From the final pairing, Masters champion and World No. 172 Charl Schwartzel bogeyed three of his final five for a 1-over-par 35-38=73 in R3 of the Masters, down two spots to T4, seven shy of leader and playing competitor Scottie Scheffler (71).
The South African, who’s in on 2-under 214 (72-69-73) and arrived this week off six consecutive missed cuts, won the 2011 Masters in his 17th major and second Masters, where he came from four back (T2) with 6-under 66 to win by two. His most recent TOUR title in 242 career events came 114 starts ago at the 2016 Valspar, where he came from five back (8th) with 4-under 67 before prevailing in a 2-man playoff over 54-hole leader Bill Haas. Today, the 37-year-old landed nine (of 14) fairways and 13 greens in regulation, highlighted by a hole-out 2 at the par-4 10th from 136 yards away, but followed that with squares at 11, 14, 16 and 17. The flat stick was the culprit for backing up, primarily on the second nine, including 3-putt bogeys at 16 (from 10 feet) and another at 17 from 58 feet. Afterward (link below): “It wasn’t easy. I thought I played exceptionally well. Just had a poor day with the putter. Normally in the cold I struggle, and today I played beautifully. So just a bad day with the putter.” Tomorrow, the South Florida resident will be in the third-to-last pairing with another South Florida resident and fellow major champion Justin Thomas.