The Championship threatened to develop into a thrilling three-horse race between a trio of major winners on Saturday, with Oosthuizen, Morikawa and Spieth remaining the men to beat.

All three were tied at -11 as they approached the closing holes, but it was the South African who ultimately claimed sole possession of the overnight lead for the third day in succession.

A valuable birdie at 16 lifted Oosthuizen clear of his rivals and represented a significant boost after he had slipped back with bogeys at the 11th and 13th.

Morikawa bettered the leader’s 69 by a solitary stroke to close within one, a fine effort given he began round three poorly with two dropped shots in the first five holes. Birdies at seven and eight got Morikawa heading in the right direction again and he was firmly in the mix once again when he claimed two more back-to-back gains at 13 and 14.

Visit www.TheOpen.com for the greatest stories in golf

Keep in touch with us!
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/The-Open-Championship/
Twitter - https://twitter.com/TheOpen
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/theopen/
To LICENSE The Open footage, please contact IMG REPLAY ▶ https://bit.ly/306V7dI