By now, most golf fans know Rocco Mediate has become such a poker buff that he played in last year's World Series of Poker, finishing 600th among 5,619 players.

Rocco Mediate would love to kill time during delays by playing cards in the locker room, but PGA rules forbid it. (Associated Press)

Mediate chafes a bit during rain delays on the PGA Tour, though, because of a longstanding rule against playing cards in locker rooms that was instituted when Deane Beman was the commissioner.

"It's too bad, because that would really make the time go quickly," Mediate said Saturday while waiting out the suspension of the third round.

He said only a few other tour players have gotten as interested in poker as he has. Paul Azinger is one.

"Zinger doesn't want to have anything to do with me," he said about Azinger's poker ability.

The tour banned card-playing at tournament sites because members of private clubs that played host to tour events complained about some of the players winning too much money, which was creating hard feelings. There were never any allegations of cheating - just world-class golfers also being world-class gin rummy players.

PERMANENT MARKER: Augusta National member Jeff Knox was the noncompeting marker with Jim Furyk in Saturday's third round. Knox said he was asked by the club to play with Furyk, who needed a playing partner for his 10:40 a.m. tee time.

Knox said he believes he shot 75, though he picked up a couple of tap-in putts to help speed up play. While Knox held his own, Furyk shot the low round of the third round so far with 4-under-par 68.

"My marker was fine," Furyk said. "We had a good time. I really enjoyed his company. Good guy. Good player."

HENSBY'S TURNAROUND: Australian Mark Hensby posted 80 in the first round and was tied for 79th.

After two stellar rounds, 67 on Friday that tied for the day's best and 70 on Saturday, Hensby finds himself tied for 23rd at 1 over.

He and Tim Herron were the last group to finish the third round Saturday before darkness.

"I didn't really play that bad the first round," said Hensby, who tied for fifth at last year's Masters. "You get down a little bit. But you know a lot can happen around here, no doubt.

"I thought I played pretty well coming in, and I shot 80 in the first round, but this is the sort of course that if you miss it, you pay the price."

Hensby will get to sleep a little later today and will try to do the same things he's done the past two days.

"I've been getting off to a good start," he said, "and if you do that, you can kind of cruise from there."

ENJOYING THE AFTERMATH: Stephen Ames said the two weeks since he won The Players Championship have been hectic. He cut short a family vacation to play in the Masters and shot 70 in the second round to make the cut at even par.

"I got a lot of weight off my shoulders with that victory," he said. "I'm in the majors for three years, and that gives me a chance to prove I can win one of those tournaments, without having to worry whether I'll be back the next year. It's been a great experience so far (winning The Players)."

Ames said that in retrospect, his final-round 67 under difficult conditions at the TPC at Sawgrass Stadium Course was not his best single round on tour. He still ranks a 61 in the second round at Doral in 2000 ahead of his closing round at The Players.

"But (The Players) was my best round on Sunday," he said.

SUBTLE ADVICE: It's a custom during rain delays at Augusta National for players, caddies and the media to mingle on the back porch of the clubhouse. One of the better yarns told Saturday was by Ben Crenshaw about his first appearance in the Masters as an amateur in 1972, when he had a head of long, thick hair.

At the time, the clubhouse had a barber shop. Crenshaw was greeted by club chairman and co-founder Clifford Roberts.

"Mr. Roberts started off by telling me how happy he was to have me in the Masters," Crenshaw said. "Then he started telling me how many great golfers they had in the Masters from Texas and how well they had done in the tournament. Then he said, 'By the way, did you know we have a barber shop right here in the clubhouse?'"

Crenshaw took the hint and got a trim.

WHO'S THE FAVORITE: "Any tournament kind of favors Tiger Woods," said Tim Herron, who stands at 2 over through three rounds. "He's the best golfer in the world. He knows this course better than maybe anyone. So look out for Tiger."

WHITE DOGWOOD REDUX: The hole Larry Mize made famous doesn't much remind the 1987 Masters winner of the one he chipped in on that year to claim the green jacket in a sudden-death playoff.

"It's a completely different hole than what we used to play," Mize said about No. 11 after completing a third-round 77 on Saturday.

Mize said he hit a 5-iron into that hole in the 1987 playoff. On Saturday, he hit a 3-iron.

The Augusta native said that he doesn't have flashbacks of his 140-foot chip-in and that he doesn't really think about it when he's playing the tournament. At times he will go over it in practice rounds, though - if he's asked.

"Sometimes when I'm playing practice rounds out here, guys will ask me about it, where it was from, that kind of thing. And I'll go over it a little bit, show them where I hit it. So I'll jump into it during practice, but I'm too focused during the tournament to worry about it."