AUGUSTA, Ga. - Leader Lee Westwood kept his sang-froid even as Augusta National thundered with too many cheers to count. Phil Mickelson made consecutive eagles. Seattle constitutional Fred Couples chipped in for an eagle onward of him.
Ricky Barnes chipped in for a birdie behind him. Tiger Woods got into the posture with three right birdies to confine his denominate maximum on a star-studded leaderboard. Saturday at the Masters sounded an abominable lot approve of a normal Sunday. "You couldn't silhouette out who was doing what because there were roars chance simultaneously throughout the course," Mickelson said. "I musing that it was very a joking day to get the drift the leaderboard change.
" Westwood made certain there was no change at the top. With his best befall to win that elusive major, Westwood finished with a stout standard for a 4-under-par 68 to take a one-shot cue over Mickelson into Sunday's immutable round of a Masters that seemingly keeps getting better. "I reckon I'm ready," Westwood said. By the look out on of the names behind him, he better be. Westwood, ranked No. 4 in the people and amongst the best players without a larger title, was at 12-under 204.
He will be in the ending bundle with Mickelson, ranked No. 3 in the universe and a mushy favorite at Augusta given his difficult year at diggings with his wife and mother battling boob cancer. Right in first of them will be Woods, No. 1 in the time and playing as though five months of a humiliating gender scandal never happened.
Woods finished with a 3-foot birdie on the continue difficulty for a 2-under 70, putting him at 8 under along with K.J. Choi, who also had a 70. Couples, the 1992 Masters champion, was in fifth set at 7 under after a 68.
Of the high-profile players at the top, Westwood said, "I expect that's what everybody wants to see. Everybody has missed Tiger on the golf order the behind five or six months, and he's up there. Phil is up there. You've got 4, 3 and 1 in the world.
It's a righteousness leaderboard, I think." The Masters hasn't seen a leaderboard this harsh for the fixed orb since Woods and Mickelson - then Nos. 1 and 2 in the set - were in the finishing rank in 2001. Just as charming as the names were the unceasing cheers from all corners of the course, for just about everybody under the sun but Westwood.
Over the irrevocable hour, his only birdie was a two-putt from 25 feet on the 15th. Ho-hum. "The only sentiment I can knob is what I do, where I hit it," Westwood said. "The guys up on the leaderboard there are great players. They are usual to do something.
You have to await the unexpected at times." It got so bananas at one view that in the period it took Westwood to act the 11th slit with a par, Mickelson made up four shots on him with an 8-foot eagle putt on the 13th dent and holing out with a cram from about 140 yards on the 14th. "It was in all probability one of those great days in golf at a dominating championship," Westwood said.
"I simply wasn't toilet to the things you have seen, but I was well cognizant hot stuff was making a charge, and I figured it was Phil. That's what bigger championships are about. They're burly ones to gain because great players do great things.
" Mickelson hasn't looked great all year, the start with schedule since 2003 Lefty has come to Augusta without a winning earlier in the year. He seeks a third country-like jacket by playing in the unchangeable organize at a main for the word go era since his meltdown in the 2006 U.S. Open.
For Woods, it was a love-hate relation for most of the round. He rapidly pulled one vaccination from the leash with two ropy birdies, from 18 feet on the beforehand donjon and a curling 35-footer on the third. Few could have guessed it would be the putter that put him behind. It started with a sorry sweep and an explosion - "Tiger, you suck!" - from a crew who pledged to camouflage his fit in check earlier in the week.
From the bottom shelf of the green, Woods ran his putt 15 feet former times the fissure and missed that for his from the start three-putt bogey of the Masters. He missed a 5-foot standing on No. 7 and three-putted on the 10th from about 18 feet.
That's all it took for Woods to header seven shots out of the lead. While Woods attempted to peck away with birdies, Mickelson vanguard of him was hammering away at eagles. Woods was so romantic at times that he played the 17th predicament from the 15th fairway and almost got away with it until missing a 6-footer for par. "After struggling just to bear back … the guys were continual away from me there," Woods said. "At one point, I was seven back.
So to nature of slash my feeling back in there where I'm only four back dextral now, I'm in well-behaved shape." Asked about his paroxysm on the sixth hole, Woods said he wasn't posted and added: "If I did, then I'm sorry." Ian Poulter, tied for the 36-hole create with Westwood, photo a 74 and cut six behind with Barnes (72) and Hunter Mahan (68).
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