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Phil Mickelson and Henrik Stenson are turning the 145th Open Championship into a two-man slugfest, setting up a Sunday showdown. Stenson leads Mickelson by a one stroke through 54 holes after a two-shot swing on the 17th hole Saturday at Royal Troon Golf Club in South Ayrshire, Scotland.
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Stenson finished with a 3-under 68 and a 12-under 201 total as he battled Mickelson throughout the day in the final group.
Mickelson, who led after the first two rounds, gave up the lead with a couple of bogeys on the back nine that left him with a 70 on a cool, blustery day.
The next closest challenger is Bill Haas, who shot a 69 and is six shots off the lead in third place.
Another shot back is Andrew Johnston, the Englishman who goes by the name of "Beef." He broke par for the third straight day with a 70.
Stenson, 40, leads a major championship all by himself for the first time and has never been out front going to the final round. He would become the first male golfer from Sweden to capture a major championship.
"I've always thought it's better to be one ahead than one behind," Stenson said. "I know Phil's not going to back down, and I'm certainly not going to back down either.
"Even though Phil's popular in this part of the world, maybe I'll have a few more Europeans giving me a push and we can get a Ryder Cup atmosphere going."
The 46-year-old Mickelson is shooting for his sixth major title. He could become the second-oldest winner in British Open history to lift the Claret Jug, surpassed only by Old Tom Morris in 1867.
"I have to get my rhythm back. My rhythm was out of sorts," Mickelson said. "I shot under par and kept myself right in it but I'd love to play the final round like I played the first two and give myself a shot. Hopefully I get dialed back in."
Lefty's 25-foot birdie putt on the 13th hole gave him a two-shot lead. But Stenson answered on No. 14 with a 5-iron to 6 feet for birdie and Mickelson three-putted for bogey, and they were tied.
Mickelson regained the lead with birdie on the par-5 16th. Stenson answered again with a 3-iron into the wind on the 220-yard Par-3 17th hole to 20 feet, and made the birdie. Mickelson missed the green to the left and failed to hole a par putt from 18 feet.
The British Open ambitions of Dustin Johnson and Rickie Fowler were derailed at "The Railway" 11th hole.
Johnson moved to 5-under and was in sight of Stenson and Mickelson when he took a triple-bogey 7 on No. 11 that ran alongside a railway line. Johnson finished with a 72 for a 1-under total, 11 shots back and in a tie for 13th.
Fowler hit back-to-back shots from the fairway over the wall that lines the right side of the hole, and onto the rocks next to the rail track. Fowler took quadruple-bogey 8 on the hole and shot a 76 for a 4-over total after three rounds.
Rory McIlroy finished his round with only 13 clubs after he threw his 3-wood to the ground in disgust and broke off the head at the 16th hole. He shot a 73 and is even par and tied for 18th.
World No. 1 Jason Day shot a 4-under 32 on the front nine but made four bogeys on the final nine for a 71. He is 1-over and tied for 25th.
Jordan Spieth, after making the cut on the number, got off to a hot start Saturday morning with four birdies in the first seven holes. But his momentum came to a halt when he made three bogeys and one double bogey over a stretch of seven holes. He limped home with a 72 and is 5-over for the tournament.
Steve Stricker, 49, turned in another solid round, shooting a 68, and he sits tied for sixth at 3-under, one shot behind J.B. Holmes, who shot a 69 for a 4-under total.
