SANDWICH, England (AFP) ? The prospect of an emotional climax to the British Open was on the cards Sunday as Northern Ireland's Darren Clarke took a one-shot lead into the final round of the tournament.
The 42-year-old Ulsterman, one of the most popular figures in British golf, edged clear of the field on Saturday after carding a 69 over the Royal St George's links to move to five under par in a storm-hit third round.
Clarke, who has never won a Major, now faces a battle of nerves over the final 18 holes where his closest challenger is Dustin Johnson, the American who suffered agonising near misses at the US Open and PGA Championship last year.
Clarke and Johnson were the final pairing in Sunday's field, due to tee off at 1410 local time (1310 GMT).
Two strokes further back are young American Rickie Fowler, who shot a brilliant two-under-par 68 on Saturday and Denmark's Thomas Bjorn.
On one under were Spain's Miguel Angel Jimenez (72) and Lucas Glover of the United States (73).
But US Open champion Rory McIlroy, the tournament favourite from Northern Ireland, has faded from contention after a 74 on Saturday which left him nine shots off the lead.
Instead it has been left to Clarke to carry the Northern Irish challenge into the final round which got under way Sunday with more heavy rain and wind forecast to lash the course during the day.
Many thought that Clarke had left his best chance of winning The Open at Royal Troon in 1997 where he just missed out to Justin Leonard.
A further near-miss came at Royal Lytham four years later. His recent record at the Open has been absymal, with two missed cuts and a tie for 44th at St Andrews in last year's tournament.
But working with renowned sports psychologist Bob Rotella has helped put Clarke back in the frame once more.
"The Open is the biggest and best tournament in the world," Clarke said on Saturday. "I've failed 19 times to lift the Claret Jug, and tomorrow I have an opportunity, but at the moment it's just an opportunity."
Meanwhile Johnson, who has been feeling under the weather all week, said that the experience he gained in the Majors last year would prove to be invaluable.
"Obviously I've been in this situation a few times, so I think the more and more you can put yourself in a situation, the more comfortable you get," he said.
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