Rory McIlroy produced an outstanding third-round 66 to lead the Masters by two shots heading into the final round.
Having rebounded from a difficult start with a sensational second round at Augusta National, McIlroy was in sparkling touch again as he powered away from the field having begun the day two shots behin leader Justin Rose. A remarkable start saw the Northern Irishman become the first player to record a three at each of Augusta’s first six holes, while a mid-round wobble was put aside with a strong back nine.
Reigning US Open champion Bryson DeChambeau is closest to McIlroy on -10 having birdied the last with a superb putt, and will play alongside the man he denied at Pinehurst last summer. Rose has slipped back into the pack of chasers behind Corey Conners (-8), sitting at -5 a shot below Ludvig Aberg and Patrick Reed. A surge from defending champion Scottie Scheffler did not materialise, with Shane Lowry and Jason Day among those also failing to convert strong starts into low rounds. They wait seven shots back needing a serious slip-up from McIlroy, you’d think, to contend.
Re-live all the action and the latest third round scores and leaderboard from Augusta below:
The Masters 2025 - Round 3
- Rory McIlroy seizes control of the Masters with a third-round 66
- Masters 2025 leaderboard - Round 3
- -12 McIlroy (66)
- -10 DeChambeau (69)
- -8 Conners (70)
- -6 Reed (69), Aberg (69)
How Rory McIlroy seized control of the Masters to set up duel with Bryson DeChambeau
Sunday 13 April 2025 00:19 , Harry Latham-CoyleA superb 66 from Rory McIlroy has left him perfectly placed entering the final round - but a familiar foe lurks two shots back.
Rory McIlroy seizes control of Masters - but familiar foe Bryson DeChambeau lurks
Round 4 tee times
01:01 , Harry Latham-CoyleHere are the final-round tee times, with it all building up to that final two-ball of Rory McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau. They are off at 7.30pm BST (2.30pm local time):
Bryson DeChambeau reflects on his round
Sunday 13 April 2025 00:30 , Harry Latham-Coyle“Every hole matters,” DeChambeau tells Sky Sports. “The most important thing is looking forward to the next shot. I wasn’t striking my irons well today so I have to go and work on that. If I get that right, it’s going to be a fun match.”
Rory McIlroy speaks to Sky Sports after seizing the lead
Sunday 13 April 2025 00:09 , Harry Latham-Coyle“It was a dream start. You want to maybe be one or two under through three, and I was four-under through three. I had a bit of a wobble around the middle of the round, but I felt like I steadied myself with a really good par putt on 11. All I was trying to do was take advantage of the par fives, and I did that. The shot of the day for me with the six iron on 15 - a great Saturday at Augusta and I’m excited for tomorrow.
“I’m not going to shy away from it. Situations like tomorrow are the reasons I get up and work hard and practice. If I didn’t want this moment, I wouldn’t be doing those things. These are the pairings I want to be in.”
Masters leaderboard after third round
Sunday 13 April 2025 00:05 , Harry Latham-Coyle-12 Rory McIlroy (66)
-10 Bryson DeChambeau (69)
-8 Corey Conners (70)
-6 Patrick Reed (69), Ludvig Aberg (69)
-5 Scottie Scheffler (72), Shane Lowry (72), Jason Day (71), Justin Rose (75)
What a putt!
Sunday 13 April 2025 00:00 , Harry Latham-CoyleWhat a way to finish from Bryson DeChambeau! An extraordinary putt at the last and it’s a 69 and just two shots between him and our leader!
Corey Conners four shots back
Saturday 12 April 2025 23:54 , Harry Latham-CoyleA handy par putt on 18 means a 70 for Corey Conners, four in arrears and likely to be playing in the penultimate group. He’s got the steady game to stay in touch but might need to find a few more shots tomorrow to threaten a major breakthrough.
Bryson DeChambeau shows all of his power to find the fringe out of the bunker. Serious club speed to get it up, out and scooting across the dancefloor. Negotiate his way down in two or fewer and he’ll play with McIlroy tomorrow.
Rory McIlroy leads the Masters
Saturday 12 April 2025 23:50 , Harry Latham-CoyleIt’s not to be, but a sensational 66 means Rory McIlroy (-12) will lead the Masters entering the final round.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 23:49 , Harry Latham-CoyleAnd if McIlroy can afford himself a glance back down the fairway, the sight of Bryson DeChambeau finding a bunker might just please him.
Can he find his 10th three of the round?
Rory McIlroy finds the heart of the green
Saturday 12 April 2025 23:46 , Harry Latham-Coyle“Go! Go!” Rory McIlroy cries - but there’s no need! That’s one final resplendent iron to leave him a putt for a 65.
Matt McCarty endures tough finish
Saturday 12 April 2025 23:45 , Harry Latham-CoyleA “Welcome to Augusta” end to Matt McCarty’s third round at the Masters: bogey, double, bogey, to go from -6 to -2 down the stretch. Tough for a debutant who had showed so much steel earlier in his round. He’ll be back tomorrow for more.
What can Bryson DeChambeau do from the very edge of the 17th green? A lot, is the answer - it’s not quite left dead though not far off at all, which is a cracking effort from where he was having to ride up over a ridge and along the fringe.
Up the 18th...
Saturday 12 April 2025 23:37 , Harry Latham-CoyleRory McIlroy dices with danger down the right hand side of the 18th, avoiding the pines but leaving himself with only one option when he comes to play the approach, having to play some sort of high slice. Corey Conners follows him down and is in a bit more bother with his comparative lack of distance - he may be totally blocked off.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 23:36 , Harry Latham-CoyleAnother error in his approach-play from Bryson DeChambeau, a good-looking golf shot ending up far from ideally placed. It’s another draw that he’s pushed too far - those soft touches that he had to show earlier have become rough edges.
Rory McIlroy heading to the last
Saturday 12 April 2025 23:32 , Harry Latham-CoyleNo dice for Rory McIlroy’s birdie putt at 17, but he’ll take a par at this juncture. I’m sure he’d love another in ten minutes’ or so.
Scottie Scheffler remains -5
Saturday 12 April 2025 23:30 , Harry Latham-CoyleIt didn’t happen for Scottie Scheffler today, a 72 nothing to sniff at but the envisaged charge not materialising. He’s seven behind our leader as things stand - one suspects Scheffler will be draping the green jacket over somebody else’s shoulders tomorrow.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 23:28 , Harry Latham-CoyleOh, Justin. That’s a wretched four from the Englishman, birdie turning to bogey in two terrible putts.
No such problems for Bryson DeChambeau, who seizes second outright. Off he stomps full of focus having narrowed the gap - though another fantastic approach from Rory McIlroy leaves him well placed on the 17th.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 23:25 , Harry Latham-CoyleGroans on the green at 17 and 16. First Shane Lowry’s par putt hooks an edge and keeps on going, before Justin Rose makes fails to convert that lovely shot over the water a hole behind.
Lowry sheds a shot heading to the last.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 23:20 , Harry Latham-CoyleIt’s a sublime tee shot at the 16th, too, from DeChambeau, rallying at tjust the right time.
Justin Rose has a seven iron in hand as he looks to follow his partner. And that’s just as good - both within a few feet.
Bryson DeChambeau moves into share of second
Saturday 12 April 2025 23:16 , Harry Latham-CoyleA birdie it’ll be for Bryson DeChambeau.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 23:12 , Harry Latham-CoyleThe difference between Bryson DeChambeau and Rory McIlroy is so clear. DeChambeau leaves himself similarly placed on the 15th but where McIlroy was pinpoint and precise, the American sends his seven-iron bundling over the back left of the green.
To be fair to him, he does a fine job with the chip - but that should have been an eagle putt.
Rory McIlroy swells lead
Saturday 12 April 2025 23:06 , Harry Latham-CoyleThat’s just the second time in Rory McIlroy’s career he’s had two eagles in a single round at a major. The other? The Open in 2014. A good omen?
Less auspicious times for rookie Matt McCarty, who is in the drink at the 16th. Shane Lowry was lucky to avoid a similar fate, just catching the lip of a bunnker to prevent a drenching.
But Rory McIlroy extends advantage
Saturday 12 April 2025 23:02 , Harry Latham-CoyleThe task has just become taller, though - in goes the eagle putt and Rory McIlroy extends his lead to four shots.
Rory McIlroy. pic.twitter.com/TiQJlKStuu
— Fore Play (@ForePlayPod) April 12, 2025
Justin Rose back to -7
Saturday 12 April 2025 23:01 , Harry Latham-CoyleA little pump of the fist from Justin Rose as he birdies the 14th.
Rory McIlroy on to the 15th green
Saturday 12 April 2025 22:56 , Harry Latham-CoyleGlorious. Rory McIlroy tattoos the 15th green with a magnificent second, backing up another scorching tee shot. It’s a birdie for sure; a short eagle putt awaits.
Nerves jangling?
Saturday 12 April 2025 22:53 , Harry Latham-CoyleAn angry toss of the club from Bryson DeChambeau, flipping it up to himself having come up some way shy of the 14th green. He’s just lost his touch since the turn. Justin Rose shows him how it is done by leaving himself virtually pin-high.
Ludvig Aberg in at -6
Saturday 12 April 2025 22:47 , Harry Latham-CoyleIn alongside Patrick Reed at -6 with a 69 on the day is Ludvig Aberg - though the failure to take a great sighter of a birdie on 18 will disappoint him. Still, he’s right in the thick of things, and he closed rather well last year. A danger.
Masters round three
Saturday 12 April 2025 22:45 , Harry Latham-CoyleA missed opportunity from Bryson DeChambeau, unable to convert a booming drive on 12. His seven iron in should have been much better, tugged into a bunker, and DeChambeau throws his head back in frustration after his birdie putt goes by.
Patrick Reed takes clubhouse lead
Saturday 12 April 2025 22:43 , Harry Latham-CoyleAnother very tidy round from Patrick Reed, in for a 69 and the clubhouse lead at -6. That might be temporary - Ludvig Aberg’s approach on 18 is excellent - but Reed will head into Sunday in one of the final few groups, you feel.
Rory McIlroy extends advantage
Saturday 12 April 2025 22:32 , Harry Latham-CoyleIndeed it is.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 22:30 , Harry Latham-CoyleIn the end, it’s a friendly enough chip for Rory McIlroy, the stance not too awkward and the angles kind to feed it down. That should be a birdie...
Bryson DeChambeau bogeys the 12th
Saturday 12 April 2025 22:28 , Harry Latham-CoyleBryson DeChambeau can only hope to leave himself a shortish putt back the other way with little room to play with out of the bunker. In the end, it’s lengthy, and long gone - back to -7.
Matt McCarty makes first birdie
Saturday 12 April 2025 22:25 , Harry Latham-CoyleFabulous news for Matt McCarty - and whoever marks his card - as a streak of pars is snapped at the 13th.
With the green clear, McIlroy can play. Ooh, that’ll be awkward, his ball hanging on at the cliff edge like the end of The Italian Job having seemingly been bound for bunker. It could have been worse.
A par for Justin Rose at the 12th, unable to get his birdie putt to go.
Amen Corner
Saturday 12 April 2025 22:22 , Harry Latham-CoyleNeither Bryson DeChambeau nor Justin Rose quite finds ideal position on 12, with DeChambeau buried in the bunker.
Rory McIlroy is again off line at 12 - can he produce something as spectacular as yesterday’s second?
Ludvig Aberg closes to within three
Saturday 12 April 2025 22:17 , Harry Latham-CoyleTwo to go for Ludvig Aberg, who is galloping through the back nine. Three on the spin lift him into a share of fourth, with Justin Rose dropping a shot to join that quartet.
It's brewing nicely
Saturday 12 April 2025 22:12 , Harry Latham-CoyleEverywhere you look there are contenders ticking along. Aberg very nearly has a hole in one at 16 and will surely tap in for a birdie, while Xander Schauffle (-4) almost holes out for an improbable birdie of his own.
Ludvig Aberg in the hunt
Saturday 12 April 2025 22:08 , Harry Latham-CoyleAnother stroke gained for Ludvig Aberg leaves him lingering dangerously in the depths like a sea monster - four back for now, we know he can close quickly.
Last year’s runner-up will know not to go chasing it overly today. So much more to come.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 22:05 , Harry Latham-CoyleAn important par at 11 for Rory McIlroy, rattling it in to stop the skid. That early fluency is gone, though.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 22:03 , Harry Latham-CoyleNo such troubles for Jason Day - a chip and run to get to -6 alongside Shane Lowry and the Aussie is loving it.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 22:00 , Harry Latham-CoyleBryson DeChambeau’s touch around the greens has come on so much in the last couple of years. He checks a chip perfectly to leave it stone dead having made a mess of his approach.
Scheffler can’t get up and down in two. A bogey at 12. Heaps more golf still to be played, obviously, but the defending champion is fading.
Corey Conners one back
Saturday 12 April 2025 21:56 , Harry Latham-CoyleCorey Conners is quietly compiling an excellent round. He’s now within one of his playing partner and the lead after a third consecutive made putt.
Scottie Scheffler not quite firing
Saturday 12 April 2025 21:53 , Harry Latham-CoyleAnother chance missed for Scottie Scheffler at the 11th, and then another tugged tee shot on the 12th - it’s not quite as errant as his effort yesterday, though he doesn’t benefit from quite as friendly a bounce, either. Still, having chipped in for a two then, he’ll fancy his chances of doing something similar from slightly further around the apron.
At the 14th, a much-need birdie for Ludvig Aberg, curling it in like Declan Rice.
Another shot gone for Rory McIlroy
Saturday 12 April 2025 21:47 , Harry Latham-CoyleThe slide continues. There’s no obvious error at the 10th from Rory McIlroy but he just gets a little over excited with his approach, sending it past the pin and then three putting. The lead narrows.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 21:46 , Harry Latham-CoyleHard lines for Justin Rose, bashing down the front door but knocking it off its hinges as his powerful putt bounces in and out. It’s a good job it did find the heart of the cup, even if it didn’t drop - anywhere else and that might still be travelling.
He and DeChambeau head to 10 with pars in their pocket.
Shane Lowry remains in contention
Saturday 12 April 2025 21:42 , Harry Latham-CoyleOohs and aahs around the 10th green as Shane Lowry’s very good putt isn’t quite good enough. He settles for a four and fifth place outright, with Jason Day knocked off that mark of -6.
A word, by the way, for Matt McCarty, who has made nine pars to take the turn -5. Very pleasant - if not enthralling.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 21:35 , Harry Latham-CoyleIt’s not happening for Scottie Scheffler, though he gets himself out of real bother with a doozy of a par putt at the tenth.
Matching fours for Bryson DeChambeau and Justin Rose two holes back. They head into the final hole of the front nine two and three behind respectively.
Another birdie for Corey Conners
Saturday 12 April 2025 21:32 , Harry Latham-CoyleA good little spell for Corey Conners here. Another birdie takes him into a share of second - perhaps temporarily, with Bryson DeChambeau standing over an eagle putt at the eighth.
Rory McIlroy goes out in 32, a birdie putt passing him by.
Viktor Hovland with a crucial bogey
Saturday 12 April 2025 21:27 , Harry Latham-CoyleOne of the best bogey putts Viktor Hovland will ever make, that. After getting himself in a right muddle at the 10th, the Norwegian snatches a five from downtown having appeared to be shuddering to a halt. He’ll say his prayers wandering to the 11th tee still just five back.
Rory McIlroy drops a shot at eight
Saturday 12 April 2025 21:19 , Harry Latham-CoyleA second birdie of the day for Corey Conners, cancelling out to bogeys. He’s been a spectator to the show alongside Rory McIlroy, but a solid round will keep him in touch.
But that’s a bogey for his playing partner, a first blemish on the card. A slight misread of his par putt leaks it out to the right, and he pays the price for that nasty drive.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 21:13 , Harry Latham-CoyleMore problems for Rory McIlroy. His tee shot at the eighth ends up sprawled in the sand, and a vicious upslope means he can’t do much with his second. He finds the back corner with his third but there’s loads to do to get down in two for a par.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 21:10 , Harry Latham-CoyleSteady eddie golf from Jason Day as he trots into Amen Corner with five consecutive pars having extricated himself from quite the predicament behind a magnolia tree. -6. A productive 11, 12, 13 - tricky though that is - could put the pressure on.
Rory McIlroy makes par
Saturday 12 April 2025 21:02 , Harry Latham-CoylePar saved. The run of threes will not continue but given where he stuck his tee shot, that might be his best hole yet.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 21:00 , Harry Latham-CoyleIt’s just so smooth. A potentially troublesome chip is played with just about perfect weight, drawing a thumbs up from Corey Conners as McIlroy sets himself up for a short putt. It won’t be a seventh three but a four should be his.
At the sixth, Bryson DeChambeau has a trickier par attempt. A bit of left to right...scooting in! He’s sticking in there.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 20:55 , Harry Latham-CoyleRight, can Rory McIlroy dig himself out of the mire? He’s got a little lucky to avoid the pine straw, instead sitting in the second cut. How does he play it? Punch out? Send up a flyer and hope?
The latter, it seems. Up it goes, down it comes...long and left, but in the game. A par is his best hope but we know he’s in a confident mood.
FORE!
Saturday 12 April 2025 20:49 , Harry Latham-CoyleWell, it was fun while it lasted. A first real sign of vulnerability in this remarkable Rory McIlroy start, wiping one into the trees at the seventh. That’s down by the 17th tee box - though given how he’s playing, he might just find an angle to the flag.
Rory McIlroy saves par at six
Saturday 12 April 2025 20:45 , Harry Latham-CoyleOh, Rory McIlroy is in the zone. Six threes in a row to start his round - the first player in Masters history to ever to do that. This par at six needs saving, too, but a nerveless putt never looks likely to end up anywhere other than buried at the bottom of the cup.
A hole behind, Bryson DeChambeau very nearly finds a miracle out of the backside bunker. A second salvaged par from the sand from him in a row will keep him in check.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 20:37 , Harry Latham-CoyleA birdie at the sixth for Shane Lowry continues a dream day so far for those of an Irish persuasion. He joins Justin Rose, whose just lost a shot at the fourth and hasn’t yet got going, at seven under.
Another birdie for Rory McIlroy!
Saturday 12 April 2025 20:31 , Harry Latham-CoyleFive under through five! Rory McIlroy raises a palm to the patron, another lengthy birdie putt disappearing without so much of a wobble. This is extraordinary.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 20:28 , Harry Latham-CoyleJust when Viktor Hovland was beginning to threaten, dropped shots at five and six see him slide again. An eventful front nine so far for Hovland, who suggested yesterday that he felt his swing was currently only at a seven out of 10 - for a player known for tinkering, you do wonder if Hovland will ever be totally happy with his game.
A dropped shot for Bryson DeChambeau
Saturday 12 April 2025 20:23 , Harry Latham-CoyleYep, a bogey for Bryson at the third. He admonishes himself as he knocks it in - he knows he’s played that poorly.
Bryson DeChambeau scrambling
Saturday 12 April 2025 20:19 , Harry Latham-CoyleAll a little untidy from Bryson DeChambeau at the third, biting off more than he can chew with his drive, making a hash of his first chip and then leaving the second shy of where he’d like it. A real nibbler of a par putt to come.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 20:15 , Harry Latham-CoyleHe won’t let it affect him, but Scottie Scheffler will be hearing the cheers from the groups behind him. He’s not quite found his range yet, though he averts disaster at the fifth with a lovely up and down.
Speaking of which, for the second time today, Sungjae Im’s caddie won’t be required to retrieve his putter. The South Korean holes out from a frontside bunker to join those four in arrears.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 20:11 , Harry Latham-CoyleIt’s not quite McIlroy’s start, but birdie, birdie means Bryson DeChambeau has blown out of the blocks, too. His long eagle putt after that iron leaves him with work to do, but the US Open winner does it with a minimum of fuss.
Shane Lowry, meanwhile, has dropped back to -6.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 20:07 , Harry Latham-CoyleThere are times where you have to remember just how good, and frankly freakish, some of these guys are. When faced with 244 yards, there are plenty of golfers would be happy to give it a go in two; Bryson DeChambeau instead stands over his ball with iron in hand and finds the green. An eagle putt upcoming at the second.
On the third green, meanwhile, it’s another for Rory McIlroy. Four strokes gained in three holes. Supreme golf.
Lowry on the move
Saturday 12 April 2025 20:01 , Harry Latham-CoyleRory McIlroy’s isn’t the only Irishman off to a strong start. Par, birdie, birdie for Shane Lowry, whose eyeing his great mate at the top of the leaderboard.
An eagle for Rory McIlroy!
Saturday 12 April 2025 19:54 , Harry Latham-CoyleOh my! Rory McIlroy has an eagle at the second! A chip from the fringe is delicate, deft and delectable, the hole gobbling it up. What a start - we have a new solo leader.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 19:52 , Harry Latham-CoyleMcIlroy goes right at the flag at the second, but it’s almost impossible to hold it with that pin position today - in behind a bunker in a shallow section. McIlroy’s high, hanging iron kicks just out the back.
No birdie at three for Scheffler, a makeable putt sliding by for the second time in three holes for the American.
But there are roars at one - Bryson DeChambeau drains one from a distance having flown towards the back. Nobody’s had a handle on that angle today, but beefy Bryson nailed it. Into a share of the lead.
Rory McIlroy birdies the first
Saturday 12 April 2025 19:48 , Harry Latham-CoyleBooming drive, precise approach, perfect putt - it’s been a great start from Rory McIlroy:
Rory McIlroy starts his third round with a birdie! 🤩 pic.twitter.com/ujfdSUaF3j
— Sky Sports Golf (@SkySportsGolf) April 12, 2025
Viktor Hovland on the move
Saturday 12 April 2025 19:47 , Harry Latham-CoyleSound the alarms - Viktor Hovland is on a roll. Birdie, birdie at two and three for the Norwegian, who joins Corey Conners and Scottie Scheffler at -6.
Crikey, Rory McIlroy is properly feeling it. Just the 369 yards from the tee at the second.
All groups out on course
Saturday 12 April 2025 19:42 , Harry Latham-CoyleJustin Rose and Bryson DeChambeau have teed off - all of our groups are out on course or back in the clubhouse.
Rose doesn’t much like his drive, a grimace as he dances up by the bunker on the first. He might well be in it, you know.
A three-wood for DeChambeau, who nails it. Right of centre but A-OK.
Up on the green, will it be a birdie three for Rory McIlroy? It will! A statement of intent.
Zach Johnson signs for a 66
Saturday 12 April 2025 19:39 , Harry Latham-CoyleThe low round of the day for Zach Johnson, an excellent 66 moving him potentially into contention. After an early start this morning, he’ll be able to afford himself a line-in tomorrow - he’ll begin again at -4.
Scheffler converts his birdie opportunity to get his scoring started.
Scottie Scheffler shows his class
Saturday 12 April 2025 19:35 , Harry Latham-CoyleThe bloke a stroke behind them is pretty good, too. Having found a bunker from the tee, Scottie Scheffler chucks it out on to the second fairway. 107’s the number, and Scheffler very nearly finds it, pitching past the pin and screwing back to leave a dream birdie putt. Tasty.
Rory McIlroy crushes opening drive
Saturday 12 April 2025 19:32 , Harry Latham-CoyleHere’s Rory. An excited hum from the patrons around the first tee as the Northern Irishan steps up to strike, driver in hand. An ambitious line right over that right-hand bunker...but when you can hit it like that, why not take the risk? Over it goes and onwards further, too. That’s some way to start - just 76 yards left after a 371-yard thunderbolt!
Corey Conners is nowhere near as ambitious, but starts solidly, finding the heart of the fairway.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 19:29 , Harry Latham-CoyleA nice one to have for Xander Schauffele, climbing the stairs up to another storey on the two-tiered sixth green to get back to -2. Two birdies, two bogeys for the reigning champion golfer.
Scottie Scheffler misses birdie putt
Saturday 12 April 2025 19:24 , Harry Latham-CoyleNow then. Scottie Scheffler is spooked by Tyrrell Hatton’s par putt, which tumbles away to the right at the last. Scheffler therefore adjusts his line to account for the late movement and is then perplexed as his ball fails to fall.
A birdie chance passed up.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 19:22 , Harry Latham-CoyleA lesser-known name right amongst things is Matt McCarty, who makes a stonking start with a rapid address, swing, and pick up of the tee with the ball belted down the first fairway. There’s a lot to like about McCarty, another of those to pick up a first PGA Tour win late last year and with a left-handedness and crispness of shot to suit this course. This is his first taste of Augusta - indeed, he’s only once previously played at a major, though that doesn’t seem to be holding him back.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 19:19 , Harry Latham-CoyleAlso powering up to three back from our leader is Jason Day. There are some good names gathering as we await our final few groups.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 19:18 , Harry Latham-CoyleA shot goes for Zach Johnson at the 17th, a bad tee shot scuppering his chances of scoring and the par putt sliding by. On the other side of Augusta, Sungjae Im replaces the American in the clutch at -5 - an eagle three at the second for the very talented South Korean, who finished tied for second on Masters debut in 2020. A zippy chip in from Im.
Ominous. Pin high from Scottie Scheffler with a just-about perfect first approach. He really does make it look easy.
Teeing off...
Saturday 12 April 2025 19:12 , Harry Latham-CoyleTogether on the tee and with new company at -5, it’s Scottie Scheffler and Tyrrell Hatton. They are two contrasting characters, hot-head Hatton perhaps not the ideal man to be alongside Scheffler, who you’d imagine wouldn’t say boo to a goose. But these are two high, high-class golfers with the game to go well today.
Scheffler to play first. Solid enough, though straying an inch or so into the first cut.
What can Hatton produce? Whippy and slightly wild, and hidden behind the line of the pines.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 19:05 , Harry Latham-CoyleI mean, Zach Johnson playing his way on to the American Ryder Cup team at Bethpage Black would be pretty fun after a not quite fulfilling experience as captain in Rome in 2023. That’s perhaps getting a little ahead of ourselves, though...
Another for Zach Johnson!
Saturday 12 April 2025 19:04 , Harry Latham-CoyleWow! Another birdie for Zach Johnson at the par-three 16th, and he’s flying up the charts: -5 overall, a cool -7 for the day, and a proper rolling back of the years.
Zach attack
Saturday 12 April 2025 18:57 , Harry Latham-CoyleWell well well. From +2 to -4 for Zach Johnson, showing that low scores can be had even on ever firmer and faster greens. He’s four-under on the second nine so far - it’s a tricky finish, obviously, but an oustanding round is within the veteran’s grasp.
Pitching it precisely. Zach Johnson birdies No. 13 to reach five under par on the day. #themasters pic.twitter.com/c6OnGPCC6z
— The Masters (@TheMasters) April 12, 2025
Still to come...
Saturday 12 April 2025 18:55 , Harry Latham-CoyleJust the five groups left to tee off this evening (all times BST):
19:00 Rasmus Hojgaard (Den), Viktor Hovland (Nor)
19:10 Scottie Scheffler (US), Tyrrell Hatton (Eng)
19:20 Matt McCarty (US), Shane Lowry (Ire)
19:30 Rory McIlroy (NI), Corey Conners (Can)
19:40 Justin Rose (Eng), Bryson DeChambeau (US)
A nightmare for Brian Harman
Saturday 12 April 2025 18:51 , Harry Latham-CoyleOne of the great snap cuts from the director on the television coverage, switching quickly from a relaxed Justin Rose on the range to a partially-visible figure kneeling in the pine straw. It’s a leftie in a pink shirt - oh, poor Brian Harman, forced to duck down beneath some branches and grasp his club halfway down to improvise something out on to the fairway. That’ll check his momentum a bit after picking up a shot at the fourth.
Ludvig Aberg bogeys the first
Saturday 12 April 2025 18:47 , Harry Latham-CoyleNot to be for Aberg for par. Down to -2 he drops.
Ludvig Aberg in a bit of bother
Saturday 12 April 2025 18:46 , Harry Latham-CoyleLudvig Aberg goes through the back of the first green, leaving himself a devilish little pitch and run back the other way. He does a decent enough job with it, but that’s still a 10-footer or so for par.
His effort gives Hideki Matsuyama a decent read of a putt from a similar angle. It’s not quite there, but Matsuyama weights his attempt perfectly, leaving a far less onerous par putt.
The first round of the day has been signed for - it’s a 72 for lone ranger Tom Kim, playing with a marker and with a winning finish as he chips in on the 18th.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 18:40 , Harry Latham-CoyleAn excellent start from Collin Morikawa, converting a typically pleasant approach into an opening birdie. Two majors already in his pocket, of course.
The big names keep on coming
Saturday 12 April 2025 18:34 , Harry Latham-CoyleGiven the peaks they are able to reach, you feel like Bryson DeChambeau, Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler are perhaps the three men in the field most capable of blowing away the competition over the next 36 holes - but after them, Ludvig Aberg at three under might have the game best equipped to properly dominate Augusta. His first drive trundles into the softer stuff on the left edge of the fairway but shouldn’t pose too many problems.
Hideki Matsuyama is alongside the hulking Swede. He’s even further left, the patrons ducking for cover but protected by the pine trees. Not an ideal start.
Zach Johnson on the charge
Saturday 12 April 2025 18:27 , Harry Latham-CoyleZach Johnson has had strapping on his elbow all week as he deals with a slight issue in his arm, but the injury appears to be little hindrance today - a wonderfully delicate little wedge on to the 13th after laying up should allow him to reach -3. Six birdies and a bogey so far for the 2007 champion. Hard to believe it has been 18 years.
Patrick Reed and Collin Morikawa begin
Saturday 12 April 2025 18:24 , Harry Latham-CoyleA three wood for Patrick Reed at the first. For a former Masters champion not necessarily loved by much of the public, rock-solid rounds of 71 and 70 seem to have gone entirely under the radar. He’s in a fun duo with Collin Morikawa, who could really jump up the standings today if he gets his immaculate irons going on a second-shot course.
Up on the green, Fleetwood makes a mess of his putt to leave himself with plenty to do for par. Schauffele can’t get his birdie effort to fall, either, tapping in for a four. Fleetwood fails to make his - a shot gone at one.
Fleetwood and Schauffele find the green
Saturday 12 April 2025 18:18 , Harry Latham-CoyleA gust of wind perhaps does for Tommy Fleetwood’s approach at the first, the shot sent skywards and sailing on him to leave him with a tricky putt from right at the back of the dancefloor.
Can Xander Schauffele show him how it is done? A relaxed swing from the American...and that’s lovely, using the backstop beyond the flag to bring it back down towards an eminently makeable distance.
On the tee...
Saturday 12 April 2025 18:12 , Harry Latham-CoyleTommy Fleetwood has gone for a pale blue quarter zip today, and he smokes his drive up the left-hand side of the first fairway about 10 yards short of Xander Schauffele’s ball. Prime position for both men as they get going.
Masters third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 18:11 , Harry Latham-CoyleAlso starting brightly is Nico Echavarria, winner of the par three contest earlier in the week. The Colombian goes to -2 - no player has ever won both the par three event and the Masters itself in a single week. One somehow imagines that won’t be changing come Sunday night but you never know...
Bubba Watson birdies the first
Saturday 12 April 2025 18:04 , Harry Latham-CoyleHarman has another southpaw for company, and a man blessed with real Masters expertise - two-time winnter Bubba Watson has a birdie at one to join his playing partner at -2.
Third round
Saturday 12 April 2025 18:00 , Harry Latham-CoyleA few of those at -2 out and about, including Open winner Brian Harman. Conditions are rather different here to the wretched weekend he endured on his way to success at Royal Liverpool, but lefties like Augusta - six shots feels like a lot but if he gets going...
Justin Rose off to the practice green
Saturday 12 April 2025 17:58 , Harry Latham-CoylePerhaps bracing for the twisting tests to come a little later, Justin Rose is striding purposefully across the practice area towards the putting green, stick tucked under his arm like a country rambler preparing to clamber over a stile. Our leader is off at 7.40pm BST.
Augusta hits back
Saturday 12 April 2025 17:50 , Harry Latham-CoyleOh dear, oh dear. The gloves are off for Aaron Rai as he enters his latest bout with an Augusta green, his par putt sliding some way past having hit the green at the sixth. In the end, a punchy bogey putt is a pretty good one to land having left himself plenty to do - a second shot of the day gone for the Englishman, but that could have unravelled.
Maverick McNealy finds one from the bunker
Saturday 12 April 2025 17:41 , Harry Latham-CoyleA much-needed birdie for Maverick McNealy at the seventh, showing his skill in the sand to get a shot back after shelling a couple early in his round. He’s an interesting fella, the World No 10 - though perhaps lacking in the profile that lofty ranking might usually command, McNealy has been pretty consistent on the PGA Tour since claiming his first event win from a lean field in November, while also sometimes flying himself to tournaments courtesy of his pilot’s licence. One way to save on baggage fees, I suppose.
Wyndham Clark into the red
Saturday 12 April 2025 17:37 , Harry Latham-CoyleA nice putt at the third from Wyndham Park, rolling it from left to right and into the cup.
That’s a good’un, too, from Jon Rahm - though it’s a par save from a distance rather than another stroke for the Spaniard, who takes the turn at -1.
Patrick Cantlay with an eagle!
Saturday 12 April 2025 17:30 , Harry Latham-CoyleThe first of the under-par starters have begun, and they’ve got company further ahead on the undulating terrain - an eagle arrives for Patrick Cantlay at the eighth after a 282-yard howitzer from the fairway. To -1 he goes.
Click here to read the full blog on The Independent's website
