Tiger Woods was unable to regain lost ground at the Masters Tournament by playing the par of 72 in the third round, staged Saturday in Augusta, Ga. For his part, Dustin Johnson took advantage of the day to seize the controls alone by signing a card of 65 (-7).
Woods recorded two bogueys and as many birdies to bring his cumulative to 211 (-5). Down three places in the standings, the former world number one is currently 20th, 11 strokes from the top.
Reigning tournament champion Woods had recorded scores of 68 and 71 in the first two rounds.
For his part, Johnson had an excellent outing as he managed an eagle and five birdies. With a total of 200 (-16), he is now four strokes ahead of his closest rivals.
Three golfers share second place with a score of 204 (-12): South Korean Sungjae Im, Mexican Abraham Ancer and Australian Cameron Smith.
Co-leaders after two rounds, Ancer and Smith fell one place after playing 69 (-3) on Saturday. Also among the leaders on Friday, American Justin Thomas slipped to sixth, six shots from the head.
Record round for a Canadian golfer
By handing over a 65 card in the second round, which was completed Saturday morning, Corey Conners set a record for a Canadian golfer in this prestigious tournament.
The 28-year-old Ontarian, who had the highest score this round of any golfer in Augusta, had eight birdies and just one buggy on his 18 holes.
Prior to Conners, a Canadian’s best round at the Masters was 68. Five representatives of the Maple Leaf, including Mike Weir, have already posted such a score. Playing 65, Conners also managed to dodge the chopper, after he had executed 74 strokes by the end of matchday one on Thursday.
After three rounds, he is 15th, 10 strokes behind the leader.
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