Take a deep breath, tomorrow could be historic. After a wild Saturday that saw a record day for scoring, Sunday at the Masters will feature many heavyweights in the final groups. Francesco Molinari (-13), Tiger Woods (-11), and Tony Finau (-11) will tee off last while Brooks Koepka (-10), Ian Poulter (-10), and Webb Simpson (-10) will be in the penultimate group. Masters Leaderboard

Masters Sunday will begin earlier than normal this year. Because of an incoming storm, tee times will begin at 7:30 a.m. EST at both the 1st and 10th tees. The leaders are due to tee off at 9:20 a.m., and CBS coverage will begin at 9.

Frankie’s Grace

Francesco Molinari had just one bogey over his first 54 holes. That stat may seem surprising, but Molinari’s consistency is nothing new. Since the 2018 Open, Franky has made only six bogeys over 163 holes of major championship golf. He is -31 in that span and has a victory at the Open, a T-6 at the PGA Championship, and the third-round lead at the Masters. Molinari has 14 birdies over his first three rounds and heads into Sunday two shots clear.

The Prowl

The news of the weekend is the return of Tiger Woods to the top of the Masters leaderboard. Tiger started slow on Saturday but made six birdies over his final 13 to grab a share of the lead. Molinari eventually passed him, but Tiger’s birdie on 16 pushed his name to the top of the manual leaderboards at ANGC.

Tiger Woods has four green jackets, yet he has not won at Augusta in 14 years. Think about that. There are millions of kids who have grown up idolizing Tiger but have no memories of him winning the Masters. He has gotten himself into contention since 2005 but has not been in a final group since then.

On Sunday, April 14, 2019, Tiger Woods and his iconic, blood-red polo will tee it up in the final group at Augusta National. Millions of fans around the world will tune in hoping to see him turn back the clock and chase down his 15th major. It promises to be a historic Sunday.

  • Tony Finau surged up the leaderboard thanks to a 64 on Saturday. Finau abused the front nine, tying the course record of 30. Finau finished in the top 10 in three of the four majors last year. Two shots back of Molinari, Finau will look to put together another hot round to track down the Italian.

  • On a day of record scoring, Brooks Koepka put together a modest 69. He sits three shots back of Molinari, in excellent position to capture his 3rd major championship, especially if a few more putts drop today.

  • Webb Simpson shot himself into contention with another 64 on Saturday afternoon. He worked his way from -1 to -9 and will enter the final round just four shots out of the lead.

  • Former major winners Dustin Johnson and Louis Oosthuizen lurk at -8, and each will look to win his second major and first green jacket.

  • Rounding out a large group at -8 are Matt Kuchar, Justin Harding, and Xander Schauffele, each of whom is looking for his first major.

  • Despite putting on a stripe show the first three days, Adam Scott sits six shots behind Molinari. Scott’s putting has been the only thing more abysmal than his pleated slacks.

  • Phil Mickelson was on fire as he rolled down Magnolia Lane, but he came out flat on the course, shooting 70 and falling six behind Molinari. Before the round, Mickelson posted a video of himself driving into Augusta and gabbing about hitting bombs and Matt Kuchar’s stinginess.

  • Amazingly, there were actually three 64s on Saturday. Patrick Cantlay’s round was particularly interesting considering the lion’s share of his birdies came on Augusta National’s most difficult holes (1, 4, 6, 9, 11, 14, 15, 17). He made just one birdie on the par 5s and still managed to get within one of the course record. Despite his great round, he will enter Sunday seven shots back.

  • Rory McIlroy continued his mediocre play with a third-round 71. He made some odd comments about the rough afterwards, seemingly offering excuses for his poor play. His attempt to complete the career grand slam will have to wait another year.

  • Viktor Hovland (-2) and Takumi Kanaya (-1) both had solid rounds on Saturday and will battle for low amateur on Sunday.

Puncturing the Augusta National veil

Augusta National has never been more accessible to the Masters golf fan. The app is revolutionary, the tracking feature has never been better, and nearly every shot of the tournament can be found online. Some have argued that all of this technology ruins the mystique of the club. Have we ever stopped to ask if mystique is actually a good thing? Garrett Morrison dives into this topic in his latest article. Down with mystique

The Latest Podcasts

Shotgun Start Podcast: Live from the Bixby House: Saturday at the Masters

It’s Saturday night in Augusta, and Andy and Brendan have come down from the high of Friday night’s off-the-rails episode. They have some intel from a doctor on the efficacy or quackery of Jason Day’s balloon treatments. They bring you a quick recap of the third round as well as some picks for Sunday’s early start. They react to Tiger’s 67 and charge into the final Sunday tee time at the Masters, as well as the machine Frankie Molinari refusing to give up an inch at the top of the leaderboard. They also address Adam Scott messing around with a tabletop putting stance just minutes before teeing off in the final group of a weekend round at the biggest event of the year. They get to the news of Rory saying Augusta’s rough has a negative impact on the competition. Updated odds and picks for Sunday’s final round wrap up this truncated edition as Andy and Brendan prep for an early start for the last 18 holes. Listen on iTunesStitcher or Spotify

The Fried Egg Podcast

We posted three podcasts with Geoff Ogilvy talking about the experience of playing the Masters and Augusta National. These podcasts are sure to enhance your viewing experience tomorrow morning, so carve out some time to give them a listen on iTunesStitcher or Spotify.