AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) Rory McIlroy was laughing and bouncing and swaggering all the way around Augusta National.

After his final stroke on a soggy Saturday, he delivered an emphatic pump of the fist.

No wonder he’s so excited.

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This is McIlroy’s best chance yet to join one of golf’s most exclusive clubs .

Taking advantage of several fortuitous bounces, McIlroy shot a 7-under 65 Saturday to match his lowest score ever at the Masters , pushing him within three shots of the lead and into the final group with Patrick Reed.

There are plenty of days when a golfer feels like the breaks go against him.

This wasn’t one of those days for McIlroy.

He chipped one in from 23 yards away for an eagle at the par-5 eighth hole . He saved par at the 13th after knocking his ball into a thick patch of pink azaleas. He watched an errant tee shot at the final hole ricochet back into the fairway, setting up a birdie that could have easily been a bogey.

”I rode my luck a little..

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) A glance at the key hole Saturday at the Masters:

HOLE: 13

YARDAGE: 510

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PAR: 5

STROKE AVERAGE: 4.64

RANK: 17

KEY FACTS: Patrick Reed reached the green in two and sank a 14-footer for eagle that turned a two-shot lead into a four-stroke advantage. Just a few minutes earlier, Rory McIlroy pulled his second shot into the azaleas left of the green, found the ball under the colorful foliage, managed to punch it out to the fringe and then got up and down for an impressive par.

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AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) He’s been trying his best to stay in the moment, something that hasn’t always come easy for Rickie Fowler.

His friends have won major championships, and he’s celebrated with them, genuinely happy for their success. The sight of Fowler waiting by the 18th green to trade high-fives and hugs with players like Bubba Watson and Sergio Garcia is a familiar one to golf fans.

But when he starts thinking about winning one himself, things often quickly go south.

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That didn’t happen on Saturday, when Fowler didn’t make a bogey on his way to a 7-under 65 that put him in third place in the Masters. Though he’s five shots behind Patrick Reed, only Rory McIlroy stands between him and the leader.

Close enough to start to think just a little bit ahead, if only for a moment.

”Obviously it’s been everyone’s dream to win the Masters,” Fowler said. ”Growing up, to be able to have that chance to walk up 18 with a chance to win or maybe you have it closed ou..

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) Dustin Johnson burned the edges. Jordan Spieth lipped out more than his fair share. Justin Thomas just never got comfortable on the greens.

Three of the world’s best golfers blamed putting woes for being mostly stagnant on Moving Day at the Masters on Saturday.

With everyone else around them moving up the leaderboard, Johnson, Spieth and Thomas didn’t keep pace. And they had a similar culprit: The putter, arguably the most important club on Augusta National’s treacherous greens.

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Johnson and Spieth each shot 1-under 71 in the third round. Thomas was one stroke better (70) and moved to 5 under heading into the final round.

Their body language on the greens told the story. They leaned left. They leaned right. They begged a little and pleaded a lot. They shook their heads, swung their putters through the air and walked off in a huff more often than not.

Now, all them are considered long shots to win golf’s first major of 2018. Third-round..

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) Adam Hadwin is one of those rare Canadians who never played hockey.

Like all Canadians, he was rocked by a tragic bus crash that claimed 15 lives in his home country.

Hadwin, a native of Saskatchewan who now lives near Vancouver, shot an even-par 72 Saturday in the third round of the Masters after learning of the catastrophic wreck involving the Humboldt Broncos, a junior hockey team on its way to a playoff game.

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”It shows you how short life is,” Hadwin said minutes after walking off the course, just as the rain started falling again on a gray, overcast day in Georgia. ”You need to appreciate every moment. You need to appreciate the people around you.”

A tractor-trailer truck slammed into a bus carrying the Broncos, a wreck of such devastating proportions that a doctor compared it to an airstrike . The impact was especially profound in a vast but close-knit country united by its love of hockey.

”We obviously don’t have that many peopl..

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) A look at the third round Saturday in the Masters:

LEADING: Patrick Reed had a 5-under 67 for a three-shot lead.

TRAILING: Rory McIlroy shot 65 and will play in the final group at the Masters for the first time since 2011.

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CONTENDING: Rickie Fowler was five shots behind and Jon Rahm of Spain was six shots behind. Each shot a 65.

TIGER TALES: Tiger Woods played the par 5s in 1 over and shot 72. He was 18 shots behind.

EAGLES HAVE LANDED: McIlroy, Rahm and Reed each chipped in for eagle.

KEY STATISTIC: Reed has rounds of 69-66-67. No one has ever shot all four rounds in the 60s at the Masters.

NOTEWORTHY: The top four players on the leaderboard are all in their 20s.

QUOTEWORTHY: ”We’ve actually got quite a good relationship, but at the end of the day, it’s business and we’re both trying to do something pretty special.” – McIlroy on playing with Reed in the final group.

KEY TEE TIMES: Patrick Reed and Rory McIlroy, 2:40 p.m.; Rickie ..

Russell Henley was with wife Tei, when she gave birth to their first child on Tuesday, and is grateful that early concerns about the baby's health have subsided

AUGUSTA, Ga. — As he snuck his way into contention at the Masters on Saturday, shooting a six-under 66 to jump into the top five, we came to the realization that there are a three things Tommy Fleetwood—Golf Digest's April cover boy—is truly known for in golf circles.
• He was born and raised in Birkdale, England (remember all those stories last year about Fleetwood being a lock to win the Open?)
• He won the 2017 Race to Dubai
• He has a tremendous head of hair. A head of hair that would make Jared Leto jealous. Or Jennifer Lawrence. A head of hair that conjures up hirsute Hall of Famers as Samson, Fabio and Johnny Deep.
There was a time, however, when the third truism had yet to be. A quick Google search of “Tommy Fleetwood Short Hair” will show you the days when the Englishman used to own a razor and visit the barber. And it’s really rather fascinating.
FacebookPinterestDavid CannonHere is Fleetwood when he played on the 2009 Great Britain & Ireland Walker Cup team.

FacebookPi..

Patrick Reed loves the Ryder Cup. We know this. You know this. That ain't no news flash. But does he love the Ryder Cup enough to where he'd use a 2016 Ryder Cup umbrella from Hazeltine at Augusta National? Yes, folks. Yes he would.
As Reed continues to excel at the Masters, extending his lead on Saturday, he showed off his ultra-American umbrella walking the fairways of Augusta National. When it started to downpour on the 12th hole, Reed broke out the Hazeltine umbrella.
We've seen Reed utilize part of his American wardrobes before, but to do so at the Masters? This guy is so American it hurts.
RELATED: Inside Patrick Reed's success and the American win at the 2016 Ryder Cup
https://twitter.com/Adam_Sarson/status/982727504912879616
Not coincidently, Reed went on to roll in a clutch eagle putt at the 13th hole after breaking out the umbrella. Sending those good vibes.
This isn't the first time we've seen Reed breaking out Ryder Cup gear during another even..

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) Tiger Woods was trying to figure out how to get to the 17th green from closer to the 15th fairway when the massive gallery anticipating his shot heard a huge roar behind them that caused them to look over their shoulders.

Rickie Fowler was responsible for making all that noise with an eagle on the second hole.

The third round of the Masters was just getting started on Saturday. The player so many fans wanted to see was about done.

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Needing something special to even have hope, Woods had to settle for ordinary.

A few sloppy bogeys, two of them on par 5s. A few birdies. It added to an even-par 72, his best score of the week.

”I’m not hitting it close enough. I’m not taking advantage of the par 5s and consequently a good round is even par,” Woods said.

It was disappointing, sure, but it also was surprising.

Woods spent so much of the Florida swing of the PGA Tour piecing his game back together, and his iron game was particularly sharp. A..