Fans befuddled by ‘absolutely insane' Rory McIlroy moment
Scottie Scheffler has one hand on the Claret Jug as the world No.1 jumped out to a four-shot lead with a bogey free four-under par third round of 67 in the 153rd Open at Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland.
Scheffler sits at -14 for the tournament, and his sizeable lead will have dampened the spirits of his rivals as every time he has led a major after 54 holes, the 29-year-old has won.
The three-time major champion started the day with a one-shot lead but stretched that margin with an eagle at the par 5 seventh, a birdie at par 4 eighth and a birdie at 'Calamity Corner', the par 3 16th.
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'I think anytime you can keep a clean card around a major championship, you're going to be having a pretty good day,' Scheffler said.
'I think the card could look stress-free, but I had two really nice par saves on the back nine that were key.
'I made a nice eight footer on 11, another one on 14, so two really important putts.'
The American looked simply irresistible as he continued he stellar form, boasting three wins, including his PGA Championship victory and a finish no worse than tied eighth in his last ten starts.
He is now just 18 holes away from becoming the second top ranked player in the world after Tiger Woods to win on the British links, and in doing so, only a US Open triumph will remain in his bid for the career grand slam.
'I like being out here competing. This is why we work so hard is to have opportunities like this, and I'm excited for the challenge of tomorrow,' Scheffler said.
'Winning major championships is not an easy task, and I've put myself in a good position.
'Going into tomorrow I'm going to step up there on the first tee and I'm going to be trying to get the ball in the fairway, and when I get to the second shot I'm going to be trying to get that ball on the green.
'There's not really too much else going on.'
Scheffler will be paired with China's Haotong Li (-10) in the final group after he shot a two-under par round of 69, while third round playing partner Matt Fitzpatrick remained at -9 with an even par 71.
US golfer Scottie Scheffler walks to the 18th tee on day three of the 153rd Open Championship at Royal Portrush golf club in Northern Ireland on July 19, 2025. (Photo by HENRY NICHOLLS / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE
Local hope Rory McIlroy (-8) headlines a group of four players that are sharing fourth place, which also includes Scottish Open champion Chris Gotterup, Harris English and Tyrell Hatton.
McIlroy delighted the crowd with a five-under 66 but will need some unlikely help from Scheffler on Sunday to win a second Open Championship after his triumph in 2014.
Fitzpatrick drew level with Scheffler early in the round by chipping in for an eagle on the par-five second, as the leader three-putted for par.
But Scheffler cruised back in front with an eagle on the seventh hole, backed up by a birdie on the eighth.
He stayed bogey-free courtesy of a gusty par save after finding thick rough to the left of the 11th green, before getting up and down again on 14.
The 29-year-old dealt another blow to the chasing pack with a birdie on the difficult 16th before closing out his round with two solid pars.
Li, hoping to become the first Chinese man to win a major title, hung in to reach the turn at nine-under overall, four shots adrift.
He emerged as Scheffler's closest challenger while others slipped back, making three birdies on the second nine before a closing bogey.
Fitzpatrick was only two behind Scheffler at the halfway point of the third round as he tried to boost his bid to become the first English winner since Nick Faldo in 1992.
But three bogeys on the way in left him with a mountain to climb.
- McIlroy keeps slim hopes alive -
Home favourite McIlroy, starting the day seven strokes off the pace, quickly made his move with three birdies in his first four holes.
A huge roar greeted a curling, 36-foot birdie putt on the first green, before the Northern Irishman tapped in for another birdie on the second.
A towering iron shot into the fourth continued the momentum, dragging the Masters champion to within four shots of Scheffler before the leader had even teed off.
His putter went cold for the rest of the front nine, before a bogey on the 11th, when an old ball jumped out of the ground as he hit his approach shot, threatened to derail his round.
But the 36-year-old responded in style by tickling home a downhill, 56-foot eagle putt on the 12th, bringing deafening cheers from the thousands of fans around the green.
One more birdie at the 15th, after a wonderful shot from the rough, gave the crowd extra belief before Scheffler's strong finish.
'Scottie Scheffler is inevitable, even when he doesn't have his best stuff, he's the complete player,' McIlroy told Sky Sports.
'But if I can get out tomorrow, get off to a similar start to today, get the crowd going, hopefully he feels that a couple of groups behind me.'
Other movers on Saturday included reigning champion Xander Schauffele, who made two eagles in a 66 to reach seven-under for the tournament.
Lee Westwood tied the British Open record for the lowest back nine with a 29, recovering from being four-over on the outward half.
Marc Leishman, the lone Australian to make the cut, shot a second straight three-under par round of 68 to sit at -4 overall, tied 26th.
Leishman made five birdies for the day and the LIV Golf star has his sights set on a top ten finish in order to book his place at Royal Birkdale next year.
PORTRUSH, NORTHERN IRELAND - JULY 19: Marc Leishman of Australia looks on during Day Three of The 153rd Open Championship at Royal Portrush Golf Club on July 19, 2025 in Portrush, Northern Ireland. (Photo by)
'Obviously there's the carrot dangling to try to get into the top 4 but also to try to get in the Open next year,' Leishman said.
'Yes, you want to do something silly and try to go crazy low, but you also want to make sure you try to get back in next year and give yourself a chance to get into the other majors.
'Probably more so looking at that. I'm nine back. Probably going to be more than ten back at the end of the day the way he's playing. That will be too many, unless I do something really, really silly. He's probably going to get to 20-under. I'm not going to shoot 56.'
The highlight of the day came from English golfer John Parry (-3) as he made the first hole-in-one of the tournament.
It came at the 175 metre par 3 13th, which is ranked the third hardest hole on the course and boasted a scoring average for the day of 3.14, as Parry's tee shot landed on the green, took two hops and dropped into the cup, much to the delight of the roaring crowd.
It turns out Parry has pulled off a miraculous shot more often than most.
'I think that is about ten. I haven't counted back and could probably work it out, but it's about ten,' Parry said of his hole-in-ones.
Originally published as Fans befuddled by 'absolutely insane' Rory McIlroy moment
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