Chasing first major title, Sam Burns holds two-shot lead at The Open

Being in the weekend mix again in a major championship is right where Sam Burns wants to be.

He shot a 5-under par 65 with a clean back nine in the third round of The Open Championship to take a two-stroke lead Saturday at Southport, England.

Burns sits at 10-under 200 and ahead of New Zealand's Ryan Fox, who became part of history with a third-round 62, and South Korea's Si Woo Kim, who posted 67, at Royal Birkdale Golf Club. Fox and Kim are at 8 under.

Burns is making a run at his first title in a major after strong efforts earlier this year by tying for second in the Masters and finishing as the U.S. Open runner-up.

"I feel like, when I've been close, I haven't been able to do that as well as I would like to," Burns said. "That will be the game plan for tomorrow; just try to go out there and give myself as many looks as possible on the greens and see what happens."

His 62-65 run across the past two rounds is the lowest 36-hole stretch in major championship history.

"Coming into the day, I was just trying to focus on executing and give myself as many looks as possible, and we did a good job of that," Burns said.

Burns has five victories on the PGA Tour, but none this year.

Fox matched a majors record with 62 early in the day to surge into the lead. He's the third golfer in this tournament to post 62, joining the accomplishments of Burns and second-round leader Lucas Herbert of Australia from Friday.

"I was aggressive on a lot of good wedge shots," Fox said. "Pretty happy with 62 at the end."

Fox, who made the cut by two strokes, moved to 8 under for the tournament after a round sparked by playing the first eight holes in 5 under.

"Obviously we had pretty much no wind until the last couple of holes today," Fox said. "You feel like you can shoot a score in the morning and the greens are perfect, that if you do roll it well, you feel like you hole everything."

Herbert, whose lone PGA Tour triumph came in the 2021 Butterfield Bermuda Championship, slumped to 71 and is tied for fourth place with Ryan Gerard (69) at 7 under.

Bryson DeChambeau, who was embroiled in controversy following the second round after he was assessed a two-stroke penalty, had a steady round of 69 to hold a tie for sixth place. Until the final hole, his only bogey came on the second hole, and he posted birdies on Nos. 6, 15 and 17.

DeChambeau's situation has created a major storyline in the tournament.

"I honestly feel bad for Bryson in the situation that he was in," Burns said. "From my perspective, I didn't feel like maybe there was enough evidence for him to deserve a penalty there."

World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler was more cautious in his comments.

"I do have a ton to say," Scheffler said. "I haven't decided exactly what I want to say publicly yet."

So DeChambeau, who played Saturday in a pairing with Burns, is at 6 under with Sweden's Ludvig Aberg (67) and first-round leader Jackson Suber (70).

Gerard said he's not surprised to be within range of the lead.

"I think my game kind of suits it," Gerard said of links golf. "A lot of people have told me that before I even came over here last year. I just feel comfortable flighting shots, hitting different windows, kind of moving the ball both ways when you need to, especially into greens."

Suber knows he's a dark horse, but figures he has earned the right to be in the final-day mix.

"I feel comfortable," Suber said. "I feel like I've been in contention a lot the last few months and just gotten really comfortable with the situation and just kind of keep trusting what I'm working on and hope it pays off."

Scheffler, the defending champion who began the round four strokes off the lead, shot 70 and stayed at 4 under. On the surface, it was a quiet round with a birdie on No. 5 and a bogey at No. 16 along with 16 pars.

"I feel like I'm playing a lot better than my score," Scheffler said. "That part is frustrating, but knowing my game is in a good spot is a good feeling as well."

--Field Level Media

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This story was originally published July 18, 2026 at 12:44 PM.