Scheffler takes one-shot lead into final round at the Masters
Masters champion Scottie Scheffler of the United States reacts as he walks off the No. 18 green during the second round of the 2024 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club, Friday, April 12, 2024.
Scottie Scheffler recovered from his first major wobble to birdie the last and take a one-stroke lead into the final round of the Masters.
The world number one and 2022 champion followed a double-bogey six at the 10th with a bogey at the 11th to fall three shots off the lead but responded impressively when. he eagled the 13th from 31 feet.
He birdied the 15th from 11 feet to regain the solo lead and the followed a bogey at the 17th with a birdie from eight feet at the last to shoot a one-under 71 and lead by a shot from two-time major winner Collin Morikawa on seven-under.
It was a statement of intent from Scheffler, who is looking to win his second green jacket in three years.
But he won’t have it all his own way on the final day with 15 players within seven shots of him, including Bryson DeChambeau, who spectacularly holed out from 77 yards at the 18th for birdie and a 75 that left him just four behind in solo fifth on three-under.
Propelled by three birdies to start, Morikawa carded his third successive sub-par round, making just one bogey as he carded a 69 to lie just a shot behind Scheffler on six-under.
Max Homa is a shot further back on five-under after making 17 pars and a bogey in a 73 with Sweden’s Ludvig Aberg only three back on four-under after a 70.
Augusta National was not quite the brutal test of Friday when high winds and firm conditions caused carnage.
The average score in round two was 75.07. But it was only a shade easier in round three, 74.37, as a combination of a light but capricious breeze, rock-hard greens and some fiendish pin positions made Alister Mackenzie’s masterpiece a frightening test.
Dane Nicolai Hojgaard took the lead on seven-under-par through ten holes and promptly bogeyed the next five en route to a 74 that left him tied for sixth with Australia’s Cameron Davis (73) and Xander Scahuffele on two-under.
Ben An, Cameron Smith, Cameron Young and Tommy Fleetwood are lurking on one-under and with Adam Schenk, Lucas Glover and Patrick Cantlay all on level par, the scene is set for a final round charge from the pack.
Scheffler remains the man to beat and he showed he’s got guts in spades.
After running up a double-bogey six at the 10th, where he airmailed the green, then. making another bogey at the 11th, he eagled the 13th from 31 feet to regain a share of the lead, birdied the 15th to go clear and rebounded from a bogey at the 17th with a brilliant birdie at the last.
Rory McIlroy shot 71 to go into the final round 10 shots behind on three-over.
A 68 would have given him a shout today but he insisted he’d be back next year to make his 11th attempt to complete the Grand Slam.
“All I can do is come here and try my best,” McIlroy said. “That's what I do every time I show up. Some years it's better than others. I've just got to keep showing up and try to do the right thing.”
Shane Lowry made an eagle two at the 14th but still shot 75 to slip to six-over after a bad day on the greens.
“I felt a lot of the time every time I got over an eight-footer today it had two feet of break left to right down the hill,” Lowry said.
“If you hit it too hard, you look like an idiot, and if you hit it too soft, you look like a bigger idiot. It's mind-numbing out there, honestly. It's just hard. Also, I missed a lot of easy putts, so it's on me as well. “But I lost confidence quickly out there which I hadn't been doing in a while. I'm disappointed in myself for that but yeah, I'll move on.”
As for Tiger Woods, the five-time champion admitted he was worn out by Friday’s brutal conditions and struggling physically as he shot an 82, his highest score in the Masters.
“I didn't have a very good warmup session, and I kept it going all day today,” Woods said. “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. I missed a lot of them.”
“I wouldn't say (it’s) necessarily (a lack of) mental reps. It's just that I haven't competed and played much.”
