On the brink
Moving day leaves tenacious leaders unshaken
No one blinked when Tiger Woods roared up the leaderboard and into contention in the third round of the Masters Tournament on Saturday.
Least of all Trevor Immelman, who strengthened his grip on the first major championship of the year and kept Woods on the outside looking in.
Immelman, of South Africa, birdied the 18th hole for the second day in a row and shot his third consecutive round in the 60s -- the latest was 3-under-par 69 -- that put him at 11-under 205.
That's the lowest 54-hole total since Woods had 205 in 2005, and is 13 shots better than the 54-hole lead in 2007.
Immelman leads Brandt Snedeker by two shots, Steve Flesch by three and Paul Casey by four. Woods is next, six back.
Immelman is only the 10th player in Masters history to shoot in the 60s in the first three rounds -- Retief Goosen was the last, in 2002. No one has done it in all four rounds.
"All I can ask for myself is to play as hard as I can and believe in myself and hope for the best," the 28-year-old Immelman said. "I'm going to go out there and play my heart out."
Immelman has been in the lead from Day 1. He shared it after an opening 68, led by one after another 68 in the second round and now is up by two.
No one is hitting the ball better than the leader. He tops the field in fairways hit (he's missed just four) and is tied for first in greens hit in regulation (41 of 54).
If he wins, Immelman will be the first wire-to-wire winner since Raymond Floyd in 1976.
Snedeker, a Nashville, Tenn., native, also birdied the 18th hole for the second day in a row to shoot a roller-coaster 70 and stay within striking distance of Immelman, his Saturday playing partner.
Snedeker bogeyed three holes in a row -- Nos. 11-13 -- then rallied with birdies on Nos. 14, 15 and 18.
Immelman and Snedeker play together again today, teeing off at 2:25 p.m.
Flesch, a lefty out of Kentucky, has never finished higher than 17th in the Masters. He shot 69 on Saturday.
England's Casey had his second consecutive 69.
If Immelman and the other three players ahead of Woods -- none of whom have won a major championship -- can keep their heads about them again today, there won't be a fifth green jacket or 14th major win for Woods, the world's No. 1 player.
The four in front of Woods don't strike fear into many, at least not based on their world ranking or career victory total. Immelman is ranked 29th, Snedeker 44th, Casey 34th and Flesch 107th. The four have combined for six PGA Tour victories, with Flesch leading the way with four wins. Immelman and Snedeker have each won once. Casey is a European Tour star, where he has won eight times.
Immelman, who has just two bogeys and 13 birdies in 54 holes, has been rock solid all week. He didn't blink after Woods posted his 68 as he was just hitting Amen Corner. He proceeded to play the corner in 1-under and added birdies on Nos. 14 and 18 to shoot 3-under-par 33.
Immelman better hope he didn't use up all his good fortune Saturday. Calling up memories of Fred Couples, Immelman's third shot on the 15th hole stayed up on a bank when it appeared headed for the water. Just as Couples did when his ball stayed on the bank on No. 12 in the final round of the 1992 Masters, Immelman took advantage of the break and saved par.
"I was just waiting for the ball to come to a stop," Immelman said. "I had no control of it. I was begging for it to stop as soon as it could. I knew there was a chance it was going to go in the water. I must say I couldn't quite believe it when it stayed up."
The same thing happened to Snedeker on No. 15 in the first round, and he made birdie.
"Those are the kind of breaks you need when you're trying to win a golf tournament," Snedeker said.
"I'm extremely fortunate my ball stayed up there, but there is a long way to go in this tournament," Immelman said, pointing out there is a "massive difference" between a break like that happening in the third and fourth rounds.
It appears today's round will be played in conditions resembling a wind tunnel. The wind picked up Saturday to 15 mph and is expected to howl today. The forecast is for winds of 10-20 mph with gusts of 25 mph.
"It depends on how hard it blows; someone is going to play good golf," Casey said. "Look at the top three guys; one of them is going to play good golf, and it's probably going to be Trevor. The way he's been playing, he's going to be the one to catch."
If Casey hits a home run today, he'll be the first European winner since Jose Maria Olazabal in 1999.
Ian Woosnam, the 1991 Masters champion from Wales, said Casey shouldn't be concerned about winning for Europe.
"You play for yourself," he said. "Then everything comes with it, doesn't it?"
"I'm in nice position," Casey said. "Not too far behind Trevor. I'm looking forward to tomorrow."
Woods, who has a streak of 26 holes without a bogey, is hoping the weather will work to his advantage.
"It's supposed to be pretty blustery and a little cooler," he said. "You've got to hang in there and be patient out there because it doesn't take much to make a high number out here."
If Woods wins, it will be the first time he's done it at the Masters coming from behind after 54 holes. He led by nine in 1997, by one in 2001, was tied for the lead in 2002 and was three ahead in 2005. He has never come from behind to win any of his other nine majors.
Last year, Woods was one shot off the lead after 54 holes and led early in the round before finishing tied for second place, two shots behind Zach Johnson, the surprise winner.
The same thing could happen today, Johnson said after 68 moved him into a tie for seventh place, but nine shots off the lead.
"There's not any one of those guys who couldn't win a major as far as I'm concerned," Johnson said, referring to Immelman, Snedeker, Flesch and Casey. "They're all just really, really good."
Woods, who was tied for 13th place after rounds of 72-71 this week, would be the first player since Jack Nicklaus in 1986 to win after being outside the top 10 after 36 holes.
"You expect it," Johnson said of Woods' charge up the leaderboard. "It's nothing out of the ordinary. He's just a different breed."
Flesch, 41, is the oldest player among the contenders and the most surprised to be there. He said before the Masters that he'd have to "play my butt off" to make the cut, but he's 8-under for the past two rounds after opening with 72.
"I'm looking at it as if I've got nothing to lose," Flesch said. "Nobody expects Steve Flesch to do much in the Masters, but I have a big heart and I'm a gritty competitor and I want to play well. I'm showing a few of my wares this week.
"I've got four victories in 11 years out here. If you're going to make a run at one, you might as well make a run at one this week."
Reach David Westin at (706) 724-0851 or david.westin@augustachronicle.com.
