Ryan Fox of New Zealand plays a shot from the 11th fairway during the third day of the British Open Golf championships at Royal Birkdale golf club, in Southport, England, Saturday, July 18, 2026. (AP Photo)

Southport (UK) : Ryan Fox, who had been just one stroke inside the cut line after two rounds, surged to the clubhouse lead after firing a recordequalling 62 in the third round of the 154th Open at Royal Birkdale Golf Club.Fox was among the early finishers on moving day as the leaderboard began to resemble a game of snakes and ladders, with positions changing dramatically every few minutes. Southport local Tommy Fleetwood, seeking his first Major, was bogey-free and three under through 11 holes, taking him to seven under and a share of second place with Sam Burns and Jackson Suber, one behind Fox.Fox’s 62 came less than a day after Lucas Herbert and Burns had blazed around Birkdale with matching recordequalling 62s on a dry, baked course that has nevertheless produced a string of low scores. Fox’s eight-under round was comfortably the best of the day, but a flurry of scores between 66 and 68 had kept this a very open Open.Amid all this, Sahith Theegala was the only one of the three players of Indian origin in the field to survive the 36hole cut. After making his Open debut at St Andrews in 2022, Theegala had missed the cut in each of the next three editions. This week, however, he ground it out to secure a weekend berth before carding a twounder 68 in the third round.