Henrik Stenson leads British Open by a stroke

Phil Mickelson and Henrik Stenson are turning the 145th Open Championship into a two-man slugfest, setting up a Sunday showdown.

Stenson leads Mickelson by a one stroke through 54 holes after a two-shot swing on the 17th hole Saturday at Royal Troon Golf Club in South Ayrshire, Scotland.

Stenson finished with a 3-under 68 and a 12-under 201 total as he battled Mickelson throughout the day in the final group.

Mickelson, who led after the first two rounds, gave up the lead with a couple of bogeys on the back nine that left him with a 70 on a cool, blustery day.

The next closest challenger is Bill Haas, who shot a 69 and is six shots off the lead in third place.

Stenson leads a major championship all by himself for the first time and has never been out front going to the final round. He would become the first male golfer from Sweden to capture a major championship.

The 46-year-old Mickelson is shooting for his sixth major title. He could become the second-oldest winner in British Open history, surpassed only by Old Tom Morris in 1867.

The British Open ambitions of Dustin Johnson and Rickie Fowler were derailed at “The Railway” 11th hole.

Johnson moved to 5-under and was in sight of Stenson and Mickelson when he took a triple-bogey 7 on No. 11 that runs alongside a railway line. Johnson finished with a 72 for a 1-under total, 11 shots back and in a tie for 13th.

Fowler hit back-to-back shots from the fairway over the wall that lines the right side of the hole, and onto the rocks next to the rail track. Fowler took a quadruple 8 on the hole and shot a 76 for a 4-over total after three rounds.

Rory McIlroy finished his round with only 13 clubs after he threw his 3-wood to the ground in disgust and broke off the head at the 16th hole. He shot a 73 and is even par and tied for 18th.

World No. 1 Jason Day shot a 71 and is 1-over, tied for 25th.

Jordan Spieth, after making the cut on the number, got off to a hot start Saturday morning with four birdies in the first seven holes. But his momentum came to a halt when he made three bogeys and one double bogey over a stretch of seven holes. He limped home with a 72 and is 5-over for the tournament.

Steve Stricker, 49, turned in another solid r1ound, shooting a 68, and he sits tied for sixth at 3-under, one shot behind J.B. Holmes, who shot a 69 for a 4-under total.