AUGUSTA, Ga. — It’s not often the word “gettable” is used to describe Augusta National on a Saturday at the Masters, but that’s exactly the adjective several players used after this year’s third round.

Nineteen of the 54 players who made the cut posted rounds in the 60s on Saturday, led by the 65s posted by Scottie Scheffler and Cameron Young. In all, 35 broke par on a day in which Augusta National yielded a scoring average of 70.63, lowest in a third round in Masters history.

After the field averaged 74.65 on Thursday, Ireland’s Shane Lowry predicted this might prove to be “the toughest Masters we’ve played in a while due to the dry and firm conditions. Lowry made a hole-in-one Saturday that catapulted him to a 4-under-par 68 and 9 under for the tournament.

The scoring average dipped to 72.85 on Friday, leading many players to predict tournament officials would ratchet up the difficult dial for the third round, but most were surprised to find the greens mostly still receptive and many pins in attackable positions.

“Pretty easy,” Max Homa said when asked how the course was playing after posting what he felt was a disappointing 71. “The front nine is pretty — I mean, very gettable. I didn’t feel like it was too fast, too firm. Obviously the weather is amazing, so it helps.”

Even Rory McIlroy, the co-leader despite shooting a 1-over-par 73 on Saturday, acknowledged low scores were out there for the taking.

“The course was obviously gettable,” he said. “There was a lot of good scores out there, and the quality of the chasing pack is obvious. There was a lot of guys that shot good scores.”

Patrick Reed said Thursday he hoped the tournament officials would ratchet up the difficulty level. Adam Scott echoed that sentiment to a degree given the lack of the traditional winds that create additional difficulty around Augusta National.

“I think the firmer and faster they can get it, the better,” Scott said. “I mean, there’s no wind. The greens are still very, very friendly.

“I don’t think it’s the scariest I’ve ever seen it here, but I love seeing the fairways play firmer. On some of these holes that turn, having the ball run and you’re having to be more precise with your line off the tee is an important defense of the golf course.”

Jason Day wasn’t complaining after shooting a 4-under 68 that left him in a tie for fifth, just three shots off the lead at 8 under for the tournament.

“I expected to see it a little bit different than what I saw today. I mean, you were hitting shots in there that were spinning,” Day said. “Typically sometimes you get to Saturday at Augusta and they’re bouncing. It’s really difficult to hold some shots.

“So, I thought the green speeds were lovely. I thought the green firmness was great. It was very fair, and I think that’s why you’re seeing a lot of, like, decent scores out there, which brings in a lot of the crowd, which is great.”

Scheffler also took advantage of an early tee time to make his turn in 5-under 31 on his way to a career Masters-best 65 that could have been even lower. He’ll go out in the fourth-to-last group today, when the course will likely be at its firmest and fastest of the week.

“It depends on what the leadership here wants to do,” Scheffler said. “If they want to see some lower scores, they can make them softer if they want. They’re already pretty firm, so they can just go full Bay Hill (at the Arnold Palmer Invitational) and just let them die.

“It’s Augusta. They’ll figure it out after that.”

AUGUSTA, Ga. – Rory McIlroy is making Masters history as he enters the third round on Saturday at Augusta National with a commanding six-shot lead.

McIlroy sets new 36-hole Masters record

What we know:

McIlroy secured the largest 36-hole lead in Masters history on Friday, finishing at 12-under 132. 

He capped off a second-round 65 by birdieing six of his final seven holes, including a 30-yard chip-in on the 17th hole. 

The previous record for a midway lead at Augusta was five shots, a mark held by golf legends like Jack Nicklaus (1975), Jordan Spieth (2015) and Scottie Scheffler (2022). 

What we don’t know:

While McIlroy maintains a six-shot lead, it remains to be seen whether he can maintain this pace over the final 36 holes. 

Chasers looking to close the gap

What’s next:

McIlroy will tee off for his third round at 2:50 p.m. ET Saturday paired with Sam Burns.

Burns and Patrick Reed sit tied for second on The Masters leader board at 6 under. 

Justin Rose, Shane Lowry and Tommy Fleetwood are another stroke back at 5 under.

Chasers will need a low round to catch McIlroy, who is looking to become just the fourth player in history to win back-to-back green jackets.

DeChambeau misses cut after bunker trouble

Dig deeper:

While the leaders moved forward, one big name headed home early. Bryson DeChambeau missed the cut after finishing at 6-over par on Friday. 

His exit was fueled by two triple bogeys—one on Thursday at the 11th hole and another on the 18th hole Friday. 

In both instances, DeChambeau struggled to escape greenside bunkers, needing multiple shots to get out of the sand.

Leaderboard feels the heat of Rory’s run

By the numbers:

-12: Rory McIlroy’s total score, six shots clear of the field.

-6: Sam Burns and 2018 champion Patrick Reed are tied for second place.

-5: Justin Rose, Shane Lowry, and Tommy Fleetwood sit seven shots back.

132: McIlroy’s 36-hole total, which is one of the lowest in tournament history.

6: The number of players who previously held a five-shot lead after two rounds, including Scottie Scheffler in 2022.

How to watch the Masters

What you can do:

Where to watch (all times ET)

Streaming

• Masters.com + Masters app
• ESPN App
• Paramount+
• Amazon Prime Video
• DirecTV
• CBS Sports app / CBSSports.com

TV

• CBS (Rounds 3 & 4): 2–7 p.m. ET

Saturday & Sunday (rounds 3–4)

• Start time: 10 a.m.
• Paramount+: 12–2 p.m. (early coverage)
• CBS: 2–7 p.m.

SOURCES:

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) — The only thing that stopped Rory McIlroy in the Masters was running out of holes to play Friday.

McIlroy stood on the 12th tee in a tie with Patrick Reed and with a dozen other players bunched together in what was shaping up to be a compelling chase for the green jacket.

Six birdies over his final seven holes for a 7-under 65 left everyone to wonder if they were playing for second. McIlroy’s fourth straight birdie to close out the best round of the week gave him a six-shot advantage, setting the Masters record for largest 36-hole lead.

“I knew I had some chances coming in when I was standing on the 12th tee, but I didn’t think I’d birdie six of the last seven,” he said. “It just shows what you can do around here.”

He did it in spectacular fashion. McIlroy twice made birdie on the par 5s after laying up from the trees. He twice had short putts on the par 3s. And if all that wasn’t enough, he chipped in from 30 yards up a slope so steep he couldn’t even see the hole.

The final hour of a fascinating day started to look like a victory lap for McIlroy, who spent 17 years trying to win the Masters and now looks like he can’t wait to do it again.

His tee shot over Rae’s Creek on the dangerous 12th hole landed 7 feet behind the flag. He birdied both par 5s after having to lay up from the trees. He took advantage of the lower pin at the par-3 16th for what amounted to a tap-in birdie.

And then he really sent the gallery into a frenzy when he chipped in from 30 yards on the 17th. McIlroy knew it was good because “I could see everyone in the grandstand start to stand up.”

And there was one more to go — another perfect approach that came down the slope to 6 feet for one last birdie.

That put him at 12-under 132, six shots clear of Reed (69) and Sam Burns (71). The previous record for the largest 36-hole lead at Augusta National was five shots by six players, most recently Scottie Scheffler in 2022. The first was Harry “Lighthorse” Cooper in 1936, the only player in that position who did not win the Masters.

If McIlroy holds on, he would become the fourth player to win back-to-back at the Masters, joining Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo and Tiger Woods.

He had a two-shot lead after 36 holes in 2011 and stretched it to four shots going into the final round before he famously imploded with an 80. That was the start of his Masters heartache that lasted until a year ago, when he triumphed in a playoff to finally prove he could win at Augusta National.

Maybe he should start thinking about next year’s menu for the Masters Club dinner.

“I know what can happen around here, good and bad,” McIlroy said with a smile. “You don’t have to remind me not to get ahead of myself. There’s a long way to go. I got off to an amazing start.”

Augusta allowed for that. It was warmer, brighter, drier. The wind wasn’t quite as strong and the gusts didn’t swirl as much. And there was much better scoring in part because of more generous pin positions, including on 16 and 18, where cleanly struck shots could feed toward the hole.

The scores were nearly two shots lower than Thursday.

That didn’t help everyone, least of all Bryson DeChambeau. He fought back from an opening 76 and was one shot below the cut line when it took him two shots to get out of a greenside bunker on the 18th, the second shot rolling off the false front back down to the fairway. He made triple bogey and missed the cut.

Reed was bogey-free until failing to save par on the final hole. That also cost him a spot in the final group Saturday with McIlroy. They were paired together in the last group in 2018, with seemingly all of Augusta on McIlroy’s side, only for Reed to win handily.

Burns birdied his last two holes to salvage a 71 and will be paired with McIlroy.

Justin Rose, the playoff loser to McIlroy a year ago, had a rough day with the putter and still shot 69 to be part of the group at 5-under 139 — now seven shots behind — along with Shane Lowry (69) and Tommy Fleetwood, who had two eagles in his round of 68.

McIlroy took three weeks off heading into the Masters — no one since Adam Scott in 2013 won the Masters coming off a break that long — and felt it was to his advantage.

He took multiple trips to Augusta — sometimes day trips to get home for dinner — and spent most of his time working on his short game, which has been superb.

“I felt like I was part of the furniture,” McIlroy said of all his visits to the course.

He also had a six-shot lead at the Congressional in the 2011 U.S. Open, the major after he blew his big lead at the Masters, and he went on to win by eight. He learned that week to push on instead of protect, the same approach he plans for the weekend.

“Look, I’ve built up a nice cushion at this point,” McIlroy said. “I guess my mindset is just trying to keep playing well and keeping my foot on the gas.”

Scheffler, the world’s No. 1 player who has won two of the last four Masters, is now 12 shots behind. Scheffler twice hit into the water on the par 5s on the back nine, made bogey on both, and shot 74 for his first round over par at the Masters in three years.

The players in what looked to be the B-flight had all finished before McIlroy went on his astonishing run of birdies. Cameron Young and U.S. Amateur champion Mason Howell had a front-row seat to McIlroy in full command at the Masters.

“You’ve got to stay in your own lane, but it’s hard not to watch that,” Howell said after missing the cut. “That chip-in on 17 was unreal. That was one of the coolest things I’ve seen in sports, and I got to witness it in person. So that was awesome.”

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AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf