Biggest Leads After Three Rounds of British Open

In the long history of the British Open, a handful of golfers have led by six strokes or more following the third round. And all of them went on to win. But only three of them extended their margins over the second-place golfer(s) in the final round.

The largest lead after three rounds of any Open is 10 strokes by Henry Cotton in 1934. Cotton opened the tournament scoring 67-65 and led by nine after the second round. That 65 was a tournament record at the time, and so famous a score in its day that Dunlop introduced a long-running golf ball named in its honor (the Dunlop 65 ball).

Cotton scored 72 in the third round take that 10-stroke, 54-hole lead, then finished with a 79 that still produced a five-stroke victory. It was the first of three British Open wins for Cotton.

Largest 54-Hole Leads in Open Championship

The British Open dates to 1865, but has been a four-round tournament since 1892. So since 1892, these are the golfers with the largest leads following the third round:

• 10 strokes — Henry Cotton, 1934 British Open. Scored 79 in final round but still won by five strokes.
• 7 strokes — Harry Vardon, 1903 British Open. Scored 78 in final round and won by six.
• 7 strokes — Tony Lema, 1964 British Open. Scored 70 in final round and won by five.
• 6 strokes — J.H. Taylor, 1900 British Open. Scored 75 in final round and won by eight.
• 6 strokes — James Braid, 1905 British Open. Scored 81 in final round and won by five.
• 6 strokes — James Braid, 1908 British Open. Scored 72 in final round and won by eight.
• 6 strokes — Max Faulkner, 1951 British Open. Scored 74 in final round and won by two.
• 6 strokes — Tom Lehman, 1996 British Open. Scored 73 in final round and won by two.
• 6 strokes — Tiger Woods, 2000 British Open. Scored 69 in final round and won by eight.
• 6 strokes — Rory McIlroy, 2014 British Open. Scored 71 in final round and won by two.

That's 10 golfers since the Open Championship went to four rounds in 1892 who led by six or more following the third round. And all of them won. The largest third-round lead anyone has failed to hold is five strokes, and two golfers share that dubious distinction. See Largest 54-Hole Lead Lost in British Open for those details.

Three of the golfers on the list expanded their leads in the final round: J.H. Taylor in 1900, James Braid in 1908, and Tiger Woods in 2000. (With Harry Vardon also making the list, all three members of the Great Triumvirate are accounted for.) All three of Taylor, Braid and Woods wound up winning by eight shots, and they share the post-1900 British Open record for largest margin of victory.

Sources:
The R&A. The Open Media Guide, The Open Championship Records, Scoring Records - General.