Lee Westwood with possibly the shot of The Open so far, he had no right for this to go in the hole.

Give it a watch, it's essential viewing.

Iain Carter
BBC Sport golf correspondent at Royal Birkdale

The pace of play in this group has become glacial, I have to point a finger at Richie Ramsay.

Matt Kuchar got on to that front edge of the green at the 15th,and has putted up to within about three feet short. But this is for a birdie and the outright lead.

He sends the putt forward, it disappears and the big American gets the "Kuuuuch" shouts because he's taken the lead at The Open.

Image source, EPA

McIlroy on the 11th tee... he takes an iron with the strong wind bending his ears forward from behind.

He's pushed it slightly right, towards a ditch ready to gulp up any stray shots, luckily it stops short.

McIlroy finds his ball in the wispy stuff, a decent lie helping him punch forward towards the green.

Ged Scott
BBC Sport at Royal Birkdale

Beef press conferences are always every entertaining as quickfire questions on all sorts of subjects get fired at him and he handles them like a stand-up comedian.

Take his view when asked about Phil Mickelson's decision to wear two gloves?

"They're Americans! They're not used to this," he grinned. "Where's he from? San Diego? Of course he think it's cold. He's just not used to it.

"Actually, to be fair, it is pretty cold out there, especially when the rain comes, you get damp and that makes you get even colder."

BBC Radio 5 live

Matt Kuchar finished his round yesterday in a touch of Southport sunshine, he's playing an approach to the 15th green to a backdrop of storm clouds and trees swaying in the blustery Birkdale breeze.

It doesn't put the American joint-leader off, though. He's in fist-bumping mood, as a spectator found out en route to the 15th tee, and is now strutting up the fairway with a smile on his face.

Ged Scott
BBC Sport at Royal Birkdale

English favourite Andrew Johnston's Open week has so far not proved as memorable as last year when the whole "Beef Phenomenon" took off and he went round four days at Royal Troon to constant encouraging cries of 'Beeeeeef' on his way to a highly popular eighth-place finish.

After a first-day 69, today, after an 03:30 BST alarm call to be first out at 06:35 BST, he proved a bit of a roasted Beef.

He shot a four-over 74 (including a double bogey seven when he "got stuck in the hay" at 17) which leaves him in danger of missing the cut.

"I'm going to go back and rain-dance all day now. Five hours' straight," joked the beaming Beef. "But, if I don't make the cut, I just won't have played well enough."

On both the first two days he was introduced on the first tee by starter David Lancaster as 'Beef'. "I liked it," said Beef. "It has a good ring to it."

Image source, Reuters

Guess what? Dustin Johnson has saved another par. More scrambling than an egg chef.

So does Rory McIlroy. The Northern Irishman glides in his par putt, the sound of the ball hitting cup greeted with a roar from the crowd and a clenched fist from the man who has put it there.

As big as a birdie putt that.

It's Paul Casey's 40th birthday today, and he'll cry if he wants to... which, at six over for the day, he has probably felt like at times.

He stepped out of his 30s at four under par and one shot off the lead at The Open, so what do we reckon was on his wanted list this morning?

A birdie, no doubt... and the present gods have finally delivered on that front. It's come on the 15th.

It leaves the Englishman one over for the tournament.

Rory is having a fine round, give his birdie on the sixth (his third of the round) a watch below.

Rory McIlroy had a round of two halves yesterday. A stinker of a front nine, a stonker of a back nine.

Today he has gone out in 31 - the best front nine of the day. He can't afford another Jekyll and Hyde of a round. But he's knocked his tee shot on 10 into the fairway bunker...

Dustin Johnson has been scrambling over the past couple of days, saving more pars after missing the green in regulation than any other player at Birkdale. He's going to have to do it again on the 10th after finding the sand trap in front of the green.

Matt Kuchar played himself into a share of the lead with some ice-cold putting yesterday, now he could go it alone at the top...

He's cancelled out two dropped shots with a pair of birdies so fair today to stay at five under, and he's got another birdie shot at 14.

Ten feet from the pin, a slight break to the right and that's not dropping. He moves on with a par... and a wry smile. What could've been, eh?

That wind is causing some problems on the ninth green. Schwartzel sees his ball start wobbling, as described by Carin Koch, with McIlroy experiencing the same moments later.

It doesn't put off either man, each walking off with pars. Not such good news for Dustin Johnson though, he knocks out of the thick stuff to about 10 feet, needing two putts for a bogey.

Image source, Getty Images

Carin Koch
Former European Solheim Cup captain on BBC Radio 5 live

Players are starting to back off from putts because the ball is waggling a bit in the wind.

These greens have enough grass on them that the ball is going to stay, but it's really uncomfortable as a player to hit a ball that's not 100% still.

They knew that yesterday, so left enough grass to stop them rolling off the greens.

Richie Ramsay's run of pars had to end sometime. And typically just after we had highlighted it. The Scot pushes a seven foot putt wide of the drain on the 13th for his first bogey of the day. In fact, it is only his second dropped shot at Birkdale this week.

Where has Bubba Watson appeared from? Page two of the leaderboard, that's where. Two birdies in his opening six holes has moved the American to within a shot of the frontrunners.

-5 M Kuchar (after 12), J Spieth (14:48 tee-off), B Koepka (15:10)

-4 B Watson (6)

-3 K Bulle (4), I Poulter (13:04), J Thomas (14:59), R Bland (15:32)

Selected others: -2 R McIlroy (8), R Ramsey (12), R Cabrera-Bello (6)

Full leaderboard

While McIlroy starts wandering up to the green, the wind whips up as Dustin Johnson assesses his options.

The world number one is forced to step back and re-evaluate. He doesn't do that very well, however. His approach flies off to the right, forcing spectators to scatter.

Rory McIlroy is a way back from the green on the ninth - 192 yards to be precise. The 416-yard par four is playing much longer as the players hit straight into a left-to-right wind of 25mph. A smooth swing with a four iron - nothing too forced or too muscly - ends up hitting the front fringe and galloping towards birdie town.