British Open 2012 Standings: Day 3 Highlights, Top Contenders and More

Australian Adam Scott will go into the final round of the 2012 British Open with a four-stroke lead and the chance to win the first major championship of his career.

He also has the opportunity to make tournament history with another dominating round of golf on Sunday (via Dan Jenkins of Golf Digest):

"

Adam Scott to 12 under. Total of -13 would match Greg Norman's Open record of 267 at St. George's in '93; gusts of 30 mph expected Sunday.

— Dan Jenkins (@danjenkinsgd) July 21, 2012"

Friday's leader Brandt Snedeker shot a three-over 73, tying him for second place with Graeme McDowell at seven-under par for the tournament. From holes five through 14 on Saturday, Snedeker made seven bogeys and couldn't find any consistency throughout the round.

Just behind Snedeker and McDowell is Tiger Woods. Woods started poorly on Saturday with two bogeys on the first three holes, but he was able to make three birdies and just one bogey the rest of the way. He is alone in fourth place at six-under par.

He's one stroke ahead of Ernie Els and Zach Johnson, who are tied for fifth at five-under par. Johnson shot four-under on Saturday, which was the best score of Round 3.

Let's look at the leaderboard, watch the highlight of the day, and predict the winner of the 2012 British Open.

Leaderboard at the conclusion of Round 3

Place	Golfer	Score
1	Adam Scott	-11
T-2nd	Brandt Snedeker	-7
T-2nd	Graeme McDowell	-7
4th	Tiger Woods	-6
T-5th	Zach Johnson	-5
T-5th	Ernie Els	-5
7th	Thorbjorn Olesen	-4
T-8th	Thomas Aiken	-3
T-8th	Bill Haas	-3
T-10th	Four players	-2

Day 3 Highlight

Tiger Woods made an incredible 50-foot birdie putt on the sixth hole.

Final Round Projections

Adam Scott is playing too well right now to bet against him. He's making holes that are giving other golfers trouble look easy, and he is dominating the par-fives. He also leads the tournament in average driving distance at 319.8 yards:

"

Big-hitting Adam Scott leads the driving distance standings. He has also birdied the Par 5s each time he has played them. Machine. #TheOpen

— The Open (@The_Open) July 21, 2012"

It's hard to imagine Scott not winning the tournament. Even if he has a poor final round, the other players close to him on the leaderboard—such as Woods, Snedeker, Els and Johnson—will have to play very well to beat him.

Els and Woods are probably the players with the best chance prevent Scott from winning the British Open, but it will take an enormous meltdown for him to lose the tournament.

Scott is the favorite heading into the final round, and it would be shocking if he doesn't finish the job and win the Claret Jug.

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