Augusta, April 14: Tiger Woods recorded his worst-ever score at the Masters to completely drop out of contention on an attritional third day, while Scottie Scheffler holds a one-shot lead going into the final round as he seeks a second career green jacket.
Even without the stormy winds that buffeted Augusta on Saturday, its rolling course still proved notoriously challenging as, of the leaders, only Collin Morikawa carded a score under 70 – his 69 taking him to six under for the tournament and second place, a shot behind Scheffler.Woods struggled to a 10-over par 82 for the round, just a day after his marathon 23-hole Friday to make a record-breaking 24th consecutive cut at the Masters, a tournament he has won five times.
Still suffering the impact of leg injuries sustained in a 2021 car crash and making just his third competitive start since he limped out the Masters last year, Woods told reporters afterwards that Friday had tired him out physically.
“I was not hitting it very good or putting well … Just hit the ball in all the places that I know I shouldn’t hit it. And I missed a lot of putts. Easy, makable putts,” he said.Nonetheless, the 15-time major winner said he would be “ready” for the final round despite his worst performance at the tournament. Throughout the tournament’s storied history, there are certain final rounds that have become steeped in mythology – Woods’ own thrilling victory in 2019, Charl Schwartzel’s flurry of birdies in 2011 after Rory McIlroy’s collapse, and Gary Player’s incredible comeback in 1978.And this edition looks set to add to that list as a grandstand final day beckons with five players separated by just four shots at the top of the leaderboard after all of them displayed moments of fragility in the attritional third round.
Even world No. 1 Scheffler, who sits on seven-under par, hit a double bogey on the 10th and followed it up with a bogey on the 11th before undoing some of the damage with an eagle on the 13th.
Max Homa, who began the day with a share of the lead and finished it in third, two shots behind Scheffler, didn’t hit a single birdie and a bogey on the 12th pushed him to a one-over par 73.
Bryson DeChambeau, the other leader at the start of the day, shot a three-over 75 to drop to fifth, four shots back.“It was extremely difficult again today,” Scheffler told reporters, while Homa called his round “frustrating at times but also really, really pleased with it,” such was the skill required to navigate the conditions.
With the leaderboard tightly packed and only four shots separating the top five players, the stage is set for a thrilling finale steeped in Masters history. (Agencies)
