2012 British Open Leaderboard: Adam Scott Takes 4-Shot Lead, Tiger Woods Moves Into 2nd Place

The final pairing has made the turn during their third round at Royal Lytham on Saturday, and there’s been a dramatic shake-up. Brandt Snedeker played the first 40 holes this week without making a bogey, but his third round went off the tracks a bit as he went out in 37 in his first nine holes. Snedeker carded three bogeys in a four-hole stretch. It was slightly mitigated by a birdie at the par-5 7th, but his playing partner, Adam Scott, had already made his move.

The Aussie lit up Lytham on Thursday with a 64 to take the first round lead, and he’s now making a bid to head into Sunday with a multi-shot cushion. Scott had a steady front nine, going out with a bogey-free 32. At 11-under, he now has a four-shot lead over Snedeker and Tiger Woods. A Sunday final pairing of Woods and Scott (and his caddie Steve Williams) would certainly generate plenty of storylines for the British press.

Woods rebounded from his hiccup at the start of his round to drain three birdies before making the turn. A birdie at the par-3 9th pushed him to 7-under and a tie for second with Snedeker coming back to the field. There’s only one par-5 and fewer birdie opportunities on the inward nine, but Woods is definitely in position heading into the final 27 holes of The Open Championship.