The Open: Willett falls after hitting the front

Willett is one of eight golfers tied for sixth on nine under par, three shots behind leaders Louis Oosthuizen, Jason Day and Irish amateur Paul Dunne, ahead of Monday’s final round.

The Sheffield golfer was second going into the third round, and played in the final pairing of the day alongside American Dustin Johnson.

But all the low scoring, some of it breathtaking, took place ahead of them.

Willett had a steady start, picking up shots at the fifth and ninth holes. Another birdie at 10 put him 12 under par and into the outright lead.

But a bogey at 13 was followed by an out-of-bounds tee shot at 14, which resulted in another bogey, though the Rotherham Golf Club member did well to limit the damage.

And he dropped a further shot by missing a short putt on the 17th.

Willett said: “Three shots back in an Open Championship is never too far back.

“We played good going out, hit some good shots, so it’s not all bad, I’m still in there.

“(But) DJ and I couldn’t get anything going between us.

“We didn’t really do what we wanted to do.”

Having not yet had the benefit of a televised replay, Willett was still in the dark about how he went out of bounds on 14.

“We thought it was alright, but it must have kept drifting,” he said.

“I don’t know how it got there, I haven’t seen it yet. It must have just kept going.”

Despite his obvious frustration, with huge backing from the galleries and the sight of a Yorkshire flag in the crowd on the 18th, Willett was quick to express his gratitude to the spectators – who have endured torrid weather and long delays this weekend.

“The support has been good all week,” said Willett, whose best finish in a major is tied-15th at Muirfield two years ago.

“British golfers being up there is what the crowds want to see so it’s been amazing.

“It’s never bad when people are cheering you on – it’s a lot better than when they’re booing you.”