Rory McIlroy and Viktor Hovland will enter the final day of The 150th Open tied at the top of the leaderboard after going toe-to-toe across a sensational Saturday at St Andrews.
The pair each recorded superb 66s to take themselves to 16-under-par, four shots clear of Cameron Smith and Cameron Young, and lay the foundations for a final-day shootout reminiscent of the Duel in the Sun in 1977.
The European duo went out as the penultimate group but were soon setting the pace, Hovland recording four consecutive birdies between holes 3 and 6 to leapfrog overnight leader Smith.
McIlroy joined him in a share of the lead with a sublime chip-in for eagle from a bunker at the 10th and there was nothing to separate the two by the 18th green, on which both converted birdie putts to leave the final round tantalisingly poised.
Smith was unable to build on his day two momentum, a bogey on the 1st followed by an unwanted tour of the rough en route to a double bogey at 13 to leave the Australian playing catch-up but very much still in the hunt.
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