The Northern Ireland native shot a 1-under 69 Saturday at Royal St. George's to put him on top of the leaderboard at 5-under overall. Clarke hit the ball magnificently but also missed a lot of birdie putts, which is why he's not running away with it.
Americans Dustin Johnson and Rickie Fowler both shot 2-under 68s on the day to put themselves right in the thick of it for the final round Sunday. Johnson stands at second place with a 4-under score overall while the 22-year-old Fowler is tied for third with first round co-leader Thomas Bjorn of Denmark at 2-under overall. Miguel Angel Jimenez from Spain and American Lucas Glover, the co-leader at the beginning of the day Saturday, both stand at 1-under overall.
U.S. golf fans are happy to see so many Americans near the top of the leaderboard. The U.S. is currently in a five-major drought since Phil Mickelson won the 2010 Masters.
Clarke will play in the final group with Johnson on Sunday.
