Having secured his place in the field by claiming the New Zealand Open’s Open Qualifying Series exemption earlier this year, Herbert equalled the lowest round ever recorded in the 166-year history of men’s major championship golf during the second round of The Open.
Only a missed par putt from around five feet on the final hole denied Herbert the chance to become the first player in men’s major championship history to shoot a 61. Moments later, American Sam Burns also signed for a 62, joining an exclusive group that includes Branden Grace, Rickie Fowler, Xander Schauffele (twice), Shane Lowry and Kurt Kitayama.
“That’s a really cool list to be a part of,” Herbert said of joining the “62 club”.
“That whole back nine today, it was not lost on me the amount of history in major championships and the opportunity I had to obviously break the record, but then to tie it as well is still something I’m really proud of.
“I’m a golf nerd anyway, so I know all the numbers, all the records, everything like that.”
After opening the championship with an even-par 70, Herbert launched himself into contention with a breathtaking front nine that featured six birdies in his opening nine holes. His outward 28 matched the Open Championship record for the lowest front nine score.
Despite narrowly missing another birdie opportunity on the 10th, Herbert continued his charge with birdies at the 11th and 12th, reaching eight-under through 12 holes and putting major championship history firmly within reach.
“The first 12 holes, I might not play 12 better holes in my life,” he said.
“I was 8-under through 12, and you could make a very good argument that I could have been a couple better as well.”
Three consecutive pars followed before Herbert birdied the par-4 16th to return to nine-under for the round. A wayward approach into the par-5 17th denied another birdie opportunity, leaving the toughest hole on the course standing between him and history.
After finding the rough from the tee on the 18th and taking relief from a spectator fence, Herbert gave himself a chance to make history. His putt for par — and a record-breaking 61 — narrowly slid past the hole, leaving him with his only bogey of the day and a share of one of golf’s most exclusive records.
“There’s no swings I want back coming back down the stretch,” Herbert said.
“Even the shot into 17, it was just poor execution. I thought I did a good job of doing what I thought I needed to do.”
The round eclipsed Herbert’s previous best score in a major championship by five shots and vaulted him into contention heading into the weekend at Royal Birkdale.
“I’m absolutely disappointed (to not shoot 61), and at the same time, so proud of today,” he said.
“Very, very proud to put my name on that list of guys that have shot 62 in a major championship. So it’s kind of holding two emotions there at the same time. It’s a tricky one, and I’m sure once the dust settles, I’ll be able to sort of decompress it a little bit.”
Herbert’s performance is another proud moment for the New Zealand Open, with the Australian earning his place in golf’s oldest championship through his outstanding performance at Millbrook Resort earlier this year. His historic round continues the tournament’s growing reputation as a pathway to The Open Championship, with New Zealand Open qualifiers continuing to make their mark on the world stage.
Keeping an eye on the other Alumni from the 2026 New Zealand Open:
Australian Cameron John sits in a share of 17th after a superb second-round 3-under 67, while New Zealand’s Kazuma Kobori battled back with a second-round 69 to reach 1-under for the championship, seven shots behind leader Lucas Herbert.
Japan’s Naoyuki Kataoka and Kazuki Higa both surged 39 places up the leaderboard during the second round to comfortably make the weekend after strong Friday performances.
Reigning New Zealand Open champion Daniel Hillier narrowly missed the cut by a single shot despite a composed even-par second round that featured four birdies. Ren Yonezawa, Travis Smyth and Austen Truslow were also unable to progress to the weekend.
