Yes he can! Sergio’s putt disappears into the cup, and he’ll be going out tomorrow in the final pairing with Justin Rose! Also lurking just behind with serious intent: Rickie Fowler and the remarkable Jordan Spieth. And that’s not to mention Ryan Moore, Adam Scott, Charl Schwartzel, Lee Westwood, Paul Casey, Rory McIlroy... what a super Sunday it promises to be at Augusta National! Promise you’ll join me tomorrow? You wouldn’t want to be anywhere else, would you?
-6: Rose, Garcia
-5: Fowler
-4: Spieth, Moore, Hoffman
-3: Scott
-2: Schwartzel
-1: Westwood, Pieters
E: Casey, Kjeldsen, Kuchar, McIlroy, Rahm, McGirt
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Both men face 60-footers. And both leave themselves a fair bit of work to do. Hoffman’s stops six feet short, Sergio’s flies six feet wide. Neither a gimme, but then what putt is around Augusta? Hoffman confidently strokes his into the cup. His par-par finish was magnificent after the big mistake at 16. He signs for a 72. So, it’s down to Sergio. Can he make his par saver?
Sergio and Hoffman find the fairway at the last. Hoffman hits his approach first: the ball lands pin high on the left but spins back to the bottom tier. Sergio doesn’t even get up there. Both will have testing two-putts up the green for their pars. “You don’t invest in Sergio winning, cos, you know, investments can go up and down,” advises Simon McMahon. “You just BELIEVE.” Official Guardian warning: please remember that belief can go up as well as down.
Rickie Fowler leaves his approach to 18 plenty short. It’s on the green, but he’s left with a monster putt up to the top tier. And he leaves it eight feet short. But in it goes. That’s a hardy, but not brilliant, 71 which keeps him in great position for tomorrow: -5. Meanwhile his partner Thomas Pieters had hauled himself back into this after his double at 11: birdie at 13, bogey at 14 and another birdie at 17. But he drops another shot here, having missed the fairway, though he nearly drained a 30-footer to scramble his par. That’s a 75, and he’s -1.
Sergio lags his putt to tap-in distance. Par. Hoffman makes his par too, after leaving himself a tricky three footer which, under the circumstances, he does very well to convert. “I am so ridiculously invested in Sergio winning this now,” admits Rachel Clifton, vocalising what many of us are thinking but refusing to admit to ourselves. “All these years of lamenting the putting and now ... the US commentators are complaining he is slow to celebrate. Am torn between ‘doh yeah’ and ‘have you never watched the Ryder Cup?’”
Moore was maybe more like 18 feet away from the hole on the last. Nevertheless, he hits a fine putt which only just slips by on the right. A par to end the day, and that’s a very creditable 69. He’s -4, and will be a danger tomorrow, as anyone who remembers him pushing Rory McIlroy all the way at last year’s Tour Championship will attest. Meanwhile a 74 for William McGirt, who started well with birdies at 2 and 5, but bogeyed 6, 10 and 17 to drop back to -1.
Sergio and Hoffman take turns to split the 17th fairway. Sergio’s second is pin high, but a good 30 feet to the left of the flag. Hoffman’s approach is pin high but roughly as far away on the other side. Up on 18, Moore creams his second to 12 feet. And back on the 18th tee, Fowler knocks his drive into prime position.
Up on 18, two players who came home in underwhelming fashion. Jon Rahm, after bogeys at 16 and 17, makes par despite wanging his drive into trees. His playing partner Freddie Couples - who doubled 15 after getting wet, then dropped another at 16 - pars too. Rahm signs for a 73 which places him at level par; Couples a 74 that drops him back to +1.
Moore tickles in an oscillating uphill putt on 17 to save his par. Hoffman, from the drop zone at 16, can only find the bottom tier of the green. He’s left with a 35-foot bogey putt, and he leaves it five short. He makes that one, though, to limit the damage to a double. Sergio meanwhile whips out his 3-wood and bumps an uber-delicate effort down the bank, letting the ball snake to two feet. In goes the par putt, and it’s a two-way tie at the top now with Hoffman falling away.
-6: Rose (F), Garcia (16)
-5: Fowler (17)
-4: Spieth (F), Moore (17), Hoffman (16)
Disaster for Charley Hoffman! The pin at 16 is back right of the green. But he pulls a godawful tee shot left and into the drink! Sergio meanwhile finds the bank to the right of the green, but he’ll have a good chance of getting up and down for par from there. Up on 17, Moore finds the big bunker guarding the front of the green, but splashes out wonderfully to eight feet and will have a chance of saving his par.
A window on Jordan Spieth’s mindset. Just how good, he’s asked by Sky Sports, was his 67 today? “Necessary.”
Garcia and Hoffman take turns to hit majestic wedges into 15. The former bumping and hard-braking one up the bank to three feet, the latter flopping over sand and landing his ball softly to within 20 feet, an outstanding effort from where he was. He trundles his birdie putt three feet past, but knocks in the par saver. That’s a stunning scramble, and he stays at -6. Sergio then strokes in his putt, and that birdie gives him a share of the lead with Hoffman and Rose! Fowler meanwhile can’t make his birdie at 16, his putt dying off to the right. But par will suffice.
-6: Rose (F), Hoffman (15), Garcia (15)
-5: Fowler 16)
-4: Spieth (F), Moore (16)
-3: Scott (F)
-2: Schwartzel (F), McGirt (16)
Adam Scott gets up and down from the bunker to the right of 18, and he signs for his second 69 in a row. How he’ll rue that opening-day 75! But he’s -3 and in very good nick for Sunday. Up on 16, Fowler lands his tee shot 15 feet past the flag, on the top tier, and will have a look at another birdie. But some drama brewing on 15: Sergio hits a hot one from the fairway and is fearful his ball will bound down the back of the green and into the water. But for the second par-five in a row, he gets a big break as the ball lands on the flat of the green, taking the sting out of the shot. The ball falls halfway down the bank, but at least he isn’t wet. Meanwhile Hoffman goes for the green in two as well, and finds an awful position to the right of the green, the wrong side of a bunker with not a whole lot of green in front of the flag.
Rickie Fowler grabs a share of second! A poor drive at 15 forces him to lay up, and his wedge isn’t the greatest. But a 20-foot birdie putt drops! Up on 18, Rose arrows another approach straight at the flag, setting up yet another birdie opportunity. And he curls it into the cup, left to right from 20 feet, for his fifth birdie in the last seven holes! He’s decimated the back nine at Augusta in 31 strokes! That’s a 67 which has earned him a deserved share of the lead at -6! Meanwhile Moore’s tee shot at 16 stays on the lower portion of the green with the flag on the higher one. He rushes his long birdie effort four feet past, but slots away the return for his par.
-6: Rose (F), Hoffman (14)
-5: Fowler (15), Garcia (14)
-4: Spieth (F), Moore (16)
Hoffman has a route out of the trees at 14, but can only send his second over the back. Hoffman can only whistle his chip 20 feet past, and can’t make the return. That’s a bogey that drops him back to -6. Garcia’s birdie effort slips by the hole, but it’s a par, and he’s a shot closer to the lead. Up on 18 meanwhile, Spieth gives his 15-footer a good rattle from the back of the green. He overshoots by three feet, but he saves his par. That’s a superlative 68, and he’s hauled himself right back into this tournament. His partner Phil Mickelson is almost certainly out of it, though, after a 74: he’s +2. Also: bogey for Ryan Moore on 14; birdie for Ryan Moore on 15.
-6: Hoffman (14)
-5: Rose (17), Garcia (14)
-4: Spieth (F), Moore (15), Fowler (14)
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Rose prods a fairly straight putt up the green at 17. A perfect read, a little kink to the left maybe, and that’s his fourth birdie in six holes! When you’re hot, you’re hot. He’s -5 now, alongside Sergio, who sets up a birdie chance of his own at 14, sending his approach over the flag to ten feet. A tricky downhill one, though. Adam Scott, incidentally, had followed Rose onto 17 in two, but had a tricky 30-footer across the green. His fine effort shaved the left of the hole, and he stays at -3. Meanwhile what about Spieth on 18? He’s just to the right of Lyle’s Bunker. He cracks an iron towards the green and strides immediately after it. A fine effort to the back right, maybe 15 feet from the pin. It’s all happening. All of it continues to happen.
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Spieth crashes his drive at 18 down the middle. Sergio crashes his drive at 14 down the middle. Hoffman sends his drive at 14 right, though, and the ball takes an awfully unfortunate kick further right and nestles behind the trunk of a tree. Hopefully that’s not as bad as it first looks for the leader, or he’ll have a real problem there. Meanwhile Justin Rose goes right for the flag at 17. It’s on line, and though it’s maybe 15 feet short, he’ll have a nice uphill look at birdie.
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Sergio takes advantage of his big break! He whips a delicious wedge from the hazard to 18 inches, and taps in to move to -5! But he’s still two behind his partner Hoffman, who knocks in his birdie putt: he’s -7. Spieth’s second into 17 leaves him pin high, with a 12-footer for birdie. He pulls the putt to the left, his flat stick having suddenly gone cold. Par that keeps him at -4. On 14, Fowler hits short into the green and his ball dribbles back onto the fairway. He loops his third high over the flag, using the tilt of the green to gather the ball back to ten feet. Then he tickles in the par saver. And up on 18, McIlroy nearly drains a long birdie putt but it’s a par and a 71 that doesn’t really do it for him. He’s level par after 54 holes.
-7: Hoffman (13)
-5: Garcia (13)
-4: Spieth (17), Rose (16), Fowler (14)
What a break for Sergio! At the top of the hill at 13, he doesn’t commit to his second, and the ball’s heading for Rae’s Creek. But somehow it bounces on the bank on the other side, drops, and hangs on in the thick grass. He’s in the hazard, but he can play it! Hoffman lays up and wedges to eight feet. Meanwhile two-putt pars for Rose and Scott on 16.
Birdie for Justin Rose on 15, and that’s three in four holes for Hampshire’s finest! He’s very quietly made his way up the leader board ... and it’s a leader board that looks a little different now, because Spieth can’t make par on 16. He leaves his long putt up and across the green six feet short, and lets the par putt dribble away to the left. Meanwhile Rickie Fowler makes birdie on 13. This is wonderfully exciting. Goodness knows what emotional tumult awaits us this time tomorrow!
-6: Hoffman (12)
-4: Spieth (16) Rose (15), Moore (13), Fowler (13), Garcia (12)
-3: Scott (15)
Sergio loops a lovely tee shot at 12 over the flag to eight feet. He’s got a fairly easy left-to-right slider for his birdie, but doesn’t hit it. See, that’s exactly the same spot, give or take a yard, from where Spieth scrambled his par. These are the things that make the difference. Sergio remains a shot behind Spieth at -4. Par for Hoffman.
Spieth’s absurd brilliance shouldn’t mask the fact that he’s enjoyed a little luck here and there. He nearly got wet at 11, and his tee shot at 16 only just makes it over the pond too. Then again, he rarely looks those gift horses in the mouth. What a player. Meanwhile Hoffman and Garcia make their pars at 11, while it’s birdie for Moore on 14.
-6: Hoffman (11)
-5: Spieth (15)
-4: Moore (13), Garcia (11)
-3: Rose (14), Scott (14), Fowler (12)
Yeah, Jordan Spieth is within his rights to walk around like he’s at home. A meltdown at 15 on Thursday, famously, but now he lays up and sends a wedge spinning back to 12 inches. He’ll tap in for a birdie that will take him to within a shot of the lead. This is a jaw-dropping performance, really, considering the narrative arc of his week. He’s five under for his round today, and has a real chance of becoming the first player in Masters history to either lead or co-lead the tournament after 54 holes in four consecutive years. Over on 16, McIlroy makes a decent two-putt par from distance, but with the cheers ringing over on the previous hole, his mood doesn’t lighten much.
Hoffman and Garcia send fine irons into the heart of 11. They’re not in realistic birdie territory, but then that’s not really the point. Up on 16, McIlroy leaves his tee shot miles short of the flag. He then dispatches his club into the bag in the frustrated style. His spirit may be broken by events at 15: he nearly sent his second into the water at the back, screeched a chip of extreme genius up the bank and to a standstill six feet from the flag, then missed the birdie putt. He can’t force it, but with Jordan Spieth sashaying around the place like he owns it, which he sort of does, he might need something before he gets to the clubhouse.
Hoffman and Sergio make their pars on 10. Lee Westwood pars the 18th to sign for a 68. Spieth finds the heart of 14 and makes a two-putt par. Couples and Rahm birdie 13, a great bounce-back by the young Spaniard. Fowler pars 11. Pieters misses two tiddlers on the same hole to drop one. Will you just look at this leader board!
-6: Hoffman (10)
-4: Spieth (14), Garcia (10)
-3: Rose (13), Scott (13), Moore (12), Fowler (11)
-2: Schwartzel (16), Rahm (13), Couples (13), McGirt (12)
-1: Westwood (F), Kjeldsen (16), Pieters (11)
From the dropzone at 12, Rahm hits his third over the back left of the green. He does very well to get up and down for double, but he’s back to -1. Meanwhile Adam Scott continues to enjoy the par-fives: he’s already birdied 2 and 8, and now he makes it three from three with another at 13. He’s -3 - as is his partner Justin Rose, who gets up and down from the bank to the left for his own birdie - and this leader board is absolutely jammed with talent. I’ll put it up in a second... because Hoffman and Garcia are looking to make their two-putt pars on 10.
News of Lee Westwood, who has launched a remarkable recovery on the back nine. Birdies at 13, 15 and now 17 have catapulted him up the leader board to -1. Ryan Moore bogeyed 10, but bounces back straight away with a brave arrow straight at the 11th flag, and a tap-in from a couple of feet. And hello! Here’s the 2011 champion Charl Schwartzel! Having birdied 13, he now slaps his second at 15 to six feet and calmly converts his eagle opportunity. He’s -2!
McIlroy is pin high at 14 in two, but he pushes his birdie putt from eight feet wide right of the hole. He stays at level par. By no means out of the race, but he isn’t half turning down chances. Bogey for Fowler on 10, meanwhile, after hooking his second towards the trees down the left. He gets a lucky break when his ball is stopped by a punter’s handbag, instead of escaping into the wilds, but he can’t get up and down. He’s back to -3. “Properly rooting for Sergio involves no small amount of psychological savvy,” begins James Ferguson, who can speak for me. “Since he’s only going to break my heart if he takes a lead into Sunday, I’m crossing my fingers for a run of bad luck at some point in this third round.”
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A wonderful second shot into 9 leaves Charley Hoffman with an uphill four footer for birdie. He makes no mistake and moves to -6; he reaches the turn in 34 strokes, a fine performance under intense pressure. Sergio meanwhile moves the other way, leaving a 30-foot birdie putt three feet short, and yipping the short one. Bogey, he’s back to -4, and he’s out in 36. A bad couple of minutes for Spain, as Rahm only just clears the water at 12 and watches in impotent horror as his ball topples back into the drink. It would have been Seve’s 60th birthday tomorrow, incidentally. Is it written? The bittersweet fairytale looks a little less likely right now. Meanwhile up on 13, Spieth nearly curls in a big right-to-left eagle putt from 30 feet, but it shaves the front of the hole and it’ll be just the birdie. Look at this leader board all of a sudden!
-6: Hoffman (9)
-4: Spieth (13), Fowler (9), Garcia (9)
A brilliant birdie for Jon Rahm on the difficult 11th. His second into the heart of the green, and a fairly straight putt from 20 feet. In it goes, and he’s -3 alongside Spieth and Pieters, but not William McGirt, who bogeys 10. Justin Rose clips his tee shot at 12 to four feet and converts for an excellent birdie. He’s -2.
A missed opportunity for McIlroy on 13, who blasts a Bubba-style blooter down 13, then sends his chip down a bank to the left of the green. He can’t get up and down, and there’s no cheap birdie there. He wanders off with a face on. Behind him, Spieth has driven into Mickelson-Westwood Country, the pine needles down the right. The result is more Mickelson than Westwood, over the green and landing close to the flag. But it’s not an exact facsimile of Lefty at the 2010 Masters, because the ball doesn’t stop and takes a cruel detour off to the right. Spieth will still have an eagle putt, but from distance.
Charley Hoffman sees a 15-foot birdie putt on the par-five 8th shave the right of the hole. So close. Sergio had found the green in two, though, and after very nearly rattling in a 60-foot eagle effort up the green, he smoothly rolls a short one home for birdie and a share of the lead. This is an impressively determined performance by Sergio, who isn’t totally on top of his game, but is hanging in there nevertheless . No, I’m not saying that.
-5: Hoffman (8), Garcia (8)
-4: Fowler (8)
-3: Spieth (12), McGirt (9), Moore (9), Pieters (8)
Spieth sends his tee shot at 12 long and left. He nearly troubles the flower beds, but has a chip back. He bumps it onto the green, but only just, and he’ll be left with a missable 10-footer for his par. Straight into the cup! Was there ever any question?! He is an astonishing force of nature. Here’s Ian Stalvies with “a random stat the commentators just mentioned here in Aus: no-one has ever won the Masters after having a triple bogey on their card, let alone Spieth’s quadruple. So if he wins it will add some stats-nerdery as well as something for hackers to think they relate to.”
A bogey for Paul Casey at the last, the result of an errant drive. But he’s still signing for an excellent 69, and he’s level par for the tournament. Still in with a shout! Back-to-back birdies for Ryan Moore at 8 and 9, and after a quiet day he’s back at -3. Rickie Fowler meanwhile rolls in a right-to-left curler from 25 feet on 8 to move back to -4. He’s level for his round again. And Jason Dufner has gone on quite the run: birdies at 8, 9, 11, 12 and now a monster putt on 14: he’s -1 for the tournament. His best result here is a tie for 20th in 2013; he’s currently tied for 11th.
At 11, Spieth toys with the water at the front left of the green. He’s very fortunate to get away with that; he’d been pretty lucky with his lie after another wild drive too. So he decides the gods are obviously with him, and has a rare old run at the 20-foot putt he’s left with. He flies four feet past. Ulp! But a confident Spieth is never going to miss that, and his tail is up right now. He stays at -3, and walks to 12, where the gallery rise as one to salute their hero at the scene of his demise last year.
Sergio flies his chip at 7 miles over the flag and towards the back of the green. He’ll have a long, hectic putt coming back down the road for par. One poor drive, and look what’s happened. And he somehow manages to leave his putt seven feet short. But he tucks away the bogey putt, and he’s back to -4. That could have been uglier. Par for Hoffman, who is now sole leader at -5. Meanwhile up on 12, McIlroy sends his tee shot to the fringe at the back left of the green. He missed a tiddler on the last, so of course this one is scampering into the hole from the second it leaves the face of his putter. He’s back to level par!
-5: Hoffman (7)
-4: Garcia (7)
-3: Spieth (10), McGirt (8), Pieters (7), Fowler (7)
Sergio drives into the trees down the left of 7. That is wild. He takes his medicine and decides to fizz a low iron under the branches and into the bunker. But he undercooks it and will be faced with a much trickier chip from the fairway. That was tentative and very nervous. A birdie for Fred Couples on 8: he’s -2 and looking good right now. And up on 11, McIlroy draws a glorious second to six feet, then watches in horror as the relatively easy birdie putt horseshoes out. He’ll be beginning to think that this isn’t his year either.
Updated
Fowler, from a tight spot down the left of 7, sends his second over the back right of the green. He’ll have his work cut out to get up and down from where he’s ended up: near the 17th fairway! He manages to hold the green with his chip, just about, but he’s got an 80-footer for his par. He lags it up well, but that’s a bogey that drops him back to -3. Up on 10, McIlroy finds a bit of trouble down the right but makes the green in regulation and a staunch two-putt saves his par; he’s still +1. Behind him, Spieth slices wildly into the trees and sends his second over the green. A hellish chip up a big bank with not much green to play with. But he bundles it to three feet, an astonishing effort from there! He saves his par and remains at -3. That is truly magnificent; a bogey seemed almost certain.
Sergio and Hoffman both find the green at 6 with their tee shots, but each man is well short of the flag and left with a long putt. Both then leave themselves testing ten-footers. Sergio rattles his into the back of the cup with uncharacteristic confidence. Hoffman doesn’t hit his, though, and it dies off to the right. His first bogey of the day.
-5: Goffman (6), Garcia (6)
-4: Fowler (6)
-3: Spieth (9), McGirt (7), Pieters (6)
A second birdie of the day for Adam Scott at a par-five. This time it’s at 8, and he moves up to -2 alongside Jon Rahm. His partner Justin Rose, who had dropped back to level par after bogey at 6, claims the shot back; he wasn’t far off draining a long eagle effort. Meanwhile William McGirt, who dropped his first stroke of the day at 6, avoids back-to-back bogeys with an absurd rake across 7. He stays at -3.
Sergio has produced bugger all so far, and looked miserable while doing it. His drive down the left of 5 means he has to hook a blind approach around a tree. He thinks he’s overcooked it, but it holds on the left-hand edge of the green. He’s left with a 50-footer across the dancefloor ... and he drains it! His first birdie of the day, and he moves to -5. No smile yet, perhaps because he knows that’s robbery. Meanwhile Jordan Spieth has that look in his eye right now. He squints in delight as he watches his drive peal away down 9; then he eases a stunning wedge to two feet. That’ll be a birdie that takes him out in 33 strokes, and moves him to within three of Hoffman’s lead.
-6: Hoffman (5)
-5: Garcia (5)
-4: Fowler (6)
-3: Spieth (9), McGirt (6), Pieters (6)
A couple of cracking tee shots at the long, difficult par-three 4th by the final pair. Hoffman fires his pretty much straight at the flag; Sergio lands his long and lets the bank bring the ball back towards the cup. A couple of 12-footers for birdie on a hole that’s been causing quite a few problems. Garcia can’t make his, but Hoffman does, and suddenly he’s got a two-shot lead! Spieth meantime lets his short eagle putt fade off to the left. A birdie, and he’s -2, but frustrated at a great chance spurned. Bogey for Pieters on 5; bogey for Mickelson at 8; bogey for McGirt at 6. No wind, but what a test Augusta is!
-6: Hoffman (4)
-4: Fowler (5), Garcia (4)
-3: McGirt (6), Pieters (5)
-2: Spieth (8), Rahm (6)
William McGirt looks the calmest of the lot out there. He’s got a birdie putt at 5, 15 feet down the slope. He sends it off at confident speed, then wanders after it in quiet celebration before it drops. He joins the group at -4. On the par-five 8th, McIlroy gets up and down from pine straw to the left of the green, a wonderful chip to ten feet leading to his birdie. He’s back up to +1. Then, behind him, Spieth lashes his wood towards the green, using the bank on the right to guide his ball towards the flag at the back right. He’ll have a 12-footer for eagle! What a beauty that was!
Spieth is inches away from rolling in his uphill 20-footer from the fringe by the bunker at 7. A birdie would probably have been robbery, all told, so he looks happy enough to escape with his par. He stays at -1. Back on 4, Pieters sends his tee shot to the left of the bunker guarding the left-hand side of the green. He’s shortsided too, but flops an astonishing chip to a couple of feet, high in the air with a soft landing. Mickelsonesque. Par. His partner Fowler makes an up-and-down par from the aforementioned sand. They both remain at -4.
Paul Casey is making a move! He sends his second at 14 pin high, 30 feet to the right of the flag. Then he trundles in the birdie putt! That’s his third in a row, after picking up shots at 12 and 13. Throw in his birdie at 7, and he’s four under for his round so far, and -1 overall! Just four off the lead.
-5: Hoffman (2)
-4: Pieters (3), Fowler (3), Garcia (2)
-3: McGirt (4)
Fowler chips up the bank at 3, successfully this time, but 15 feet past the hole. He knocks in the one coming back, though, and there’s a bogey that’ll suddenly feel not so painful. He’s back to -4 though. Pieters pars. Spieth meanwhile drives into the trees down the right of 7. He fizzes a low iron under the branches, and should by rights be in the bunker front left, but his ball smacks into the face and leaps out onto the green.
The new leader Rickie Fowler blows up on 3. He sends his drive into the woods down the left, then pushes his chip towards the green, sending it down the bank at the front. He chips up, and watches in horror as it comes back to his feet. Even if he gets up and down, that’ll be a bogey. Meanwhile a workaday par for Garcia on 2, but Hoffman splashes out from a bunker to make his first birdie of the day. He moves up to -5, and will have sole leadership of the Masters in a minute.
Trouble for McIlroy at 7. He’s plugged in a bunker at the front, and is forced to splash out to the right. That leaves him with a 60-footer for par, and he leaves it well short. He can’t make the 12-footer he’s left himself, and that’s a double which sends him back to +2. So much for that fast start. Back on 6, Jordan Spieth finally makes a move, whistling a 40-footer into the cup. He’s -1. His partner Phil Mickelson is moving the other way; he faces a similar putt for par, doesn’t make it, and he’s back to +1.
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So much for Sergio’s nerve-settler! He slices a drive into the patrons down the right of 2. He might have got a lucky bounce back onto the fairway, though! Down on the green, Rickie Fowler makes a no-nonsense birdie to take sole possession of the lead. His partner Thomas Pieters didn’t play a particularly good approach, sending it wide left of the green, but he bundled a gorgeous chip across the dancefloor from 30 yards, and it’s a tap-in for birdie. He’s back to -4. Meanwhile on 3, McGirt waves his arms in desperation as he chips to 12 feet only to miss the birdie putt; his partner Moore bogeys. And on 4, a three-putt bogey for Rahm after a tee shot sent towards the back of the big green.
-5: Fowler (2)
-4: Pieters (2), Hoffman (1), Garcia (1)
-3: McGirt (3)
-2: Couples (4), Rahm (4)
Hoffman makes his par putt, stroking a gentle right-to-left slider into the cup with extreme confidence! He stays at -4! Sergio dribbles his in too; that must surely settle his nerves. Mickelson and Spieth miss mid-range birdie chances on 5. And McIlroy hits a very average tee shot into 6, leaving himself a long two putts for par. But he nudges the first one up to four feet, and tidies up to remain at level par.
-4: Fowler (1), Hoffman (1), Garcia (1)
-3: Rahm (3), McGirt (2), Pieters (1)
-2: Couples (3), Moore (2)
The final pairing make a bit of a meal of Tea Olive. Hoffman is forced to take his medicine and blast out of the high-faced bunker. His third into the green is decent, pin high, but he’ll be left with a 25-footer for his par. Sergio meanwhile, from prime real estate, underhits his wedge and his ball tumbles off the front. He bumps his chip to eight feet, but he’ll have a slightly tricky downhill putt for his saver. Neither man looks particularly happy. Jon Rahm does, though! Another birdie, this time at 3, and he’s a shot off the lead at -3!
Fred Couples, the 1992 champion and 57 years of age, is not going away. He’s playing with Rahm, and like his partner birdies 2. He’s -2. Back on the 1st green, Thomas Pieters starts with a bogey, coming up short of the green in two, then chipping to the fringe at the back of the green. He can’t make his putt saver, and he’s back to -3. Rickie Fowler pars. Up on 3, Justin Rose gets his shot back with a 30-foot birdie effort. On 5, McIlroy misjudges a simple wedge into the green, and is forced to putt over the huge ridge running across the putting surface. It’s a three-putt bogey, and he’s back to level par. And William McGirt moves to within a shot as he birdies 2; his partner Ryan Moore picks up a shot as well. It’s all happening!
-4: Fowler (1), Hoffman, Garcia
-3: McGirt (3), Pieters (1)
-2: Rahm (2), Couples (2), Moore (2)
Charley Hoffman, the big surprise package of the week, pushes his opening drive into the bunkers down the right of Tea Olive. Then it’s time for Sergio, who for a while there had his eyes closed and was muttering away to himself in the religious style. He splits the fairway. A wonderful start! Not that it’s likely to convince everyone. Here’s Andy Gordon, and he’s in a Shakespearean frame of mind: “I would love to see Po’ Sergio get the major he deserves, but I think we’ve all seen this play before. He has it all, but with a few poor decisions loses everything, goes from king to fool and we all descend into madness over three hours. Still, at least the staging is spectacularly pretty!”
Justin Rose pulls his drive at 2, and the mistake follows him all the way down the hole. Bogey, and he’s back to level par. His partner Adam Scott, the 2013 champion, makes birdie, and he joins the group at -1. Kjeldsen drops a stroke at 4; he’s level. And it’s a birdie for Jon Rahm at 2; he joins William McGirt at -2, a couple of shots behind the leaders! Speaking of which, the final group is on the first tee. Here comes Sergio...
The par-three 4th is playing at 230 yards; McIlroy whips his 4-iron just past the pin. The ball curls off to the left but gently u-turns and stops 20 feet from the flag. He’s had some scores on this hole in the past, so finding the green will give him succour. Two putts, and that’s a par that keeps him at -1. But back on 3, Mickelson’s hot start comes to a sorry end. He finds a bunker on the left, can’t reach the green, then sees his chip up the big bank at the front fall back at his feet. It leads to a double-bogey six, and he’s back to level par for the day, alongside Spieth, who pars yet again.
Lee Westwood continues on the old rollercoaster. He breaks his run of three birdies with bogey at 7. He’s back to +2. The amateur Stewart Hagestad’s fine week continues; he reaches the turn in 35 after bogey at 1 and birdies at 2 and 8. He’s +2, some performance from the 25-year-old New York realtor! Paul Casey reaches the turn in 35 too, albeit in slightly more serene fashion: just the one birdie at 7. He’s +2 as well.
Yes, McIlroy might have made a significant tweak with the old driver. He very nearly drives the green at the par-four 3rd. A chip from 20 yards to 18 inches, and he taps in for his birdie. He joins the group at -1. That group includes Phil Mickelson, though for how much longer is a moot point, because from the top of the hill at 2, Lefty creams his second straight at the flag and leaves himself a 15-footer for eagle! But he misses a fairly simple chance - by Augusta National standards, anyway - missing a right-to-left curler on the low side. Still, that’s a birdie-birdie start, and he’s -2. Jordan Spieth looks on jealously after going par-par; he’s still level. But there’s the first significant movement on the leader board!
-4: Hoffman, Garcia, Pieters, Fowler
-2: Mickelson (2), McGirt
-1: Kjeldsen (3), McIlroy (3), Rose (1), Moore, Rahm, Couples
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Kevin Chappell’s charge up the leader board stalls with bogey at 9. He’s back to +1. Branden Grace, whose round started fast with birdies at 1 and 3, signs for a slightly disappointing 71; he parred his way round after that, one bogey at 11 the exception. He’s +5. But the reigning PGA champion Jimmy Walker is going well, despite recovering from glandular fever: birdies at 1 and 2, bogey at 5, and now another birdie at 7. He’s +1 and currently tied for 15th place. There are going to be a lot of players who fancy their chances this weekend.
McIlroy creams his long iron into the centre of 2, but he’ll be left with a long eagle putt as the ball breaks off naturally to the right of the green. That’ll be a perfect shot tomorrow; think Louis Oosthuizen’s albatross in 2012! Anyway, two putts again, and this time it’s a birdie that takes him to level par. Brandt Snedeker is going well: birdies at 1, 10 and now 13, and he’s +2. And Lee Westwood will be cursing his miserable 77 yesterday: three birdies in a row, 4, 5 and 6, have catapulted him up the leader board to +1. Not out of this yet. He’s certainly not going to die wondering, anyway.
Phil Mickelson is just behind Rory, and he fires his second at the opening hole straight at the flag. He leaves himself an uphill 10-footer for birdie, and in it goes! A fast start for Lefty, who is -1 now. Jordan Spieth, his partner in a pairing that will do no harm to the CBS viewing figures, pars to remain at level. Soren Kjeldsen has started super-fast: birdies at 1 and 2, and he’s -1 for the tournament. And Kevin Chappell has followed up his remarkable eagle on 7 with birdie at 8, and he’s suddenly level par. A sense that we could have an afternoon of low scoring. Buckle in! It’s on!
Someone who definitely wants it: Rory McIlroy. A crazy statistic here: after 36 holes, he’s ranked 93rd in driving accuracy. Out of 93! The stat: 35.7%. That is beyond preposterous. So he’ll have been happy to have boomed his opening drive straight down the middle. He wedges into the heart of the green, playing it safe on the hardest hole on the course this week; two putts later, and that’s an opening par. And now he blooters his drive at 2 down the middle. Given he’s very much in contention at +1 despite this tee-box madness, it suggests the rest of his game is in decent nick. Maybe he’s put both things together at just the right time. We shall see. Of course, Seve won two green jackets, so possession of a dependable driver is not a total prerequisite round here. But goodness me it helps.
Many thanks to Lawrence there. As he departs the scene, so does Jason Day; par at the last, and that’s an excellent 69. How he’ll be ruing his back nine of 41 yesterday. Had he parred his way through those holes, he’d be right in the mix. As it is, he’s +3 overall. But that run of birdies today between 12 and 15 shows there is a score out there for someone who wants it.
Jason Day has played some pretty immaculate golf since the 5th hole but finally drops a shot at 17th and that will frustrate the Australian. Another player threatening to drag himself into contention at the business end is Kevin Chappell, who holes out from 130 yards to eagle to 7th! Yikes. That takes him down to +1. And with that I will pass you back to Scott Murray – enjoy the golf.
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McIlroy is wearing some fetching reddy orange trousers with grey top today, and a big smile to boot. Matt Kuchar arrives on the 1st a moment later – he’s smiling too, of course – and he shakes a few hands before stepping up to the tee. Kuchar clinks one to the middle of the fairway and McIlroy does likewise, only 30 yards or so closer to the pin, taking the bunker out of play as he does so.
At the 10th Emiliano Grillo fades a beauty in from the left towards the pin on that high plinth of a green, leaving himself a very gettable birdie putt. His playing partner, Justin Thomas, is going well today but a slight mishit on his approach leaves him a little short at the front of the green. Back at the 1st, Soren Kjeldsen and Charl Schwartzel have just got their third rounds under way; Rory McIlroy will be up next with Matt Kuchar.
Brandt Snedeker and Matthew Fitzpatrick walk to the 12th hole together but they have been going in opposite directions on the leaderboard today. Snedeker is -4 over his past 18 holes at Augusta – though here he overhits his tee shot by some way, while Fitzpatrick middles the green. Snedeker’s chip from off the back is well-held to leave himself a good chance for par, which he takes. Fitzpatrick’s birdie effort dribbles nowhere near, however, and he looks a little fed up as he rolls in for a three.
Jason Day is flying. He has strung four birdies in a row – from the 12th hole onwards – and as he approaches the 16th he is only +2 having started the day +6. His tee shot at the par-three 16th is on the green but he has left himself a long birdie putt of perhaps 40 feet.
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Lee Westwood made a bogey on the 1st in both of the opening two rounds, but this time he makes par, as does the man he is playing alongside today, Marc Leishman. At the par-five 8th, Justin Thomas rolls aggressively past the cup to leave himself a far-from-simple putt for par. He is playing with Emiliano Grillo who has dropped a couple of shots so far today but sinks a routine putt for par – and after steadying himself, Thomas does the same.
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Another small misstep by Matthew Fitzpatrick, who goes long off the back of the green at the par-four 10th to leave himself a tricky chip back down the slope. Brandt Snedeker fires his effort, from a similar fairway spot, on to the green but he’s perhaps half a club shy. He grimaces. Snedeker made par on every whole on the front nine and looks like continuing that run here – but instead drains a lovely putt from perhaps 25 feet! There are not many birdies at the 10th so that’s one to savour. Meanwhile, Fitzpatrick pulls off a nice up and down to save par.
Back-to-back birdies for Jason Day, who was very close to draining a 60-footer on 13 for eagle. He’s almost certainly too far back to seriously consider troubling the leaders, but that’s not how professional sports stars think, is it, and that will certainly frustrate. He rises up the board to +4. Meanwhile Justin Thomas knocks his second close at 7, and a birdie brings him up to +4 too.
And with that, I’m going to slip off for a bit before it gets hectic. Lawrence Ostlere will be your guide for the next hour. See you soon!
Another dropped shot for the 1987 champion Larry Mize, this time at 9. He reaches the turn in 40. Thirty years is a very long time. He’s +10. Andy Sullivan is chasing him to the bottom, with bogeys at 3, 4 and 5; he’s +8 overall now. Two days is also quite a long time in golf: he was in contention after his first-round 71, but a disastrous 78 yesterday put paid to any notions. But whatever happens, it’ll be an improvement on last year, when he missed the cut on debut.
Matthew Fitzpatrick’s early momentum has stalled. A birdie at 2, but bogeys followed at 4 and 5. He’s got a wedge in his hand from the centre of the par-five 8th, but leaves it well short of the flag. A long lag saves par, but a chance for birdie is gone. He’s +6, and looks frustrated, with furrowed brow.
You, this report’s eagle-eyed reader, will have spotted the omission of Justin Thomas’s name in that last post. That’s because he bogeyed 4 after failing to get up and down from the bunker at the front. He’s back to +5. But no matter: there are new players in credit for their rounds today elsewhere! Brooks Koepka has birdied 2 to move to +2, Bernd Wiesberger picks one up at 3 to rise to +4, and Jason Day knocks his tee shot at 12 to six feet and moves to +5.
So much for the easier conditions. There are 23 players out there right now, and only two of them are in red figures for their rounds today. Admittedly most of them have only played a handful of holes, so this doesn’t necessarily mean much, but if this report isn’t waffling on about something, what use is it? The two men: the aforementioned Branden Grace, who has reached the turn in 34 blemish-free strokes, and Brandt Snedeker, who opened with a birdie and has since parred his way to the 7th. Both men are +4.
Justin Thomas was a dark-horse tip at the start of the week, on account of his three wins on tour this season. But it’s easy to forget that he’s still only 23 years old, and not everybody can come flying out of the blocks at the majors like Tiger, Rory or Jordan. His best showing at a major to date is a top-20 finish at the 2015 PGA. There’s still time to lay a new marker down this week, and he’s started well today with birdie at the opening hole; he’s +4 through 3. No club-flinging or green-bothering tantrums yet; perhaps he’s well aware of the committee’s tolerance levels for such expressive behaviour. Probably a good thing on balance, though - and I’m aware there are think-of-the-kids considerations - there are few things funnier in life than golfers losing the place completely. Impotent rage, one of the many things that makes golf the greatest sport of all.
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From you to Sergio ...
In lieu of meaningful action, many of you have been considering the potential fate of Sergio Garcia, perennial hero of these reports and current co-leader of the 81st Masters Tournament. “Here’s hoping everyone’s eating tapas at next year’s champion’s dinner,” begins Euan Hendrie.
“Superstition is more than an old Stevie Wonder song,” adds house clavinet player Hubert O’Hearn. “With the faith of Linus waiting for the Great Pumpkin it’s time for one more weekend of ‘This is Sergio’s year!’ But I’m leaving nothing to chance. Thursday went well and I was wearing my green Boston Celtics hoodie. Yesterday went even better so I left it on. Today is day three for Sergio, me, and the hoodie. My dog is giving me hard stares from across the room while trying to decide if I should be buried. But I shall not allow my vanity to stand in the way of Our Man’s chances!”
“I love the Masters but after today it’s all downhill,” suggests Guy Hornsby. “But we’ll always have this moment. Oh Sergio!”
And finally here’s Chris Wright: “Nobody in modern times exemplifies the myth of Sisyphus more than Sergio: dogged determination in the face of ineluctable disappointment.” Hmm, it didn’t take long for all the hope, excitement and anticipation to curdle, did it. Ah well. God speed, Sergio! And in the interests of balance: good luck to everyone else as well!
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An early birdie for Matthew Fitzpatrick at 2; he’s +4. Fitzpatrick made the top ten here last year, and at level par through eight holes yesterday could have been forgiven for contemplating another high finish. But after putting off the big sloping green at 9, all the way back to the fairway, the wheels kind of came off: a double, followed by four more bogeys. Here’s hoping the young Sheffield star can rebuild some confidence today, because yesterday afternoon’s misery apart, all signs point to an extremely promising Masters career. Anyway, speaking of the fragrant nomenclature at Augusta National, which we sort of were, here’s Dan Jones, formerly of this parish but now successful and happy: “If I was a wrestler I’d call myself White Dogwood. Or maybe Golden Bell.” Firethorn? Ray Creek? I haven’t got the hang of this, have I.
Larry Mize celebrated the 30th anniversary of picking Greg Norman’s pocket, then scraping the newly acquired wallet under the Great White Shark’s nose to leave an unpleasant leathery tang never to shift, no matter how hard he scrubs and scrubs and scrubs, by making the cut in his 58th year. Marvellous. He’ll be forgiven for currently wondering why he bothered, mind you. A double bogey at the opening hole, followed by bogey at 3, and he plummets to the bottom of the leader board at +9. A tough day lies ahead for the man who holed the most spectacular chip (sorry Tiger) in Masters history.
Jason Day was out first today, and out on his own. Well, he’s going round with Club Member Who The Committee Would Rather You Forget About As The Attention He Receives Is In Their Opinion All Out Of Whack as a marker, but who on the internet will want to know about that? The 2015 PGA champion has been on an eventful roll for a while now: since reaching the turn last night, he’s parred just five holes. Four bogeys, a double and a birdie last night; he’s now played six holes so far this morning, with bogeys at 2 and 4 plus birdies at 3 and now 6. He remains at +6 for the tournament; this clearly isn’t going to be the 2011 runner-up’s year. But it’s good to see him playing.
2015 US Open nearly man Branden Grace booked his place for the weekend by screwing home a wedge from the fairway at 15. He very nearly threw it all away with bogeys at 17 and 18, but he scraped under the cut line nevertheless, and he’s started his round today by repairing that late damage. A birdie at Tea Olive, after knocking his second to six feet, then another at 3, after a similarly forensic approach shot, and he’s back up the leader board to +4. The third hole is called Flowering Peach, for the record, seeing I keep banging on about Tea Olive.
After the tumult of the first two days, calm descends on Augusta National. It’ll be sunny and warm all day, with barely the hint of a breeze. The 20 and 30mph winds of Thursday and Friday are gone; it’s a three or four mph puff today. Good news for everyone? Well, perhaps. After their rounds last night, both Fred Couples and Sergio Garcia admitted they prefer playing this course in difficult conditions, the former so he can glean an advantage with decades of local knowledge, the latter because he’d plain rather dog it out. Garcia’s stance suggests a lack of confidence trumping logic, because with his approach game he should be very dangerous indeed in still weather. He’s obviously worried about not keeping up should a few players embark on birdie blitzes. Putter worries maybe. Instructively, Jordan Spieth stopped just short of rubbing his hands and making fire as he contemplated the weekend; his tail is very much up. That quadruple bogey on 15 already seems like a long, long time ago.
Good morning Augusta!
The other day, one of the announcers on the official Masters featured-group feed tried to explain the difficulty of putting at Augusta National. Imagine you’ve placed a ball near the top of the stairs, he said, six feet away on thick carpet. Now send the ball over the edge, but make sure it stops on the first step down. Easy, huh. Oh my.
Whether Dustin Johnson was practising this drill before he took a tumble on Wednesday evening is not recorded. But the world number one falling down the stairs and withdrawing just before teeing off on Thursday was just the start of what is turning out to be a Masters to savour.
Charley Hoffman’s nine-birdie 65 in high winds. Jordan Spieth’s quadruple bogey at 15. Danny Willett’s quadruple bogey at 1. The tenacity of William McGirt, Rory McIlroy and Justin Rose. Phil Mickelson and Fred Couples bidding to become the oldest Master. Rickie and Sergio going for that elusive first major yet again. Martin Kaymer finally turning up at Augusta. The major-championship emergence of Jon Rahm and Thomas Pieters. Hoffman’s big lead. Hoffman’s collapse. Spieth’s resurgence.
Hmm. Everyone’s looking over their shoulder at Jordan Spieth, aren’t they.
And we’re only at the halfway mark! Goodness knows what Moving Day has in store, let alone Sunday. But it promises to be a hell of a weekend. So pour yourself an iced tea, spread a little pimento cheese on that cracker, and settle down for two of the greatest days in the sporting calendar. Have you got Masters fever? Yes, us too. Will someone please call Dr Golf?!
How they stand at the halfway mark ...
-4: Hoffman, Garcia, Pieters, Fowler
-2: McGirt
-1: Moore, Rahm, Couples, Rose
E: Scott, Spieth, Mickelson
+1: Kuchar, McIlroy, Kjeldsen
+2: Schwartzel, Matsuyama, Kaymer
+3: Els, Dufner, Westwood, Leishman, Haas, Walker, Henley, Steele, Stuard, Hagestad (a), Chappell, Casey, Koepka
+4: Perez, Stricker, Oosthuizen
+5: An, Wiesberger, Grillo, Thomas, Summerhays, Hadwin, Kisner, Sullivan, Fitzpatrick, Snedeker
+6: Hahn, Fisher, Luck (a), Mize, Holmes, Molinari, Berger, Grace, Day
... and today’s tee times, local (then UK).
10.20am (3.20pm): Jason Day
10.30am (3.30pm): Daniel Berger, Branden Grace
10.40am (3.40pm): JB Holmes, Francesco Molinari
10.50am (3.50pm): Curtis Luck (a), Larry Mize
11am (4pm): James Hahn, Ross Fisher
11.10am (4.10pm): Matthew Fitzpatrick, Brandt Snedeker
11.20am (4.20pm): Kevin Kisner, Andy Sullivan
11.30am (4.30pm): Daniel Summerhays, Adam Hadwin
11.40am (4.40pm): Emiliano Grillo, Justin Thomas
12pm (5pm): Byeong-Hun An, Bernd Wiesberger
12.10pm (5.10pm): Steve Stricker, Louis Oosthuizen
12.20pm (5.20pm): Brooks Koepka, Pat Perez
12.30pm (5.30pm): Kevin Chappell, Paul Casey
12.40pm (5.40pm): Brian Stuard, Stewart Hagestad (a)
12.50pm (5.50pm): Russell Henley, Brendan Steele
1pm (6pm): Bill Haas, Jimmy Walker
1.10pm (6.10pm): Lee Westwood, Marc Leishman
1.20pm (6.20pm): Ernie Els, Jason Dufner
1.40pm (6.40pm): Hideki Matsuyama, Martin Kaymer
1.50pm (6.50pm): Soren Kjeldsen, Charl Schwartzel
2pm (7pm): Matt Kuchar, Rory McIlroy
2.10pm (7.10pm): Jordan Spieth, Phil Mickelson
2.20pm (7.20pm): Justin Rose, Adam Scott
2.30pm (7.30pm): Jon Rahm, Fred Couples
2.40pm (7.40pm): William McGirt, Ryan Moore
2.50pm (7.50pm): Thomas Pieters, Rickie Fowler
3pm (8pm): Charley Hoffman, Sergio Garcia
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