Li, who finished third in The 146th Open at Royal Birkdale, played superbly in a bogey-free round, while Fitzpatrick matched the leading score with the aid of an outrageous chip-in birdie at the 16th, ‘Calamity Corner’.
In addition to the trio in the clubhouse, Glover and Bezuidenhout are four-under with holes to play.
Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy are among a clutch of players one back on three-under. World number one Scheffler birdied the 16th and 17th to move ominously up the leaderboard late in his round, while McIlroy – seeking to reclaim the Claret Jug in the year he completed the career Grand Slam – has recovered from a bogey at the 1st with birdies on the 2nd, 5th, 7th and 10th.