Southport, England: Stirred by strong family support, Cameron John is proving to be one of the surprise packages at the 154th Open Championship. Report by Spencer Robinson – Asian Tour contributor.

Cheered on from outside the ropes by his wife, parents and grandparents, the Australian continued to confound the odds with a composed one-under-par 69 in round three at Royal Birkdale Golf Club.

With a three-day aggregate of four-under 206, John finds himself in a share of 11th place heading into Sunday’s final round, six shots off the pace being set by American Sam Burns.

Now the three-time winner on the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia this past season is daring to dream of pulling off what would rank as one of the biggest shocks in the championship’s storied history.

Reflecting on the elevated position in which he finds himself, John, who qualified for The Open by finishing second at the Asian Tour’s Singapore Open in April, part of the Open Qualifying Series, said: “It’s kind of pinch me stuff. But I feel like over the past two years this is kind of what we’ve built my game around. I feel like I’m capable of competing at the highest level. Hopefully I’ve shown enough of that already this week … and hopefully I can do even more tomorrow.

“I feel like I’m playing great golf, and today I was hitting the ball probably better than the first two days. Score-wise, it felt like there was a couple that I let go and there was a couple that went my way. That’s golf. It doesn’t matter where you’re playing, I’m always going to give it 100 per cent, and hopefully that holds me in good stead come tomorrow.

Cameron John. Picture by Warren Little/Getty Images.

“I had big goals for the week, and I think that’s important. It’s still 18 holes of golf and focus on trying to win the tournament … or at least give myself a chance with nine holes to go.”

The least well known of the three Camerons in the starting line-up here, John has outperformed his compatriot and 2023 Open champion (Cam) Smith who missed the cut, and is one in front of American (Cam) Young, the world number four.

John is quick to attribute his outstanding Open debut performance to being surrounded by close family, most notably his wife Georgia, who is seven months pregnant with the couple’s first child.

“It’s amazing to have all my family here – my grandparents, who were with me on my first international trip and who have flown across the world to see me play; my mum and dad, who have been supporting me my entire life … and my wife, who’s an absolute trooper. I couldn’t be more thankful for having her,” said John.

John began the week in 256th place in the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR). A good final round here will likely see him surpass his career-best of 219th. That’s quite a leap for a man who ended 2025 languishing in 589th position in the standings before finding form in Australia and Asia.

Those who know of his background and have followed his progression through the ranks are not surprised to see him faring so well.

At the start of the week, Nick O’Hern, a top former player and now a respected golf media personality, told the Golf Australia website: “The one thing I noticed with Cam is that when he gets a sniff, he’s not afraid to go for it. And that’s such an under-rated quality and a very rare quality in a lot of the young players especially.

“You can almost see them tensing up and freezing a little when they get in contention. Whereas Cam, he almost thrives in that sort of situation. That’s really going to help him on the biggest stage. And the Majors are the biggest stage.

Cameron John. Picture by Jacob King/PA Images via Getty Images.

“Links golf is a whole different kettle of fish, but he did win down at The National and at 13th Beach so he obviously loves playing in the wind, firm, fast conditions. It’ll be exciting to see what he can do.”

As O’Hern pointed out, John is well versed in links-style conditions, a product of his golfing upbringing.

John said: “I’m a Member at Commonwealth Golf Club and I’ve been there since I was 13 years old. The course has gone through some recent renovations, but that’s probably helped because the greens have been firm for the last couple of years. Growing up in the Melbourne Sand Belt area it’s really similar (to conditions at Birkdale). It’s probably a little bit wider and more forgiving off the tee but the shots you have to hit, controlling the bounce and how far it rolls is very comparable.”

Of the three other Asian Tour members who made the cut, American Marcus Plunkett added a 71 to earlier returns of 70 and 71 and will head into the final round in a share of 64th place on two-over 212.

That’s one stroke in front of Japan’s Kazuki Higa, last year’s Order of Merit winner, and American Peter Uihlein both of whom carded 72s and are tied for 71st on three-over 213.

Main picture: Cameron John. Picture by Getty Images.