Tommy Fleetwood rode a wave of home support to produce a strong finish and play his way firmly into the mix at the halfway stage of The 154th Open.
The Englishman is the fans’ favourite this week at Royal Birkdale in his hometown of Southport as he bids to become a major champion for the first time.
Fleetwood admitted to struggling in his first-round 69 but he raised hopes of becoming the first Englishman to be crowned Champion Golfer of the Year since Sir Nick Faldo in 1992 with three birdies in his final five holes to card a three-under-par 67.
"I played better," he said. "Still, you're not going to go to feeling fully comfortable. I hit a lot more good shots. I felt a lot more in control.
"It's funny really, like towards the end, I hit two good shots on 13, and then like 14, and definitely by the time I got to 17 and 18 I was flowing quite a little bit. That was a really nice feeling.
"Late in the evening with a great atmosphere and sort of get it going and hit some good shots towards the end."
It leaves the 35-year-old four shots adrift of Australia's Lucas Herbert, who earlier equalled the lowest round in Major Championship history with a 62, but sets him up nicely to sustain a title challenge over the weekend.
The World Number Nine failed to contend when The Open was last held at Birkdale in 2017 but has seen his career reach new heights since, claiming a breakthrough PGA TOUR win at the Tour Championship last year and becoming a lynchpin of the European Ryder Cup team.
He credited the home support for helping turnaround his fortunes during the first round and admitted he was harnessing the energy they were providing.
"They [the crowds] are unbelievable," he said. "They really are. They've been an absolute pleasure to play in front of for these two days. I love that I played some good golf there and something to cheer about.
"They make a big difference to me. I think they helped me so much yesterday when I was struggling, and today like I really loved playing in front of them. You can't ask for any more than what they're giving me."
It leaves the 35-year-old four shots adrift of Australia's Lucas Herbert, who earlier equalled the lowest round in Major Championship history with a 62, but sets him up nicely to sustain a title challenge over the weekend.
"Those last few holes were really great for me," he said. "If I play well, I know I'm sort of going to be closing in if you like."
