Masters: Scottie Scheffler in lead as third round continues

On a cold and windy Augusta National, Tiger Woods faced another Masters comeback test on Saturday as he pursued third-round leader Scottie Scheffler.

Woods, who is playing in his first competitive event since a single car accident nearly cost him his right leg 14 months ago, started an overcast afternoon nine shots behind Scheffler and will need to come up with something special to catch the world number one and stay in contention for the Green Jacket.

Woods’ famous third-round surge got off to a shaky start, with the 15-time major champion bogeying the first hole for the second day in a row, giving himself an even greater hill to climb.

Woods, dressed in black pants and a white sweater with his hands dug deep in his pockets to keep warm, walked to the par-five second and responded with a three-foot putt for birdie.

The 46-year-old Woods’ broken leg will now be put to the test by the cold after battling Augusta National’s undulating layout, one of the hardest walks in golf, and severe gusts on Friday.

Scheffler, the hottest golfer on the planet, is set to tee off at 250 p.m. ET, with three PGA Tour victories in his last five outings (1850).

Even with a five-stroke lead at the top of the leaderboard, the 25-year-old American cannot afford to relax because he is being pursued by a trio of major winners, including South African Charl Schwartzel, the 2011 Augusta National winner, Irishman Shane Lowry, the 2019 British Open winner, and defending Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama of Japan.

Im Sung-jae of South Korea, the first-round overnight leader, was also five back.

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