Lucas Herbert had predicted the new 17th hole at Royal Liverpool would cause “carnage” during the Open – and unfortunately proved it himself on day one.
Herbert was three under par when he walked on to the 17th tee, but ran up a triple-bogey six on a hole playing just 126 yards.
The 27-year-old Australian missed the green with his tee shot and then overhit a chip which ran all the way across the putting surface, down a steep slope and into a deep bunker.
Herbert’s third shot then failed to climb the slope and rolled back into the same bunker, from where he eventually found the green and two-putted.
What can happen on the 17th hole.
— The Open (@TheOpen) July 20, 2023
Lucas Herbert held a share of the lead on the tee.
He walked off the green with a triple-bogey. pic.twitter.com/8mte7POa5p
'I think it's a great hole'
“It took some good shots to get in the right position to be three under through 16 so I’m not mad about it at all,” Herbert said after a par on the last completed a level-par 71.
“Obviously would have loved to change 17, but I felt like I maybe hit a poor chip shot and that’s about it. I didn’t do a lot wrong other than that.
“17 is going to play tough all day. It’s pretty hard to feel the wind on the tee box. It’s very enclosed and you don’t get a lot of exposure to it. Guys are going to get that wrong all day. I don’t think I’ll be the only one to run up a big number.
“I told you there’d be carnage. I predicted it for ya.
“[But] I think it’s a great hole. [With] no wind it’s a gap wedge and you can make a two pretty easily, but that wind gets going and you can’t really feel it too much on the tee. It becomes a very tricky shot.
“There’s not really a good miss. I probably hit in the best spot to miss it and it was still quite a tricky chip.”
