Rory McIlroy, Tiger Woods and Justin Thomas among victims of wind at Royal Troon
Tiger Woods equalled his worst number of shots for two rounds in a major.
Strong winds sent scores soaring and a host of star names heading for an early exit on day two of the 152nd Open at Royal Troon.
Tiger Woods equalled his worst number of shots for two rounds in a major after adding a 77 to his opening 79, the total of 156 matching his effort in the 2015 US Open at Chambers Bay.
And the 15-time major winner was far from alone in struggling to cope with the conditions, with 2023 US Open champion Wyndham Clark carding an 80 and his predecessor Matt Fitzpatrick returning a 78.
Rory McIlroy had faced an uphill task to make the cut following an opening 78 and the world number two’s faint hopes disappeared as he covered the first five holes in five over par.
Following a dropped a shot on the third, McIlroy ran up a triple-bogey eighth on the fourth after failing to advance his ball more than a few yards from heavy rough, missing the green with his fourth and then chipping into a greenside bunker.
Scotland’s Robert MacIntyre had been among the favourites to lift the Claret Jug after his Scottish Open triumph but saw his hopes extinguished in a nightmare opening to his second round.
MacIntyre needed two attempts to escape a greenside bunker on the first on his way to a triple bogey and, after dropping shots on the second and third, made another triple bogey on the par-five fourth.
Two-time major winner Justin Thomas, who was third overnight after an opening 68, had also limped to the turn in 45 with a triple bogey, double bogey and four bogeys on his card.
The worst score of the day so far belonged to Japan’s Aguri Iwasaki, his 20-over-par 91 including consecutive nines – on the par-four 13th and par-three 14th – and a triple-bogey seven on the 18th.