns as the latest members of a very exclusive group in men’s major championships – those who have recorded a 62‑stroke round. Their achievements came at the 154th Open, where each player produced a near‑perfect score that will be remembered for years to come.
Herbert was the first of the trio to match the Open’s all‑time low round, carding an eight‑under‑par 62 at Royal Birkdale. His round came eight years after South African Branden Grace became the inaugural player to break the 63‑stroke barrier at the same venue during the third round of the 2017 Open. Herbert’s round was a display of relentless birdie‑making; he surged to nine under with just two holes remaining, even having a chance to reach a par‑five in two strokes. Ultimately, a par‑bogey finish left him with the sixth ever 62 recorded in a men’s major.
Just a day later, Sam Burns produced his own 62 on the second day of the tournament. The American’s round was highlighted by a dramatic finish: from a greenside bunker on the final par‑four, Burns holed his putt to complete a three‑birdie stretch that sealed his 62. His performance came only six days after Korean star Ha‑ran Ryu shattered the major‑round record with a 60 in the third round of the Amundi Evian Championship, underscoring a week of historic low‑scoring golf.
The story did not end there. In the third round, Ryan Fox surged up the leaderboard with a round that combined nine birdies and just one bogey. His 62 gave him the early clubhouse lead and marked the first time that three different players posted a 62 in the same major tournament week. The achievement sparked a flurry of interest in the question: who else has managed a 62 in a major, and how did they do it?
To understand the significance, it helps to look back at the evolution of low rounds in major championships. Before Grace’s 62, the best score in a men’s major was 63, a mark that had been reached 31 times across the four majors.
Grace’s eight‑birdie, bogey‑free round at Royal Birkdale set a new benchmark, featuring a front‑nine 29 and a back‑nine that included a clutch birdie on the 14th and a two‑putt par on the final hole. Other milestones include Jason Fowler’s 62 at the US Open, achieved on the par‑70 layout at Los Angeles Country Club. Fowler’s round combined ten birdies with two bogeys, propelling him to eight under in relatively gentle conditions. Shortly after, Xander Schauffele matched the feat at the same venue, opening with a 40‑foot drive and delivering a flawless bogey‑free round that included a 60‑foot birdie on the fifth hole.
Schauffele’s performance was historic not only because it was a 62 at the US Open, but also because he later recorded a second 62 at the PGA Championship, becoming the first player to post multiple 62s in major championship history. Schauffele’s PGA Championship round at Valhalla Golf Club was a nine‑birdie, bogey‑free masterpiece that tied the lowest score relative to par in a men’s major – nine under.
His final‑hole two‑putt from 30 feet secured the 62, cementing his place in the record books. Following Schauffele, Cameron Lowry produced another 62, this time at the PGA Championship two days later. Lowry’s nine‑birdie round began with a front‑nine 29 and continued with a string of birdies from the 13th through the 17th.
A missed 12‑foot birdie putt on the final hole kept the score at 62, just shy of the elusive 61. Herbert’s earlier 62 also featured a remarkable front‑nine 28, highlighted by a 40‑foot birdie on the seventh and six birdies before the turn. He flirted with a sub‑60 round, birdieing the 16th and finding the fairway on the subsequent par‑five, but a missed 10‑footer and a short putt on the 18th prevented a lower total.
Burns, playing two groups behind Herbert, reached the turn in 32 before unleashing a series of back‑nine birdies, including a spectacular bunker shot on the 18th that capped his historic round. Fox’s own 62 was a blend of aggressive play and steady execution. He opened with three birdies in the first five holes, then holed a 55‑foot putt on the par‑four sixth to add another birdie.
A birdie on the eighth gave him a front‑nine 29, and he continued the momentum on the back nine with a birdie on the 10th, a crucial birdie on the 13th, and a pair of birdies from the 16th onward. A missed birdie on the final hole left him with a two‑putt par, but the 62 was enough to secure his place in the exclusive club. While the Open’s record‑low round remains 62, other majors have seen similar low scores.
The Masters record is a 63, achieved by Nick Price in 1986 and Greg Norman in 1996. The PGA Tour’s all‑time low is 58, posted by Jim Furyk at the 2016 Travelers Championship, and the DP World Tour’s record is 59, set by Oliver Fisher at the 2018 Portugal Masters.
These achievements illustrate a broader trend in modern golf: advances in equipment, course conditioning, and player fitness have made sub‑65 rounds more attainable, yet breaking the 62 barrier in a major remains a rare and celebrated feat. Each of the players mentioned—Grace, Herbert, Burns, Fox, Fowler, Schauffele, Lowry, and others—has demonstrated not only exceptional skill but also the mental fortitude required to sustain such a high level of performance over an entire round under the intense pressure of a major championship. The 154th Open’s leaderboard reflected this historic surge of low scoring, with multiple players vaulting into contention after their 62s.
As the tournament progresses, fans will be watching closely to see if any of these players can convert their momentum into a major victory, and whether the 62‑stroke barrier will be broken again in the near future. For those following the action, Sky Sports continues to provide live coverage of the majors, PGA Tour, DP World Tour, LPGA Tour, and Ladies European Tour, offering streaming options with no contract required. Golf enthusiasts can also explore booking a round at any of the 1,700 courses across the UK and Ireland, ensuring that the spirit of the game lives on both on and off the professional stage.