With 54 holes of play officially in the books at Carnoustie Golf Links, only one round remains. A three-way tie for first place pits defending champion Jordan Spieth against Xander Schauffele and Kevin Kisner atop the leaderboard at 9-under par. Plenty of big names remain in the race for the Open Championship and the Claret Jug come Sunday.
Sitting in a worthy group of contenders Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood are just three of 16 golfers all within five shots of the lead. The last round of The Open will assuredly bring more of the Scottish wind and challenges we’ve grown to expect from this historic major. Luckily for the field on Saturday, the sun shined while the wind and rain stayed away, leading to a flurry of highlights ahead of Sunday’s final round.
The leaders set the pace
The defending Open champion Jordan Spieth regains his spot on top of the leaderboard with a birdie at 16.
Defending champion @JordanSpieth is now the outright leader at -9.
Full scoring https://t.co/gVDayzkpiZ#TheOpen pic.twitter.com/cMxHF4c5QL
— The Open (@TheOpen) July 21, 2018
Xander Schauffele enters the group of leaders with a lengthy birdie putt to close out his third round.
. @XSchauffele joins the leaders at -9.https://t.co/qpzqXJ4BrC#TheOpen pic.twitter.com/KlQOtpiXLK
— The Open (@TheOpen) July 21, 2018
The contenders are closing in
Tiger Woods turned back the clocks Saturday during a streak of three straight birdies including one at the 10th hole following a pinpoint accurate approach.
. @TigerWoods holes his fourth birdie of the day after this amazing approach at the 10th.https://t.co/qpzqXJ4BrC#TheOpen pic.twitter.com/cQeLeLBcDB
— The Open (@TheOpen) July 21, 2018
Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy makes an improbable birdie to get within two strokes of the lead.
. @McIlroyRory from the rough leads to Rory -7 and 2 off the lead.https://t.co/qpzqXJ4BrC#TheOpen pic.twitter.com/My7lWdQ6KM
— The Open (@TheOpen) July 21, 2018
International favorite, Tommy Fleetwood, drains back to back birdies as he battles up the leaderboard.
Back to back birdies for @TommyFleetwood1. Moves to -5.https://t.co/qpzqXJ4BrC#TheOpen pic.twitter.com/YydsrvR2Yy
— The Open (@TheOpen) July 21, 2018
The gritty par-3 16th yields a rare birdie as Matt Kuchar holes a birdie putt from off the green.
A rare birdie on 16 as Matt Kuchar moves to -5.
Full scoring https://t.co/gVDayzkpiZ#TheOpen pic.twitter.com/aADTs1qwAL
— The Open (@TheOpen) July 21, 2018
From barely making the cut Friday to turning in the low round of the tournament and climbing back into contention Justin Rose shot a bogey-free round of 64 Saturday.
.@JustinRose99 moves to -6 for the day.
Full scoring https://t.co/gVDayzkpiZ#TheOpen pic.twitter.com/4gKctsFJMY
— The Open (@TheOpen) July 21, 2018
The 16th hole continues to produce highlights as Francesco Molinari holes a birdie of his own from beyond the green.
A rare birdie at 16 for @F_Molinari -6 for the day, currently T2.
Full scoring https://t.co/gVDayzkpiZ#TheOpen pic.twitter.com/zjjNdgzt4V
— The Open (@TheOpen) July 21, 2018
The shot of the Tournament
Closing out his round on Saturday Zander Lombard made an emphatic eagle with his second shot on the par-4 18th.
What an image. What a shot.
EAGLE 2 at 18 for @ZanderLombard.#TheOpen pic.twitter.com/yTRr2tBMWl— The Open (@TheOpen) July 21, 2018
