Ewan Murray's report of the third round
So it’s Hideki Matsuyama’s to lose, after closing with four birdies and an eagle in his last eight holes, en route to a blemish-free 65. He leads by four, though as the likes of Greg Norman and Rory McIlroy can painfully attest, nothing’s ever certain on Masters Sunday. Thanks for reading this report, and we hope to see you tomorrow!
-11: Matsuyama
-7: Schauffele, Leishman, Rose, Zalatoris
-6: Conners
-5: Spieth
-4: Harman
-3: Finau
-2: MacIntyre, Kim, Wiesberger
Par for Zalatoris too, and that’s a 71 for the young debutant. What a performance by the young man from San Francisco. We’d all be talking about it ... had Matsuyama not burned up the back nine upon coming back from the weather delay.
Rose prowls around his chip ... but unlike Matsuyama earlier, there’s no magic. He hits a weak effort up and onto the green, but he’s left with a 15-footer for his par. And he makes it! What a salvage job he’s done on the last few holes with the flat stick, grinding out several pars that could easily have become bogeys. It’s another 72, and he’s still in this, despite battling his game all the way home. Just.
There’s a route out of the trees for Rose ... but he can only fly his escape down the swale to the left of the green. Zalatoris however gives himself a real chance of making the final group, whipping his approach over the flag to 12 feet. He’ll have a good look at birdie coming up, and he can’t wait to scope it out, bounding up the 18th fairway like an excitable pup. He’s having a lot of fun on his debut.
Up on the green, Brian Harman is a dimple away from a birdie that would have given him a 73. But it’s a two-over 74, and the only player to have shot sub-70 rounds on both Thursday and Friday ends the day at -4. Par too for Marc Leishman, who signs for a 70 and as things stand right now, will be in the penultimate group tomorrow afternoon. He’s -7.
It looks unlikely. Rose sends his drive into the trees down the right of 18, the spot - and the shot - that cost him the play-off against Sergio Garcia back in 2017.
Rose digs deep to get up and down from the front of 17. That’s yet another street-fighting par, but he’s been hanging on by his fingertips here. It’s incredibly impressive, but Thursday’s 65 is beginning to look like an outlier rather than the foundations for a title tilt. Can he find something down the last that would secure a place in the final pairing, giving him the chance to apply some match-play pressure to Matsuyama?
Spieth’s birdie putt lips out on the left. That’s his day in microcosm; nearly, but just not quite there. A 72 as he ends round three at -5; he’s one of a few fringe hopefuls that will require Matsuyama to suffer a McIlroy-or-Normanesque final-round collapse tomorrow if he’s to have any chance.
Rose is fighting his game this afternoon. His tee shot at 17 flirts with the trees down the left. He elects to whip over them, but can’t quite reach the green. He holds his hands on his hips and stares at the floor. A study in frustration. Zalatoris is on in regulation, but not particularly close.
If Jordan Spieth is to win his second green jacket tomorrow, he needs something to happen here on 18, you’d have thought. Well, he’s given himself a chance, swishing his approach pin high. He’ll have a look at birdie from seven feet. If he makes it, he’ll move to within five strokes, and perhaps give Matsuyama something to think about. These are the straws he’ll be clutching at right now.
Rose’s tee shot at 16 dunks into sand. He splashes out to eight feet, a fine bunker shot given he was landing on a down slope, but the par saver is always shyly turning left. It’s now a four-shot lead at the top, and unless someone still out on the course can make it to -8, Matsuyama will be going round with Schauffele again tomorrow, only this time in the final pairing.
-11: Matsuyama (F)
-7: Schauffele (F), Leishman (16), Rose (16), Zalatoris (16)
-6: Conners (F)
-5: Spieth (17), Harman (16)
-3: Finau (F), Wiesberger (17)
-2: MacIntyre (F), Kim (F)
It never happened for the pairing of Cameron Champ and Kim Si-woo today. Kim never recovered from that bogey-bogey start, ending the day with a 74, while Champ signed for a 77 that included a visit to Rae’s Creek and a double-bogey seven on 13. Champ stumbled down the standings to +1, while Kim slipped down to -2.
Rose rolls his par putt straight into the cup. That’s a stunning up and down to save par, his second in a row. He’s hanging on in there ... and if he can pick anything up on the way home, he’ll sleep a lot more soundly tonight. Birdie for Zalatoris, meanwhile, the young debutant flatly refusing to go away. He’s been mightily impressive.
-11: Matsuyama (F)
-8: Rose (15)
-7: Schauffele (F), Leishman (16), Zalatoris (15)
-6: Conners (F)
-5: Spieth (16), Harman (16)
To Rose’s great credit, he gathers himself and bumps calmly back up onto the green. That’s a marvellous effort from 25 yards to five feet. If he gets out of here with par, it will seriously improve his mood.
Rose is forced to chip out of the trees down the left of 15. He then gets a flyer with his wedge, and his ball briefly threatens to race into the water over the back of the green. But it stops on the bank, just in time. A mixture of bemusement and frustration plays across his face. Perhaps he’s glanced at the leader board, and knows what Matsuyama’s been up to. Perhaps he thinks the game is already up. He needs to snap out of his funk, and quick. It’s only Moving Day, and the Masters doesn’t start until the 10th on Sunday. There’s plenty of time to go.
While Matsuyama was wriggling elegantly out of trouble on 18, Leishman made birdie at 15. Up on 16, it’s a three-putt bogey for Spieth. And back down the 15th Rose hooked his drive into trouble down the left. But never mind all that. Hideki Matsuyama, ladies and gentlemen! Since coming back out after the weather break, he took a mere 25 strokes over seven-and-a-half holes. That included a three-putt par on 13. What a performance! The sort of burst of activity that could land the 29-year-old Japanese star, so close in the majors so often, his first big prize.
Schauffele to go first. He bumps up from the swale to the left of the green, leaving himself a ten-footer to salvage par. He’ll make it. Then Matsuyama, who is halfway up the path towards the scorer’s hut. But what a stunner he produces! Crisply clipped, and yet gently delivered, he lands his wedge at the bottom of the incline he’s standing on, bumping it left to right and rolling it to a couple of feet. That’s as good a shot as you’ll see for a long time. He rolls in the par putt, and that’s him back in 30, signing for a 65. That’s the only round this week without a blemish on the card. What a way to do it!
-11: Matsuyama (F)
-8: Rose (14)
-7: Schauffele (F), Leishman (15)
On 18, Schauffele sends his approach wide left, while Matsuyama - far enough back in the bunker to go for the green - sends a booming wedge miles over the flag and off the back. Adrenaline not his friend there. He’s way over the back of the green, 25 yards of undulation away from the flag. If he gets up and down from there, this really will feel like his week.
Two putts for Spieth, and he’ll take the birdie on 15. Back on 14, Rose bumps up cutely to 12 feet, quite a result from where he was. But that’s a big par putt coming up. In it goes! What an up and down! He stays at -8.
Rose sends a perfect drive down 14, but gets a flyer with his second, and it bounds over the back of the green. He’s in the thick stuff, with not much green to play with. That’ll be one hell of a chip back up from there. He’ll desperately need to get up and down, with Matsuyama having opened up his three-shot advantage.
Matsuyama sends his drive at 18 into Sandy Lyle’s Bunker. Much will depend on how close to the lip that’s ended up. Meanwhile back on 15, a huge break for Spieth, who slams his approach into the bank on the far side of the water ... but instead of his ball gripping and rolling back into the briny, it takes a bound forward instead and stops on the green. He’ll have a look at eagle from 20 feet; he’d have snatched your hand off for a par when that iron was dropping from the sky.
Matsuyama’s birdie putt on 17 is always destined to drop, bang slap in the middle of the cup, and he’s easing clear of the field. He’s picked up four shots in the last three holes!
-11: Matsuyama (17)
-8: Rose (13)
-7: Schauffele (17)
-6: Conners (F), Leishman (14), Zalatoris (13)
-5: Spieth (14)
Par for Rose on 13, and he looks slightly disappointed, though that’s all put into perspective when his partner Zalatoris makes a three-putt bogey. Up on 17, Schauffele tugs his second shot into a swale to the side of the green, and looks to have overcooked his bump up. But the ball smacks the flag and stops by the side of the hole, and he tidies up for a par that’s very much worth the guffaw of relief he emits.
As the rain begins to come down again - though there’s no fear of thunderstorms right now - Corey Conners gets a bad break on 18. A fine approach looks destined to stop five feet or so from the flag, but twangs the stick and rebounds 15 feet away. Happily, he’s punished no further, and two putts later he’s signing for an excellent 68 that included a hole-in-one on 6. He’s -6 and in good shape for a tilt at the title tomorrow ... unless Hideki Matsuyama disappears out of sight, because the leader’s just set up another birdie chance, sending his second over the flag at 17 to ten feet.
Bryson DeChambeau signs for 75, his second disappointing round of the week after that opening-day 76. He sandwiched them both with that marvellous 67, though. Maybe next year, and it’ll be interesting to see what he does tomorrow with the pressure - and presumably the handbrake - off. He’s +2.
While Matsuyama was bothering the flagstick with his tee shot on 16, Schauffele sent a very average iron into the green. Then he left his long birdie putt ten feet short. But he’s in no mood to take a step backwards after his eagle, and rolls in a staunch par saver. Then Matsuyama rolls in his short birdie putt, and he becomes the first player to make it into double figures this week. What a run he’s gone on since the restart: birdie, birdie, par, par, eagle, birdie!
-10: Matsuyama (16)
-8: Rose (12)
-7: Schauffele (16), Zalatoris (12)
That 75-minute weather delay was so irritating at the time. But god bless the rain that came down, making this course more receptive, and the players a damn sight more aggressive! Worth the wait, huh?
Matsuyama is on fire. A gentle fade into the par-three 16th, and he’ll have a look at birdie from four feet! That’s a delicious shot, and a very satisfying divot flew through the air as well. The lead was -7 just a few minutes ago. Now Matsuyama is four feet away from -10. The unique beauty of the Masters, right here, right now.
What a putt on 15 by Xander Schauffele! He sends a tramliner straight into the cup from 60 feet, and it’s an eagle that gives him a share of the lead ... for about six seconds, because back on 12, Justin Rose snatches it back with a 30-footer for birdie ... but he’s only leading for about 5.9 seconds, as on 15, Schauffele’s playing partner Hideki Matsuyama, having creamed his second from 200 yards to six feet, tidies up for eagle of his own, to leapfrog the pair of them! What a whirlwind of action! What a Masters this is turning into!
-9: Matsuyama (15)
-8: Rose (8)
-7: Schauffele (15), Zalatoris (12)
-6: Conners (17)
-5: Spieth (13), Leishman (12)
Bob MacIntyre signs for a 70. At -2 overall, the young man from Oban is the new 54-hole clubhouse leader on Masters debut. Meanwhile another birdie for Corey Connors on 17, his second in three holes, and this is a great reaction to his stutter after the turn. He’s -6 again.
Thomas can’t make his double-bogey putt on 13, and that’s a triple-bogey eight. Out of absolutely nothing! Two wedges in, both leading to unforced errors, one short, one long. He lost his mental equilibrium and those five minutes may have cost him everything this week. He crashes down to -1.
Rose flays his drive at 11 into the trees down the right. He’s got a route towards the green - remember Tiger, twice, here in 2019 - but sends his second into the bunker to the right of the green. He’s faced with a long downhill bunker shot, shortsided, with water behind. God speed, Justin. So what happens next is quite astonishing: a sand shot flopped high and landed like a feather, rolling to five feet. That’s as good as it gets. What a par save! You’ll not see a better shot, with such high difficulty and danger tariffs, all week!
Thomas hits an awful wedge into 13, the ball dribbling into Rae’s Creek before swimming away from sight, towards the horizon like a little fishy, as the brook babbles downhill. A moment of dark comedy, though JT doesn’t find it funny, and his mood isn’t improved with a heavy handed chip from the drop zone. This is looking like a double bogey at best. Maybe worse, because he leaves his bogey putt 15 feet short! That is an astonishing miss. Thomas’s race could be coming to a premature end here. Meanwhile back-to-back bogeys for Harman, at 10 and 11, and he slips to -3.
Spieth has plenty of history at 12 - that quadruple bogey that cost him a second green jacket in 2016 - and for a minute it looks like there’ll be more scar tissue. He lands his tee shot back left of the green, the ball taking a sharp bounce further left and towards the bank of azaleas. That’s awful luck, though he gets an instant break back when his ball eventually nestles on the cart path. He gets a drop, then grinds out a superb up and down to remain at -5. That could be as valuable as a birdie when it all comes down tomorrow evening.
Yep, Zalatoris looks the more likely! He finds the difficult 10th in two, then steers in a 30-footer for a birdie that gives the debutant a share of the lead! What a player this young man from San Francisco is, but then we knew that already after his ace and tie for sixth at Winged Foot in last year’s US Open. Bounceback birdie meanwhile for Conners at 15, and he’s still right in the thick of it.
-7: Matsuyama (13), Rose (10), Zalatoris (10)
-5: Conners (15), Schauffele (13), Spieth (11), Leishman (10)
Another birdie for the debutant from Oban, Bob MacIntyre! The 24-year-old Scot sends his second at 17 over the flag and makes the 12-footer coming back. He’s -2, suddenly just five off the lead, and if he could just find something on the final hole, you never know tomorrow. The first debutant to win since Fuzzy Zoeller in 1979? If that’s to happen, Will Zalatoris looks the more likely, but ... well ... y’know.
Matsuyama tickles his birdie effort towards the cup at 13, but it’s always staying up on the left. Just a par. His partner Xander Schauffele is much bolder with his eagle putt, and though it doesn’t drop, he taps in for a birdie that moves him up to -5. Leishman can’t get up and down from Spieth Country on 10, never mind chip in, and that’s a dropped shot. And a bounceback birdie for JT, who finally makes a putt on 12, moving back up to -4.
-7: Matsuyama (13), Rose (9)
-6: Zalatoris (9)
-5: Schauffele (13), Spieth (10), Leishman (10)
Updated
Matsuyama whistles his second at 13 into the meat of the green. He’s got a long downhill eagle putt ... but makes exactly the same mistake as Conners before him, failing to factor in the rain that’s slowed the green. That’s well short and now he faces a testing birdie putt. Meanwhile pars for Rose and Zalatoris on 9, the pair turning with level-par 36s.
Justin Thomas’s putter has gone stone cold. Having found 11 in regulation, he leaves his first putt short, and for the third hole in a row missed a makeable one. Bogey, and he slips to -3, and into a funk.
By the way, do you remember Bryson DeChambeau sending his ball “so far into Narnia” at 13? Well, he found a route out of the trees to the green, then calmly took two putts for a birdie. Of course he did. Then he birdied 14 too. Of course he did. Bryson’s brilliantly entertaining as well; he’s +1, and hanging onto hope by his fingertips.
Jordan Spieth is a magician! Having left his second to 10 short and left, he chips up from 22 yards, the ball always destined to disappear cleanly into the hole after a couple of gentle bounces. He’s back to where he began the day, at -5, and that ludicrous up and down from the nonsense at 8 begins to look pivotal. He’s such a fun player to watch. Meanwhile birdie for Brian Harman at 9, and he rises to -5 as well.
It’s suddenly all going wrong for Conners. Having just three-putted the par five 13th, he sends his drive to the base of a loblolly down the left. He’s forced to turn his iron around and chip sideways, left-handed, back onto the fairway ... but mishits it onto the trunk, and is extremely fortunate that his ball doesn’t spring back and hit him, and that it squirts out towards the fairway, albeit still in the second cut. He calms himself to send his third to the back of the green, where he’ll really need to limit the damage to bogey. Two putts a must.
For Conners on 13, read Rose at 8: eagle dreams dashed by a three-putt par on a par-five. Rose left that first putt well short, just as Conners had done, the rain that continues to fall doing a number on the Englishman. Zalatoris takes two putts for a bounceback birdie, and for the first time in a long while, Rose no longer has sole ownership of the lead.
-7: Matsuyama (12), Rose (8)
-6: Leishman (8), Zalatoris (8)
-5: Conners (13)
Corey Conners finds the par-five 13th in two. Sadly he doesn’t take into consideration the newly moistened greens, and severely underhits his eagle putt. He’s left with an eight footer for birdie, and that one slips by the right of the cup. A miserable par, and though he’s still just a couple off the lead at -5, there would have been dreams of joining Rose in the lead ... and that’s something Matsuyama does by stroking in his birdie effort on 12 with extreme confidence.
Jordan Spieth can’t quite make his birdie putt on 9, the ball dying left on its final turn. A par, and he turns in 37 at -4. Disappointment for his good mate Justin Thomas at 10, as he lets his great birdie chance slip by. His flat stick a bit cold since the restart. He remains at -4 too.
Two big crashes down the middle of the par-five 8th, and Justin Rose and Will Zalatoris are on in two, looking at eagle putts. Up on 12, Hideki Matsuyama clips his tee shot to 12 feet. And back on 10, JT screeches his second from 150 yards to five feet. Those two irons demonstrating how the conditions have changed, allowing the players to be more aggressive.
Spieth, having made that preposterous birdie at 8, getting up and down from the jungle down the left, sets up another chance. He sends his second at 9 onto the top tier of the green, and he’ll have a good look at birdie from 15 feet. Meanwhile up on 11, Matsuyama converts his birdie putt, while Leishman gets up and down from the front of 8 to pick up a shot. Suddenly it’s all change at the top! Again!
-7: Rose (7)
-6: Matsuyama (11), Leishman (8)
-5: Conners (12), Zalatoris (7)
Two putts for Rose on 7 and he makes his par. Sadly for Zalatoris, the difficult bunker shot he faced in starting again landed short and span back, and he wasn’t able to make the par saver. His sole ownership of second turns into a share.
-7: Rose (7)
-5: Conners (12), Matsuyama (10), Leishman (7), Zalatoris (7)
-4: Schauffele (10), Thomas (9), Spieth (8), Wiesberger (8), Harman (7)
Not such a cold start for Matsuyama, though! Under hanging branches down the right of 11, he fires low and hard into the heart of the green. His ball holds, an early sign that the course will indeed be a little more receptive ... and that we could see a few birdies again. They were at a premium when the wind was up before the weather warning.
Before anything happens there, Justin Thomas is forced to restart with a tricky left-to-right slider up 9 for par. He can’t make it, and having started with a couple of early birdies, he’s given both shots back in short order. He’s -4.
Play restarts
The klaxon sounds, and we’re off again! The final group are at the 7th green. More accurately, Will Zalatoris is in a bunker to the right, while Justin Rose is in the heart of the putting surface. Let’s go!
Updated
The players are making their way back into position. It’s still raining at Augusta, but everyone’s been told that there’s no more worry of electrical activity, so we’re just battling the clock. Sunset in Georgia will be just before 8pm local time, 1pm BST. Given we’ve lost 75 minutes of play, finishing the third round tonight will be a very tight squeeze. Here’s hoping, for a multitude of reasons, though I’m not sure they’ll do it.
Great news! Play is scheduled to resume at 5.15pm local time, 10.15pm BST. The players are streaming back to the practice area to warm up. So while they’ll be cutting it fine to finish the third round tonight, there’s at least half a chance. The players would certainly prefer not to leave anything hanging until tomorrow morning, so they may pick up the pace a little, especially as the course has taken on a little moisture and will be slightly more responsive than before.
The minute there’s any word of a restart, we’ll post the news up here. So keep hitting that refresh button. You get the breaking news as it happens, we get the cheap hits. Everybody happy! Meanwhile, some intermission music for y’all.
The talk is of a delay lasting 45 minutes to an hour. If that turns out to be correct, we might be OK to finish the third round tonight ... though we’d be cutting it fine. Anything more than an hour, and most likely a few matches will have to come back early tomorrow morning and finish up. Fingers crossed ... though given this storm was forecast with a 60 percent probability last night, you have to wonder why they didn’t get the groups out a little earlier this morning in order to give themselves a little slack. Anyway, here we are.
Updated
Anyway, with everyone off to take shelter - and the leader Rose safely on the 7th green in two, while Zalatoris finds himself in a bunker to the right - this is how the top of the leader board looks ...
-7: Rose (6)
-6: Zalatoris (6)
-5: Conners (12), Matsuyama (10), Thomas (8), Leishman (7)
-4: Schauffele (10), Spieth (8), Wiesberger (8), Harman (7)
-3: Kim (9), Finau (8)
-2:Jones (12), Champ (9)
-1: Reed (F), Na (F), Stenson (16), Lowry (14), Hughes (14), MacIntyre (14), Cink (13), Palmer (11)
E: Mickelson (F), Molinari (F), Simpson (F), Niemann (F), Scheffler (F), Rahm (F), Hovland (13)
That weather warning came out of nowhere. The satellite pictures suggest a lot of rain may be on the cards, but hopefully not a great deal in the way of electrical excitement ... and there doesn’t appear to be anything looming behind it. So fingers crossed that it’ll pass through quickly. Given the increasing difficulty of the course as the wind got up, you’d imagine plenty of the players will welcome a good drenching to slow the greens down a bit.
Bad weather stops play
Up on 8, Spieth, badly out of position down the left of the hole, manufactures an absurd escape from the bushes, using the bank behind the cup to bring his ball to four feet. A sensational birdie ... and not a bad way to go into an enforced weather break. Storm’s a-comin’ through, and the klaxon goes.
Updated
Bob MacIntyre, the latest great Scottish hope, looks the real deal. He’s making his Masters debut and showing the sort of moxie he’ll need to succeed around here one day. A lovely long iron into 14, using the camber at the back to bring the ball back towards the hole, sets up birdie. He’s-1.
It’s getting tough out there. A staunch up and down from the bottom of the bank at the front of 10 saves Hideki Matsuyama’s par, but Marc Leishman can’t make a sand save from a deep bunker at 7. Both folks are -5.
“That’s so far into Narnia!” DeChambeau, working a few things out after his double at 12, blooters his drive at 13 into a gaggle of patrons down the right. That might be in Mickelson Country, the pine straw from which Lefty stuck a dagger through Lee Westwood’s heart in 2010. Or it could be even wilder. Either way, the next shot is likely to be entertaining.
A decent two-putt par from the front of 6 settles the good ship Rose. He remains at -7, one ahead of Zalatoris, who also pars. Meanwhile Thomas misses two highly decent birdie putts in a row, on 7 and now 8, and exits the green in a minor funk.
DeChambeau ends up with a double on 12. He’s back to +3, and any slim hopes of a sensational comeback must surely be kaput. Mind you, the breeze continues to pick up, and the leading pack, with many more holes to play this afternoon, won’t fancy these conditions at all.
Yep, Augusta is beginning to act up. DeChambeau chunks his tee shot at 12 into Rae’s Creek, the latest superstar to come a cropper at this most treacherous of short par-threes. He’d been busy repairing his round with birdies at 8 and 11, but there goes that momentum! He’s +1 right now but not for very much longer. Meanwhile back on 7, Spieth gets a flyer approaching the green, and sends his ball over the patrons at the back. His delicate chip dunks in the sand, and the splash out runs 20 feet past. He doesn’t hit his bogey putt and, chasing after it immediately in the style of Kevin Na, nearly taps his moving ball. Fortunately he catches himself just in time, waits, and tidies up for double. He’s -3, and a wee bit hot under the collar, uncharacteristically so.
Another bogey for Rose, who splashes gently out of the bunker at the back of 5, yet still faces a 15-footer coming back. He can’t make it. A two-putt par for Zalatoris.
-7: Rose (5)
-6: Leishman (6), Zalatoris (5)
-5: Conners (10), Matsuyama (9), Thomas (7), Spieth (6)
Some bad luck for Conners on 10. He lands his approach pin high, but the ball topples slowly back off the false front, and he can only chip back up to nine feet. The downhill tickler stays up, and that’s a bogey that drops him to -5.
Some more bother for Rose, whose second into 5 bounds through the green and into the sand at the back. He shakes his head sadly. His partner Zalatoris finds the centre of the green in regulation. There’s an air of the young Bernhard Langers about Zalatoris, and he’s got the calm, controlled game to match.
For the record, the current clubhouse leader is the 2018 champion Patrick Reed. He shot a commendable 70 today, though he’ll be irritated after missing a short par putt on the last. Even so, he’s in at -1. That’s almost certainly too far back, unless conditions worsen to the point of carnage this afternoon, and/or the same dynamic applies tomorrow. A lot of ifs for Reed there, to be fair.
Two poor tee shots from Rose and Zalatoris at the par-three 4th, and suddenly the leaders come back towards the chasing pack. As the wind picks up a little, and the greens dry out, becoming less responsive, it’s notable that the early blitz of birdies has calmed somewhat. A sense that Augusta is preparing to bear its teeth.
-8: Rose (4)
-6: Conners (9), Leishman (4), Zalatoris (4)
-5: Matsuyama (8), Thomas (6), Spieth (5)
Bernd Wiesberger traverses the par-four 6th like the Keystone Kops in a Ford Model T. His drive finds the trees on the right, necessitating a hack-out. His third flies into more bushes down the same side of the hole. His fourth is a chip that flies through the green and down a swale on the other side. His fifth is a hysterical lob that would have bounded through the green again had it not twanged the flagstick. And his sixth? A 20-foot drain for double bogey. He’s so lucky to have limited the damage to just two shots there, but nevertheless he crashes down the leaderboard to -3.
Connors sends his birdie putt across 9 dead on line, but gives it a little too much juice, and it lips out on the left. Still, that’s a par, and he’s turning in 32, three of the lead at -6. Brian Harman heads in the wrong direction, though, with bogeys at 3 and 4; he’s suddenly toppled down to -4. Yet another illustration of how easy it is to quickly fall off the pace at the Masters.
Kim’s putter will live to see another hole at least, as the young Korean rolls in a left-to-right curler on 6. He returns to -3. Thomas slips back to -5 after a 15-footer refuses to drop on 5. Matsuyama makes his first birdie of the day at 7 to make it to -5. Zalatoris rolls in his first birdie putt, from 12 feet at 3. And it’s two putts for Rose for his par; his lead is now just two.
-9: Rose (3)
-7: Zalatoris (3)
-6: Conners (8), Leishman (3)
Bogey for Spieth at 4, the result of finding the sand guarding the front right of the par-three, and a splash that went 15 feet past. He slips back to -5. Back on 3, Rose sets up another birdie opportunity, albeit a slippery one downhill from 15 feet. And up on 9, Connors sticks his second pin high and will have a good look at birdie. If he makes it, he’ll be turning in 31.
If Justin Rose doesn’t feel excited already, here’s another reason to get the juices flowing: five of the last seven winners at Augusta have either led or jointly led after 36 holes. So statistically, this is looking very good for the 2013 US Open champion ... but of course this is golf, and there’s many a slip twixt cup and lip, especially with a sweaty grip. You can be sure Rose - who has led or co-led seven rounds here, a record for a player never to have won a green jacket - won’t be making any assumptions at all.
It’s a perfect start for the leader Justin Rose. He leaves his second at the 2nd just short of the green, chips up to ten feet, leaving himself a straight uphill putt, and makes birdie number two. His partner Will Zalatoris, who did well to get up and down at 1 after finding trouble from the tee, chips poorly and has to settle for a par-par start. It’s looking good for Hampshire’s finest!
-9: Rose (2)
-6: Conners (7), Thomas (4), Spieth (3), Harman (2), Leishman (2), Zalatoris (2)
-5: Wiesberger (3)
-4: Matsuyama (6), Schauffele (6), Finau (4)
-3: Champ (5)
-2: Reed (17), Jones (8), Kim (5)
Jordan Spieth knocks his second at 3 to five feet, but he’s left with a slippery downhill putt. He prods it as carefully as he can, but it still lips out. A par that will feel like a bogey, if the dismayed look on his face is anything to go by. Meanwhile Brian Harman rights the wrongs of the 1st with birdie at 2, while his playing partner Marc Leishman also birdies. A six-strong group in second place at -6 now.
Bryson DeChambeau did so well to haul himself back into semi-contention yesterday, responding to his miserable opening-day 76 with a fine battling 67. He’s all over the shop again today, though, a heavy-handed chip leading to a double-bogey five on the par-three 4th, bogeys at 5 and 7 following soon after. He’s +3 and Bernhard Langer’s pre-tournament observation that, while power is all good and well, it means absolutely nothing if you don’t know which spots to pick around Augusta ... and more importantly, the best places to miss. Don’t worry, though, Bryson’s got an analytical mind, he’ll surely work it all out soon enough.
Yep, this is going to be quite the ride. Thomas doesn’t go particularly close with his chip into the short par-three 3rd, but he rattles in the 12-footer that remains and he joins his good pal Spieth in a share of second. And in the blink of an eye Conners follows his ace at 6 with a long rake for birdie at 7, and he’s up to -6 as well.
-8: Rose (1)
-6: Conners (7), Thomas (3), Spieth (2), Zalatoris (1)
Updated
Rose makes his opening birdie putt! In it goes, and already this is looking like being one of those Moving Days. Strap in, people!
-8: Rose (1)
-6: Spieth (2), Zalatoris (1)
-5: Conners (6), Schauffele (4), Champ (3), Thomas (2), Wiesberger (2), Harman (1), Leishman (1)
-4: Matsuyama (4)
-3: Finau (2)
-2: Kim (3)
Birdie for Xander Schauffele at the par-three 4th. A long iron sent to eight feet, the putt rolled in. He joins an ever-growing group at -5, Cameron Champ making birdie at 3, Bernd Wiesberger picking up a shot at 2, Brian Harman dropping one at the opening hole. Much movement at the top, because Jordan Spieth birdies 2 as well, and moves into second spot, ominously so. Just as well that Justin Rose’s second at 1 finds the heart of the green, and he’ll have a look at birdie from 15 feet to reestablish a two-shot cushion between himself and the 2015 champion.
The final group take to the first tee. The leader Justin Rose crashes his drive down the middle, but Will Zalatoris lets out a curdled yelp as his opening shot whistles into trouble down the right. Rose and the young man from Texas - if only one of them was wearing yellow, we could probably get something going - have both been distinctly average on the front nine this week, and exceptional after the turn. It’ll be interesting to see if either manage to buck that trend today.
That was the first ace on 6 since Jamie Donaldson made one in the first round in 2013, and only the sixth there in the entire history of the Masters! What a moment for Conners, who really has thrown down the gauntlet with today’s fast start. He’s joined at -5 by Justin Thomas, the new Players champion having just picked up a stroke at the par-five 2nd.
-7: Rose
-6: Zalatoris, Harman
-5: Conners (6), Thomas (2), Spieth (1), Leishman
Hole-in-one for Corey Conners!
An iron straight at the flag. Four bounces, each one smaller than the other, and then his ball rolls serenely into the cup for the second ace of the week! The patrons around him erupt! Conners tied for tenth last November, came third at the Arnold Palmer, then seventh at the Players, and finished strongly at the Texas Open last week. He’s gaining some serious momentum ... and is making a serious bid for the green jacket here. He’s got the game. He’s now -5.
Updated
A nice steady opening par for Jordan Spieth. He’s going round today with Bernd Wiesberger, who also pars. They’re -5 and -4 respectively. An eventful bogey-birdie start to Cameron Champ, who has the sort of controlled no-effort long game to do some serious damage around here. He’s -4. And a bogey for Corey Connors on 5 takes the Canadian back to -3, but no matter, because ...
Kim Si-woo has a new putter, after his shaft-bothering antics on 15 yesterday. With great narrative inevitability, he’s just used it to three-putt the 1st; perhaps he should get the trusty 3-wood out again, it did him no harm over the closing four post-tantrum holes yesterday, after all. Or maybe he should start taking putter off the tee, because on 2 he flays his drive into the azaleas down the left, and that’s a bogey-bogey start for the 2017 Players champion. Quick as a flash, he slips down the leader board to -2.
Phil Mickelson was all over the shop on Thursday as he shot 75, and not totally in control yesterday either, grinding out a level-par round of 72. But he’s been uncharacteristically steady today: four birdies, a single bogey, and nine pars in his last ten holes en route to a fine 69. The 50-year-old Californian won’t be breaking Jack Nicklaus’s record as oldest Master - the Golden Bear was 46 when he won in 1986 - but he’s ended the day at level par and yet another decent late-career finish here looks on the cards. In any case, if Lefty’s ever going to write a fiftysomething fairytale, we want him to do it at a US Open, right?
Henrik Stenson hasn’t got the greatest record at Augusta. A tie for fifth in 2018 is the outlier in a smattering of top-20 finishes and a few missed cuts. He didn’t make the weekend back in November, but evaded the cut easily enough this week after rounds of 73 and 71. The 2016 Open champ is trending in the right direction: birdies at 6 and now 8 have hauled the veteran Swede up to -2.
And with that, Tom takes his leave; thanks Tom. Conners looks a decent bet to become only the second Canadian to win the Masters, after Mike Weir’s breakthrough for lefties back in 2003. No better time to whack up the latest leader board, then ...
-7: Rose
-6: Zalatoris, Harman
-5: Leishman, Spieth
-4: Conners (4), Matsuyama (1), Wiesberger, Finau, Thomas
-3: Schauffele (1), Kim (1), Champ (1)
Here we go Corey Conners! Nope, me neither. The Canadian finished T10 back in November to earn his spot this year and is now four under through three. He set that up with cracking drive at the par-five second and despite finding sand from the fairway managed a birdie. He could not have played the third much better, holing a 24 foot putt for a birdie three.
Updated
Hideki Matsuyama, who tees off just three shots off the lead, is in danger of dropping a shot at the first. His second leaves him short of the green on the fairway but his iron into the green flies the pin and takes perfect spin back to leave him with a putt of no more than five or six feet. Par saved!
Bryson DeChambeau is on the third, a 350 yard par four, but having only found the trees with his tee shot what could be an eagle chance for him looks like a scramble to make par. He has made a nice chip from just off the green though, that should be good enough to make his four... and it is.
No real movement towards the top of the leaderboard so far today, but Stewart Cink is now two under. His putt for birdie at the third was a delightful little tickle down the slope which only just crept in. Well measured sir.
Tommy Fleetwood has been looking good so far today, he is two under through four and now T13. You always get the feeling that he leaves himself with too much to do when he gets to the weekend at the majors, but if continues his early round form that could change. He slapped his drive 280 yards at the par four fifth and worked his second on to the green but he needed a spectacular putt to make a birdie as it checked at the top of the slope. With his putt still well short, that is a bogey for the Englishman. He is now back to to one under.
Hello all, I’m stepping in as relief for an hour - much like a part-time seamer stepping in for the strapping pace bowler after an all-out effort spell. So far today Phil Mickelson has been the hottest player out on the course, he is three under for the day and back to even par. Lefty found himself on the pine needles at the par-four 14th but managed find the back edge of the green and scramble for par. He might not have the game to win any more but Mickelson remains compelling viewing.
With that, I’m off to eat 36 chocolate golf balls and wash them down with a pint of Golf Gin. It’s “botanically rich”, it says here. That means it’s basically isotonic, right? See you again in an hour, just in time for Jordan Spieth. In the meantime, Tom Bassam will be your guide.
Updated
Some good slapstick fun involving the new WGC Match Play champion Billy Horschel. He sticks his second at 13 into Rae’s Creek. His ball is almost totally submerged, but he channels his inner Jean van de Velde, taking off his shoes and socks and rolling his trousers up, with a view to wading in. As he descends the bank, he slips on his backside and plays it for laughs, asking partner Phil Mickelson to check if there’s now a green stain on the seat of his previously pristine white breeks. The gallery enjoy the back and forth, and also love it when he literally splashes out to 15 feet and saves his rather soggy par. He remains at +5, but Mickelson birdies and moves to level par.
Speaking of players who like to blow off some steam every now and then, it’s been a fairly eventful start to the third round for Tyrrell Hatton. The 29-year-old Englishman has been sniffing around the majors for a while now, with a couple of top-ten finishes at the PGA, a tie for sixth at the US Open, and two top-six finishes at the Open already on his CV. He’s not done much around here, though, something he admitted with a smile during a Sky interview earlier in the week, and today’s opening four holes - bogey, bogey, birdie, bogey - don’t suggest a change in his Masters fortunes any time soon. He slips to +3, but at least his beloved Liverpool beat Aston Villa in injury time earlier today, so the day’s not a total write-off.
It feels like we’re contractually obliged to refer to Jon Rahm as New Dad Jon Rahm this week. To be fair, it’s worth pointing out, partly because he was the last player to get here this week, his wife Kelley having only given birth to little Kepa last Sunday evening, but mainly because he’s been floating around Augusta, half knackered, half blissed-out. Two average level-par 72s would usually have the emotional Spaniard on edge, ready to blow, but not this week, and birdie at 3, bogey at 4, have been met today with an insouciant shrug. Incidentally, despite little Kepa sharing his monicker with Senor Arrizabalaga, who formerly played for Rahm’s favourites Athletic Bilbao, he’s not been named after Chelsea’s second-choice keeper. “When we were going through Basque names because Kelley agreed to honour my heritage that way, we just had to find one that she could pronounce and that’s the one we came up with that she really liked,” he told the Golf Channel earlier this week.
It was an ugly start for Harris English, who pulled his opening drive into the trees down the left of 1, then sent his second down the swale to the right of the green, antics that led to a double bogey. Another dropped shot at 4 was followed by another double, and his second three-putt of the day. It’s been a good season so far for the 31-year-old local lad, with a fourth-place finish at the US Open and his first Tour win for seven years, but this week’s won’t become another high point. He’s +6 overall, in a tie for 53rd with Adam Scott, right at the bottom of the leader board.
Kevin Na isn’t usually noted for his speed of movement, but he’s out of the blocks quickly today. Birdies at 2 and 3 and he move to -1 as well. Completing our trio of early starters moving under par for the week: Webb Simpson, who follows birdies at 2 and 6 with another at the par-five 8th. He’ll be cursing his 76 yesterday, dropping six shots in eight holes during a mid-round slump. Without that bump in the road, the 2012 US Open champ would be right up there.
OK, let’s get back to the present day, and three of the early starters have made the first burst into red figures for the week. First up, a birdie-birdie start for Martin Laird, who is here for the first time since 2013 after winning the Shriners last October. The 38-year-old Scot moves to -1 as he hopes to match his Masters best, a tie for 20th on debut in 2011, at the very least.
So what were we doing on this Saturday last year? Hunkering down during the first lockdown, that’s what. With the Masters postponed until November, we had to make our own entertainment. You youngsters today don’t know you’re born! Anyway, it was a different sort of moving day, as we recalled the tear-jerking final round of 1996, when Greg Norman found yet another way to blow his dream. Relive it again with our Retro As It Happened blog. Perhaps, 25 years on, Marc Leishman will mark the anniversary by making amends for Australia tomorrow?
... and here’s a reminder of the top of the leader board.
-7: Rose
-6: Zalatoris, Harman
-5: Leishman, Spieth
-4: Wiesberger, Finau, Thomas, Kim, Champ, Matsuyama
-5: Shauffele
Those are the top 12 players at the 36-hole mark, and if history is any guide, one of these gentlemen will be our winner. That’s because in each of the last 34 years, the champion has been inside the top dozen at the halfway point. You have to go back to 1986, when Jack Nicklaus came out of nowhere at the weekend to make history as the oldest Master ever, for that run to be broken.
It’s all been rather genteel so far. Time for some admin, then. Here are today’s hole locations ...
Hole locations for the third round of #TheMasters pic.twitter.com/Z3qAcqr5T9
— The Masters (@TheMasters) April 10, 2021
The two-time winner Jose Maria Olazabal shot a fine under-the-radar 71 yesterday. At 59, he’s the oldest swinger left standing this week, and today he’s showing some of the nous that led him to glory in 1994 and 1999. Birdie at 2, followed by some lovely soft hands in the sand at the par-three 4th to scramble a par despite being shortsided. He’s +1 for the week.
It’s been a poor start to the round by the 2013 champion Adam Scott. Bogeys at 4 and 5, then a complete mess at 7, finding trees down the right, necessitating a chip-out, then the deep bunker at the front of the green. A double, and though he’s repaired a little of the damage with birdie at the par-five 8th, he’s currently three over for his round and propping up the entire leader board at +6, 54th in a field of 54.
There’s been no early birdie blitz, even though conditions are not wholly dissimilar to yesterday’s. There were 100 more birdies on Friday than had been made on Thursday, so perhaps that’s something of a surprise. But here’s one by Webb Simpson, who very nearly aces 6 and taps in to move to level par. With the exception of the aforementioned Sebastian Munoz, the 2012 US Open champ is the only man out there so far who’s two under for his round.
There are few better wedge players in the field than the 2018 champion Patrick Reed, who ... ah, his bump up onto the 3rd green isn’t one of his best, actually, only just squeaking onto the putting surface. But there’s no need to fret, because he steers in the 12-footer he’s left with and the birdie brings him up to level par. There’s a player who, if he could string together a score when the weather remains benign, would worry a few of the chaps further up the leader board, as he suddenly pops up in their rear-view mirror.
An opening birdie for Charl Schwartzel, who knocks his second from 170 yards to 15 feet, strokes in the putt, and immediately rises to level par. Speaking of the 2011 champ, here’s James Ferguson: “I just reread the excellent 2011 Masters commentary and felt all over again the rush of mad excitement from that year’s final round. Meanwhile, here are my Bob Dylan Masters contributions: Up To Me (for Larry in 1987); Every Grain of Sand(y Lyle) (1988); Tangled Up In Blue (for Rory in 2011); Forever Young (for Seve, who would have turned 64 yesterday).”
So having just posted all that, Niemann bogeys 4 to slip back to +1 ... while his playing partner Herman is befuddled by the false front at the par-three, requiring two chips to get up onto the dancefloor. A double, and he’s back to where he started the day: +2.
Herman is going round with Joaquin Niemann this morning. The 22-year-old Chilean, making his professional debut at Augusta, was both dark horse and hipster’s choice going into the week on account of some solid performances on Tour this season, though his opening round of 75 put paid to any serious hopes of a shock win. He’s started well today, though, matching Herman’s birdies at 2 and 3, and joining him at level par.
Jim Herman is here this week thanks to his win at last autumn’s Wyndham Championship, formerly the Greater Greensboro Open (which in turn used to be played the week before the Masters, Sandy Lyle winning both back-to-back in 1988 ... but let’s not go too far off piste). Anyway, what Herman would give to replicate his weekend form when winning that one: 61-63. Safe to say that Augusta National is significantly more tricky than Sedgefield CC ... but you wouldn’t think so on the very early evidence today, as he birdies 2 and 3 to quickly move up to level par for the week.
Having mentioned Gary Player, it would be remiss of us not to flag up today’s column by Andy Bull ...
... and dig this old Small Talk out of the vault while we’re at it.
A poor day yesterday for Christiaan Bezuidenhout, hoping to become the fourth South African to win at Augusta after Gary Player, Trevor Immelman and Charl Schwartzel. An opening round of 70 was followed by a dismal 76, and he only just scraped under the cut line. But a birdie at 2, made despite flaying his tee shot into the pines down the left, brings him back up to +1 early doors today.
Another birdie for Lefty, who nearly drives the par-four 4th. His ball topples back down the false front of the green, but no matter, because he chips up to five feet and tidies up to move to +1. Some early signs that Augusta National will give up some shots today, at least until the wind picks up as expected, making things a little harder for the leaders.
Sebastian Munoz continues to trend in the right direction, though. He follows birdie at 2 by sinking a 30-footer for another at the short par-four 3rd to move to +1. In other news, I knew I was asking for trouble by referencing CBS recording artiste Bob Dylan earlier on. “You only have yourself to blame for mentioning His Bobness,” begins Richard Hirst. “So how about, for starters: Blowin’ in the Wind (I hit it straight, honest); Watching the River Flow (from Rae’s Creek); Positively Fourth Shot; and, especially for Phil Mickelson, Like a Rolling Ball. Many other titles are available.”
Can I play? How about Bringing It All Back Home (In 32 Strokes), Fairway 61 Revisited, or John Wesley Harding Park?
Poults hands the shot back at 4, the result of pulling his tee shot at the long par-three. He’s back to +3. Meanwhile here’s Simon McMahon: “I can’t help but feel that a lot of sporting venues are missing a trick by failing to have a signature dish like the pimento cheese sandwiches at the Masters (I have all the ingredients ready to go, by the way). Strawberries and cream at Wimbledon spring to mind, as does the lukewarm greasy pie and boiling hot Bovril at most Scottish football grounds, but I think the marketing men / official food partners need to get their act together. The pimento cheese pie could catch on in Scotland.” Pimento cheese fever needs to sweep the UK immediately, if not sooner, in my humble opinion. Calling all British entrepreneurs! Be about your business.
A smattering of early birdies made by the early starters. First up, and the best of this particular bunch, is Ian Poulter’s birdie at 2, made despite whistling his drive deep into the woods down the right. His playing partner in the first pairing of the day, Paul Casey, makes one at 3. Coming behind, Phil Mickelson birdies opening-hole Tea Olive, while Sebastian Munoz picks up a shot at the par-five 2nd in the garden-variety, no-nonsense, straight-down-the-middle style. All four players move to +2.
A long day stretches out ahead of us, and growing golf fans need their energy. Pimento cheese sandwiches all round, then.
The reigning champion Dustin Johnson, never one to over-complicate things, breaks things down nice and simple at Golf Digest magazine. The embedded video is worth 52 seconds of your time; Paula Deen Fanny Cradock had nothing on DJ. However pimentos are hard to source in the UK, so here’s a life-saving workaround. And finally, if the prospect of cheese, mayo and cream cheese sounds a little too piously healthy, here are some rules for popping the whole delicious kit and caboodle into the fryer. Happy eating, y’all.
Good morning, patrons. There’s only one way to ease ourselves into the third round. Crank it up!
Preamble
It’s Moving Day at the 2021 Masters. The leader Justin Rose, who suffered yesterday before salvaging a level-par 72, will be hoping to channel his Thursday self, when he shot a marvellous 65. Pretty much everyone else in the chasing pack, with the possible exceptions of Tyrrell Hatton and Patrick Reed, will be hoping to repeat yesterday’s performances.
The early starters could have an advantage, with winds set to pick up later in the day. There’s also the threat of rain, which would at least soften the course, and thunder, which would take everyone off it. But the forecasts haven’t been totally accurate so far this week – predicted rain didn’t materialise yesterday, for example – so fingers crossed.
Here are the 36-hole standings …
137 Justin Rose (Eng) 65 72
138 Brian Harman 69 69, Will Zalatoris 70 68
139 Marc Leishman (Aus) 72 67, Jordan Spieth 71 68
140 Cameron Champ 72 68, Tony Finau 74 66, Si Woo Kim (Kor) 71 69, Hideki Matsuyama (Jpn) 69 71, Justin Thomas 73 67, Bernd Wiesberger (Aut) 74 66
141 Xander Schauffele 72 69
142 Corey Conners (Can) 73 69, Collin Morikawa 73 69, Ryan Palmer 74 68, Cameron Smith (Aus) 74 68
143 Stewart Cink 74 69, Bryson DeChambeau 76 67, Viktor Hovland (Nor) 73 70, Matt Jones (Aus) 74 69
144 Abraham Ancer (Mex) 75 69, Matthew Fitzpatrick (Eng) 74 70, Tommy Fleetwood (Eng) 74 70, Mackenzie Hughes (Can) 72 72, Shane Lowry (Irl) 71 73, Robert MacIntyre (Sco) 74 70, Jon Rahm (Spa) 72 72, Henrik Stenson (Swe) 73 71, Michael Thompson 72 72, Brendon Todd 73 71, Bubba Watson 74 70
145 Harris English 74 71, Tyrrell Hatton (Eng) 71 74, Martin Laird (Sco) 74 71, Kevin Na 75 70, Patrick Reed 70 75, Scottie Scheffler 73 72, Charl Schwartzel (Rsa) 74 71, Gary Woodland 73 72
146 Christiaan Bezuidenhout (Rsa) 70 76, Jim Herman 76 70, Joaquin Niemann (Chi) 75 71, Jose Maria Olazabal (Spa) 75 71, Louis Oosthuizen (Rsa) 76 70, Webb Simpson 70 76, Matt Wallace (Eng) 74 72
147 Paul Casey (Eng) 73 74, Billy Horschel 76 71, Jason Kokrak 71 76, Phil Mickelson 75 72, Francesco Molinari (Ita) 74 73, Sebastian Munoz (Col) 74 73, Ian Poulter (Eng) 74 73, Adam Scott (Aus) 74 73
… here are the players who didn’t make the cut …
148 Daniel Berger 75 73, Sergio Garcia (Spa) 76 72, Max Homa 74 74, Matt Kuchar 78 70, Jimmy Walker 75 73
149 Lanto Griffin 76 73, Dustin Johnson 74 75, Kevin Kisner 72 77, Brooks Koepka 74 75, Mike Weir (Can) 78 71, Lee Westwood (Eng) 78 71, Danny Willett (Eng) 76 73
150 Dylan Frittelli (Rsa) 76 74, Rory McIlroy (NIrl) 76 74, Chengtsung Pan (Tai) 79 71, Robert Streb 75 75
151 Zach Johnson 77 74, Bernhard Langer (Ger) 74 77, Victor Perez (Fra) 78 73
152 Patrick Cantlay 79 73, Brian Gay 78 74, Charles Osborne 76 76
153 Jason Day (Aus) 77 76, Carlos Ortiz (Mex) 82 71, Ian Woosnam (Wal) 76 77
154 Joe Long (Eng) 82 72
156 Sandy Lyle (Sco) 81 75, Hudson Swafford 73 83
157 Fred Couples 79 78, Sung Jae Im (Kor) 77 80
159 Vijay Singh (Fij) 79 80
161 Ty Strafaci 80 81
163 Larry Mize 84 79
… and here are today’s tee times (USA unless stated, add five hours for BST )
09:40 Paul Casey (Eng), Ian Poulter (Eng)
09:50 Sebastian Munoz (Col), Adam Scott (Aus)
10:00 Billy Horschel, Phil Mickelson
10:10 Jason Kokrak, Francesco Molinari (Ita)
10:20 Christiaan Bezuidenhout (Rsa), Webb Simpson
10:30 Jim Herman, Joaquin Niemann (Chi)
10:40 Louis Oosthuizen (Rsa), Matt Wallace (Eng)
10:50 Jose Maria Olazabal (Spa), Patrick Reed
11:00 Harris English, Charl Schwartzel (Rsa)
11:20 Tyrrell Hatton (Eng), Scottie Scheffler
11:30 Kevin Na, Gary Woodland
11:40 Martin Laird (Sco), Jon Rahm (Spa)
11:50 Abraham Ancer (Mex), Bubba Watson
12:00 Henrik Stenson (Swe), Brendon Todd
12:10 Matthew Fitzpatrick (Eng), Michael Thompson
12:20 Tommy Fleetwood (Eng), Shane Lowry (Irl)
12:30 Mackenzie Hughes (Can), Robert MacIntyre (Sco)
12:40 Stewart Cink, Viktor Hovland (Nor)
13:00 Bryson DeChambeau, Matt Jones (Aus)
13:10 Corey Conners (Can), Collin Morikawa
13:20 Ryan Palmer, Cameron Smith (Aus)
13:30 Hideki Matsuyama (Jpn), Xander Schauffele
13:40 Cameron Champ, Si Woo Kim (Kor)
13:50 Tony Finau, Justin Thomas
14:00 Jordan Spieth, Bernd Wiesberger (Aut)
14:10 Brian Harman, Marc Leishman (Aus)
14:20 Justin Rose (Eng), Will Zalatoris
Updated
