AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) Legendary sports writer and author Dan Jenkins talks about Ben Hogan winning the first Masters he ever covered in 1951, and how things have changed at Augusta National – particularly the greens.

Jenkins tells “AP Sports Special Events” podcast co-hosts Jim Litke and Tim Dahlberg that he always got along with Hogan, who was also from the Ft. Worth, Texas, area, and was along for the ride as Hogan won in 1951 and 1953.

Jenkins also talks about thinking Ken Venturi, not Arnold Palmer, was going to be the next big star in golf. He said Palmer had a better game than he thought, and the magnetism that took golf into a new era when he won the Masters in 1958 and 1960.

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He also tells the hosts that his other love in sports is college football, and talks about the greatest games and greatest athletes he’s seen.

It’s the 67th Masters for Jenkins, who recalls the scratchy yet fast greens from the 1950s as well as the Quonset hut that the press use..

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) It’s essentially a Ryder Cup rematch at Augusta National.

Patrick Reed and his par-5 prowess versus Rory McIlroy and his penchant for clutch shots.

A 27-year-old American seeking his first major championship versus a 28-year-old Irishman chasing golf history.

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It’s Hazeltine in 2016 all over again, and the Masters can only hope for a similar, back-and-forth, down-to-the-wire finish.

Reed and McIlroy are forever linked to that singles match two years ago. Reed prevailed on the 18th hole in a rare U.S. victory at the Ryder Cup.

Now, it’s about stroke play, and with golf’s first major of 2018 on the line.

”It’s definitely not a two-horse race at this point,” McIlroy cautioned. ”There’s a lot more guys. I told myself today, leaderboards are huge here; it’s hard to miss them. But I said to myself, `Don’t concentrate on them too much. Try not to look at them.’ It’s hard not to.

”I’ll obviously know what Patrick Reed is doing, but apart fro..

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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For more AP golf coverage: https://apnews.com/tag/apf-Golf and https://apnews.com/tag/TheMasters

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.

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