Norman, who has led the entire way in the 60th Masters Tournament, has a six-shot lead over his closest competitor, Nick Faldo, and is seven shots ahead of Mickelson, who is in third place. Mickelson, a San Diego native, shot an even-par 72 and is at 6-under-par 210 after three rounds.

Phil Mickelson didn't have much to smile about by the time he putted out for a bogey 5 on the third hole Saturday.

Mickelson seemed pleased with his even-par 72 Saturday because he said the course was playing tough. He seemed anxious to get on the putting green in hopes of regaining a lost putting touch.

``When you get to the par 5s, you need to birdie those holes,'' Mickelson said.

Mickelson shot a 1-over-par 37 on the front nine and a 2-under 37 on the back nine. He was disappointed with himself for the way he played No. 13 and No. 15, both par-5 holes.

``I hit a 7-iron into 13 and came up short,'' Mickelson said. ``Hit a good chip to 4 or 5 feet and missed it. And 15, I had a 6-iron in from 191, and I thought I needed to hit it really good because the wind was coming into me. And I just `pured' it. I was posing, and it was just really disappointing to see that thing fly over the green. It just flew over.''

``The first six holes are the toughest holes on the golf course,'' Mickelson said. ``That's my mind set right now - to play the first six holes aggressively and somewhere under par.''

This is Mickelson's second straight year in contention. Last year, he opened with 66 and finished with three plus-70 scores and a tie for seventh.