Brian Harman maintains grip on The Open as Rory McIlroy’s putter goes cold

So much for being the hunted. Brian Harman continued to be the hunter. On a day which didn’t know what it wanted to do – with rain coming and going and a breeze refusing to become a wind – there was greater certainty from the left-handed American as he retained his grip on this 151st Open Championship.

A third-round 69 for a 54-holes total of 12-under-par 201 gave Harman a five strokes lead over fellow-American Cameron Young, with Spain’s Jon Rahm a stroke further back in solo third.

Harmon stuck stubbornly and gamely to his task, moving a step closer to a breakthrough career Major success. A couple of early round stumbles, with bogeys on the first and fourth, was followed by a more sure-footed navigation of the Hoylake links as he didn’t drop another shot and added four birdies – at the fifth, ninth, 12th and 13th – to consolidate his overnight lead.

The gauntlet had been thrown down early by Rahm, who leapfrogged his way up the leaderboard with a course record 63. “I felt invincible,” he opined. And Rahm looked it too. While others too made charges, Young moving into solo second with a well-crafted 66.

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But not Rory McIlroy. Nor Tommy Fleetwood, who’d asked his local supporters to be louder in support then failed to give them reason to.

McIlroy signed for a 69 (for 210, in tied-11th) that promised much more, his putter going cold in a round where he got more dispirited with each step.

And Fleetwood’s grand designs on the prize were damaged by a soulless 71 for 208 that dropped him back into a quintet of players – along with Jason Day, Viktor Hovland, Antoine Rozner and Sepp Straka – in tied-fourth.

McIlroy’s deflation was reflected in his post-round decision not to do any media work and instead head straight to the putting green, after a round that brought chance after chance after chance – he missed no fewer than six putts from inside 10 feet – and the bounce in his step, so evident early on, was long gone by the time he trudged off the 18th.

The Northern Irishman had started off like a train, with three birdies inside his opening five holes. It wouldn’t have stretched belief to suggest he could have been even better as he had birdie putts on the opening four holes and a viable eagle putt on the fifth. Still, it looked as if he was set to make further inroads. Only to hit speedbump after speedbump.

For the remaining 13 holes, he failed to find a single birdie and, on a day when Young and Rahm and Hovland were fulfilling the moving day roles, McIlroy’s quest for a second career Claret Jug was effectively put into cold storage for another day.

Pádraig Harrington fought manfully to survive the cut but couldn’t kick on. A third round 73 for a 54-hole total of five-over-par 218 left the two-time Open champion in tied-69th with ball again refusing to obey the putter: “I’ve had three days where I’m struggling to find my way into the hole,” he claimed, of good putts failing to drop.

There were few such woes for Harman, who impressively recovered from his early-round stumbles – which briefly saw the gap on the chasers reduced – to regain his composure. “It would have been easy to let the wheels keep spinning and get out of control but I just doubled down,” said Harman of recovering stability.

Without a win on the PGA Tour since his Wells Fargo success in 2017, Harman – his best major finish being a runner-up to Jordan Spieth in the 2017 US Open – finished his day’s work with a five strokes advantage over Young, another player chasing a breakthrough major win.

Young, his closest pursuer, was honest of the challenge ahead. “With the lead he has right now, it’s not necessarily going to be up to me tomorrow. It’s just really time for me to focus on myself and see where that gets me,” said Young of the task at hand.

Harman’s five strokes lead is the 12th instance in the last 40 years of a 54-hole lead of five strokes or more in a major championship. The leader successfully converted to victory nine times in the previous 11 attempts.

In truth, Harman has destiny in his own hands.