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Sam Burns fired a stunning five-under 65 in the third round of The Open at Royal Birkdale to move to ten under par and take a two-shot lead into Sunday's final round. The American sits clear of New Zealand's Ryan Fox and South Korea's Kim Si-woo, both at eight under, with Ryan Gerard and Luke Herbert a further shot back at seven under.
Tommy Fleetwood, raised three miles from Royal Birkdale in Southport, kept the home crowd dreaming before a pair of late bogeys on 15 and 18 left him at five under through 54 holes — five shots adrift of Burns. Fleetwood had moved to within one of the lead with a birdie on the par-four 11th, the galleries producing noise that shook the site, but he could not deliver the killer blow when it mattered most. He told reporters he had been daydreaming about winning this championship since he was seven years old. The dream is alive, just barely.
Bryson DeChambeau, four behind Burns at six under alongside Ludvig Aberg, returned after the controversy of Friday's two-shot penalty with a one-under 69. He was met with sarcastic warnings from the crowd whenever his ball found the rough, and isolated shouts of cheat were audible throughout his round. He declined to speak to the media for the sixth successive round at a major, instead heading to the practice range before signing autographs for young fans. He did meet with R&A chief executive Mark Darbon after his round; The Guardian reported he requested his Friday scorecard but was refused.
Burns's combined total of 127 shots across rounds two and three — a 62 followed by Saturday's 65 — is the lowest across any two consecutive rounds in men's Open history. With the field so compressed, Sunday at Birkdale promises fireworks. Visit our golf home for live updates as the final round gets under way.