At one point on Saturday, it appeared Bubba Watson was ready to pull away from the rest of the field. He was coming off an eagle and sitting at 8-under with a five-stroke lead. That lead didn't last long, however, and the leaderboard shifted dramatically during the rest of the round. Watson's cushion quickly evaporated and he needed to make a tricky par putt on No. 18 for a share of the lead. He did and joined Jordan Spieth in the clubhouse at 5-under.
The 20-year-old Spieth carded a 2-under round of 70, his third straight round under par. His score was one of the better showings of the late groups. With the course drying out and the greens speeding up, Spieth did an excellent job of limiting damage when he made errors and capitalizing with birdies when he had the chance. He traded birdies and bogeys during the first nine, making the turn at 1-under. He ran into issues at the difficult No. 11 and a bogey dropped him back to even par for the day. Spieth hit a poor shot off the 13th tee, finding trouble in the pine straw and trees. But, like he did all day and has all tournament, Spieth made a smart decision and punched out. His recovery shot was excellent and he eventually had a prime look at a birdie. Although the putt missed, the par was a great example of just how steady he played and the job he did to avoid significant damage.
While he missed a birdie chance at the 13th, he capitalized on birdie opportunities at Nos. 14 and 15 to pull into a share of the lead. Despite playing in his first Masters, Spieth played as composed as any player in the field.
"You had to put the ball in the right spots, really think your way through," Spieth said after the round. "It was about being patient, knowing bogeys were going to come, and take advantage of the par-5s."
Spieth will begin the final round tied for the lead. He has a great opportunity to win a green jacket in his first Masters appearance and if he pulls it off, he'd become the youngest Masters winner in history. Tiger Woods currently owns that mark, winning his first green jacket at 21.
There will be plenty of challengers on Sunday with 13 players within four strokes of the lead. That group includes Matt Kuchar, who is one stroke back at 4-under. Kuchar turned in his best round of the tournament, shooting a 4-under 68. He moved to 5-under following three straight birdies from No. 13 to No. 15. He would have joined Spieth and Watson in a share of the 54-hole lead but bogeyed the 18th hole. Kuchar hit his approach shot beyond the green and was unable to get up-and-down to save par.
Rickie Fowler, Lee Westwood, Miguel Angel Jimenez and Jonas Blixt are among the players within three strokes of the lead. Here is a complete look at the leaderboard through three rounds.
Place |
Player |
Score |
1st Round |
2nd Round |
3rd Round |
Total |
T1 |
Jordan Spieth |
-5 |
71 |
70 |
70 |
211 |
T1 |
Bubba Watson |
-5 |
69 |
68 |
74 |
211 |
T3 |
Matt Kuchar |
-4 |
73 |
71 |
68 |
212 |
T3 |
Jonas Blixt |
-4 |
70 |
71 |
71 |
212 |
T5 |
Miguel Jimenez |
-3 |
71 |
76 |
66 |
213 |
T5 |
Rickie Fowler |
-3 |
71 |
75 |
67 |
213 |
T7 |
Lee Westwood |
-2 |
73 |
71 |
70 |
214 |
T7 |
Jim Furyk |
-2 |
74 |
68 |
72 |
214 |
T7 |
Thomas Bjorn |
-2 |
73 |
68 |
73 |
214 |
T10 |
Justin Rose |
-1 |
76 |
70 |
69 |
215 |
T10 |
Kevin Stadler |
-1 |
70 |
73 |
72 |
215 |
T10 |
Fred Couples |
-1 |
71 |
71 |
73 |
215 |
T10 |
John Senden |
-1 |
72 |
68 |
75 |
215 |
T14 |
Gary Woodland |
E |
70 |
77 |
69 |
216 |
T14 |
Ian Poulter |
E |
76 |
70 |
70 |
216 |
T16 |
Kevin Streelman |
1 |
72 |
71 |
74 |
217 |
T16 |
Adam Scott |
1 |
69 |
72 |
76 |
217 |
T18 |
Jason Day |
2 |
75 |
73 |
70 |
218 |
T18 |
Chris Kirk |
2 |
75 |
72 |
71 |
218 |
T18 |
Steve Stricker |
2 |
72 |
73 |
73 |
218 |
T18 |
Gonzalo Fdez-Castano |
2 |
75 |
69 |
74 |
218 |
T18 |
Russell Henley |
2 |
73 |
70 |
75 |
218 |
T18 |
Jimmy Walker |
2 |
70 |
72 |
76 |
218 |
T24 |
Rory McIlroy |
3 |
71 |
77 |
71 |
219 |
T24 |
Bernhard Langer |
3 |
72 |
74 |
73 |
219 |
T24 |
Henrik Stenson |
3 |
73 |
72 |
74 |
219 |
T24 |
Louis Oosthuizen |
3 |
69 |
75 |
75 |
219 |
T24 |
Jamie Donaldson |
3 |
73 |
70 |
76 |
219 |
T29 |
Martin Kaymer |
4 |
75 |
72 |
73 |
220 |
T29 |
Bill Haas |
4 |
68 |
78 |
74 |
220 |
T29 |
Steven Bowditch |
4 |
74 |
72 |
74 |
220 |
T29 |
Hunter Mahan |
4 |
74 |
72 |
74 |
220 |
T29 |
Vijay Singh |
4 |
75 |
71 |
74 |
220 |
T34 |
Jose Maria Olazabal |
5 |
74 |
74 |
73 |
221 |
T34 |
Darren Clarke |
5 |
74 |
74 |
73 |
221 |
T34 |
Stewart Cink |
5 |
73 |
72 |
76 |
221 |
T34 |
Lucas Glover |
5 |
75 |
69 |
77 |
221 |
T38 |
Billy Horschel |
6 |
75 |
72 |
75 |
222 |
T38 |
Thongchai Jaidee |
6 |
73 |
74 |
75 |
222 |
T38 |
Thorbjorn Olesen |
6 |
74 |
72 |
76 |
222 |
T38 |
Brendon de Jonge |
6 |
74 |
72 |
76 |
222 |
T42 |
Oliver Goss |
7 |
76 |
71 |
76 |
223 |
T42 |
Francesco Molinari |
7 |
71 |
76 |
76 |
223 |
T42 |
Nick Watney |
7 |
72 |
75 |
76 |
223 |
T42 |
K.J. Choi |
7 |
70 |
75 |
78 |
223 |
T46 |
Sandy Lyle |
8 |
76 |
72 |
76 |
224 |
T46 |
Mike Weir |
8 |
73 |
72 |
79 |
224 |
T46 |
Brandt Snedeker |
8 |
70 |
74 |
80 |
224 |
T46 |
Stephen Gallacher |
8 |
71 |
72 |
81 |
224 |
T50 |
Joost Luiten |
9 |
75 |
73 |
77 |
225 |
T50 |
Larry Mize |
9 |
74 |
72 |
79 |
225 |