AUGUSTA, Ga. >> With Jordan Spieth and Phil Mickelson side by side for a lot of Saturday’s third round of the Masters, the future was walking with the past.
Spieth shot himself into contention with a 68 entering today’s closing 18 of the first major of the golf season, with Mickelson taking himself out of it en route to a 74. But it didn’t start out that way.
Mickelson opened birdie-birdie on the first two holes, then went chunk-chunk on the par-4 third and never really recovered from that double bogey on his card.
Spieth wasn’t faring much better, with five consecutive pars to begin his round, but suddenly caught fire with three birdies on the closing four holes of the front nine, whipping the huge gallery following this twosome into a frenzy as they made their way to the back side of Augusta National.
At the par-5 13th, Spieth’s second shot into the narrow green over Rae’s Creek was almost identical to the one Mickelson hit in 2010 that propelled him to his third green jacket.
Like Mickelson, Spieth narrowly missed an eagle try, settling for a tap-in birdie that wasn’t as dramatic as Phil’s perhaps, but one that might figure prominently enough if he wins today.
Spieth begins the final round tied for fourth with Ryan Moore and Charley Hoffman at 4 under for the tournament, two shots off the lead of Europeans Sergio Garcia and Justin Rose, who are looking for their first green jacket.
Sandwiched between these five golfers is Rickie Fowler at 5 under, who like Garcia, is in search of his first major championship.
Rose beat Mickelson at the 2013 U.S. Open for his only win in a grand slam event but did capture the gold medal at the 2016 Olympics. Local golf fans will remember Rose finishing second to Justin Thomas at this year’s Sony Open in Hawaii. Do you recall who placed third? That would be Spieth, who is trying to win his third major and second Masters championship. In three previous appearances at Augusta National, he has never finished lower than second.
“We fought back tremendously to have a chance to win this golf tournament,” Spieth said. “And no matter what happens at the end, we will have a chance to win with a really good round (today). So, new experience for me, coming from behind on Sunday at the Masters, which is kind of fun to say.
“We have a great history here. Really, really enjoy playing this golf course, enjoy the imagination that’s necessary. Being behind might free me up a bit. I plan to play aggressive, because at this point, it’s win or go home. And if I don’t, then so be it. Finishing fifth vs. finishing 10th doesn’t mean much to me, so that frees me up a bit.”
It sets up for a frantic finish, the kind of drama the patrons love and expect here with 10 golfers within five shots of the lead.
Among them are past Masters champions Spieth (2015), Adam Scott (2013) and Charl Schwartzel (2011), as well as Garcia, Fowler and Lee Westwood, who are among the best golfers in the world never to win a major. On this day, fans came to see if Mickelson could once again hang with the younger set.
The 46-year-old looked good early, getting everyone believing that Spieth was in for a long afternoon with two red numbers to start his round. His wife, Amy, following along, told reporters that Phil was excited to be paired with Jordan. Between them, they had four green jackets, and did enjoy each other’s company throughout the long third round.
But at half his age, Spieth had a level of endurance that Mickelson couldn’t muster, despite being cheered on at every hole by the appreciative patrons, who loved his fast start, but understood his understated finish. This is still a young man’s game, as the 20-something barrage of late attests.
At age 40, Hoffman is now the old man of this sixsome, with Garcia and Rose 37 and 36. Moore is 34, Fowler 28 and Spieth just 23 as one of these men is likely to be your next Masters champion. Of this group, Moore was your Las Vegas long shot at 90-to-1, with Hoffman (65-1), Garcia (25-1), Rose (20-1), Fowler (15-1) and Spieth (5-1) rounding out this group.
It promises to be an entertaining final round, with youth likely to be served once again. The sentimental choice is Garcia. He has played in 71 consecutive major championships without a victory, a goose egg no one else can match, nor wants to for that matter. He is maintaining a positive attitude, but like Mickelson, is running out of opportunities. This could be his last best chance with the patrons firmly behind him every step and swing of the way.
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Paul Arnett, Star-Advertiser sports editor, provides daily insight from Augusta.
