Masters Live Blog, Round 3

It's moving day at the Masters. Join FanHouse as we document events as they unfold in real time. That's right, it's a little something we like to call a "live blog," old-school style. Fun starts after the jump.

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3:00 PM ET: Welcome, friends. Or something. It's Day 3 at Augusta National, the first best major of the year. Before Saturday's round, I was thinking Tiger would need to fire a 66 or 67 to get back in contention, and so far, well, things are looking grim. He carded a double-bogey on No. 1, birdied No. 3, and has been plodding along ever since. He's currently on the 9th hole, and eight shots back of leaders Chad Campbell and Kenny Perry who teed off at 2:45 PM ET.

Phil Mickelson is lurking after holing two long par-saving putts to stay at 4-under.

3:05 PM ET: Sean O'Hair moves to 4-under today after playing the first 36 holes in even-par. Sergio's also at 4-under, which is impressive when you consider his pre-tournament concerns, and those god-awful sunglasses he was sporting on Friday.

Meanwhile, Woods bombed his tee shot to the bottom of the hill on No. 9. In desperate need of a birdie, his second shot was about 15 feet short of the pin and spun back some 40 feet before finally settling. While we wait for Woods to putt, Vijay Singh holes his birdie put at No. 7. Just a thought: when Vijay out-putts you, you're probably done for the week.

Oh Lord. Woods rolled in the 40-footer. And even cracked a smile. He's now at 2-under and Jim Nantz is already announcing "he's back." Yeah, let's settle down. He's back to even par for the day, that's it. Still a lot of work to do.

Also, Todd Hamilton, 2004 British Open champ, is playing out of his mind. So much so, in fact, that he was drug-tested after his opening round 68 (purely coincidental, of course ... but funny nonetheless).

3: 15 PM ET Neither Perry nor Campbell seem all that nervous given their positions on the leaderboard. Both birdied the par-5 2nd hole to go to 10-under, two shots clear of Cabrera, alone in second place.

3: 30 PM ET: Tiger went on to par the 10th, and parred the first leg of Amen Corner, too. Worth keeping in mind: there are 20 players between Eldrick and the lead, including the '87 champ, 50-year-old Larry Mize.

3:35 PM ET: Uh, check that: Tiger missed his par putt on No. 11. He's now 1-under, and 27 players are between him and the lead. Lord have mercy.

3:40 PM ET: Fun fact to impress your friend: no birdies today on No. 11. Back on No. 10, Philbert settles for bogey, dropping him to 4-under, seven off the lead. Worth watching: Rory Sabbatini is at 5-under through six holes, and he's my early candidate for "Guy I Would Least Like to See Win."

3:45 PM ET: Graeme McDowell, playing with Tiger today, just airmailed his tee shot on No. 12 about 20 yards deep into the azaleas only to hit a tree and bound into the front bunker. Weird. Andres Romero was up their earlier and somehow managed to save bogey. Woods hit his wedge to 15 feet on perhaps his best shot of the day. Fun stat for the week: Tiger is even on the par 3s, 3-over on the par 4s, and 4-under on the par 5s. And he's parred No. 2 three times.

3:50 PM ET: Anthony Kim set the course record with 11 birdies yesterday and suddenly became everyone's dark horse to win the whole thing (which doesn't make him much of a dark horse, I suppose). Well, after a middling start to his round today, he just double-bogeyed No. 5 to fall to 2-under for the week.

And Tiger just missed his birdie putt on 12. That's been the story all week. Oh, and he dropped a "godd*mmit" for good measure. I'm sure we'll be hearing about that, too. You know, because nobody else in the history of the sport has ever cursed.

3:55 PM ET: And we have our first Tiger referring to himself in the third-person citing. He pushed his tee shot on No. 13 just into the right rough.

Meanwhile, Phil looks shaky. After the bogey on 10, he missed wide right on No. 11. Of course, he has an amazing knack for righting a potentially poor round in the span of a few holes (see yesterday, for example). Of course, as I type this, he blows his third shot eight feet past the hole. This could be the make-or-break shot of his round.

4:00 PM ET: Tiger just took a 3-wood and bombed his second shot onto the green at 13. He's still looking at a long putt for eagle, but anything in red numbers is a good thing.

Kim just birdied No. 7 to get back to 3-under.

Perry, who also birdied No. 4 to take the outright lead at 11-under, pars No. 6. And Philbert misses his par putt on the 11th, falling to 3-under. That's two 5s in a row.

4:05 PM ET: Via Dr. Bacon: Sean O'Hair and Ian Poulter are in the clubhouse at 4-under, both firing 68s today. Steve Flesch also shot 68, and is currently at the 19th hole 3-under for the week. So the low scores are out there.

Back on the course, Tiger taps in for birdie on the 13th, and now he's only nine shots back of Perry. Back on No. 12, Mickelson hits his 9-iron long on the world's toughest par 3.

4:10 PM ET: The 11th continues to ruin rounds today. Vijay just tapped in for double-bogey to fall to 2-under.

And Tiger pulls his second shot long into 14, which brings a 3-putt bogey into play.

Perry pars No. 7 to stay at 11-under after an average second shot. As for the rest of the leaderboard, Cabrera remains at 8-under through 7, and Steve Stricker heads to Amen Corner at 6-under.

4:15 PM ET (Shane sends along the following IM): "The first text message I received today was from a friend gawking about Padraig Harrington's 9 on the second hole, a quadruple-bogey.

Harrington has turned it around though, making five birdies through 15 holes and is only 1-over for the day. A pretty impressive turnaround, even if the 9 meant we weren't going to see a Paddy Slam this year."

4:20 PM ET: Phil hit a faboulous second shot to the 13th, but had to settle for birdie. He's back to 4-under, but Perry continues to putter along, seemingly unaffected by the enormity of the situation.

Cabrera, meanwhile, birdies No. 8 and moves to 9-under, two back of Perry, and just one behind Campbell.

4:25 PM ET: Campbell rolls in an eight-footer for birdie on 8th, moving him to 11-under and in a tie for the lead. Up on the 15th, Tiger hits his third shot from 125 yards to about seven feet, setting up a nearly-impossible-to-read birdie putt.

Oh, and Tim Clark just rolled in a 50-footer to save par on No. 9 and stay at 7-under.

4:35 PM ET: Stricker pars the 11th, which is as good as a birdie today. Three holes ahead, Phil taps in for par to stay at 4-under.

Also, CBS just showed a close-up of Shingo Katayama's shoes and I'm quite certain that he could leap tall buildings in those bad boys. In case you're wondering: he's 5-under.

4:37 PM ET (via Bacon): "I'm going with this -- in the ugliest sunglasses award, Rory Sabbatini gets first, Justin Rose is second and Sergio comes in third."

I can't argue with any of that.

Also, while talking Masters fashion, Tiger birdied the 15th to get to 3-under, T-15th. Here he comes! (Not really ... maybe.)

4:45 PM ET: Woods parred the 16th, and Campbell and Perry did the same on No. 9. They make the turn still tied for the lead, both carding front nine 34s. Not too shabby given the circumstances.

Over on 12, Furyk (6-under), stiffs his tee shot setting up a great birdie chance.

4:46 PM ET: Via FanHouse statistician Shane Bacon: "Just a small note -- in the last 28 holes, Anthony Kim has only made eight pars."

4:52 PM ET: The duct tape seems to be holding: Tiger hits a splendid drive and an even better second shot on 17. Birdie. Four-under. Tiger roars alert the rest of the field.

Two holes back, Mickelson rolls in an improbable birdie putt on 15 to get to 5-under.

It's contagious, apparently: Cabrera rolls one in on No. 10 -- with the leaders looking on from the fairway -- and is now 10-under.

4:56 PM ET: Yeah, Perry and Campbell aren't worried about what everybody else is doing. They both hit solid second shots into 10, and are playing with all the urgency of practice round. Probably doesn't hurt that they're BFFs.Strength in numbers and whatnot.

5:05 PM ET: Perry follows Cabrera's birdie on 10 with one of his own. If he can keep this going for another eight holes, it'll be the most impressive round of the week, Kim's 11-birdie barrage included.

Up ahead, Tiger smokes his tee shot on the 18th, and Bacon reminds me that Woods needs to finish the final three holes in nine shots. Unfortunately, Eldrick airmails the green, his third poor shot to the final hole this week.

On the 16th, Phil gives back the birdie he carded the hole before. Bogey 4 takes him back to 4-under.

5:08 PM ET -- Breaking news, via Bacon: "Just a fair warning ... if Tiger and Phil finish with the same score, they will be paired together tomorrow if everything stays the same. Awesome!


5:11 PM ET: Mind-blowing Stat of the Day: Tiger plays very un-Tiger-like, fires another 70, and moves from T-26th to T-8th. And that includes a nifty par-saver on the last. He heads to the range 4-under for the tournament, but still eight back of Perry. For now, anyway.

5:20 PM ET: Cabrera gets a sandy on 12 to stay at 10-under. Campbell taps in for par on the 11th, but Perry registers his first bogey of the day to fall back into a tie for the lead at 11-under.

5:25 PM ET: Look, I'm Tiger's biggest apologist, but I think we can all agree that his 2009 Masters chances are over. Well, except these very angry commenters. But the rest of us are willing to admit it, right?

5:30 PM ET: Hmm. Perry bogeys 11 and does the same on 12. In the span of five minutes he's gone from cruising around Augusta National to stumbling through Amen Corner. Playing partner Chad Campbell pushes a makable birdie putt, but still leads the Masters with 24 holes to go. Writing down a 2 would've been nice, but I'm guessing he'll take the one-shot lead.

5:35 PM ET: Philbert rams in his par putt on the last hole to join the long list of players at 4-under. There's a chance he'll be paired with Tiger on Sunday, although I wouldn't mind a Woods-Poulter grouping for the sheer comedy value. And by "comedy value" I mean "Poulter implosion factor." Obviously.

Bacon Stats Update: "Just an addition to the Anthony Kim stat -- he has now played 31 holes and made 9 pars."

5:40 PM ET: Perry and Campbell both find the fairway on 13; Kenny's second shot is some 35 feet from the pin, Chad lays up and his third shot virtually guarantees a par.

Jimbo Nantz is talking to Phil, who says, "I'm looking forward to tomorrow's round ... unless I get paired with Tiger." I made that last bit up there, just in case it wasn't obvious.

Mickelson adds: "I think I'll need a 64 or 65 to have a chance tomorrow, but I think it's out there." Um, no it's not, but I applaud the enthusiasm.

More from Bacon, who just can't get enough of AK: "In the last two rounds, Kim has 16 birdies, nine pars, five bogeys and two double-bogeys."

5:45 PM ET: Perry's card on the back nine through four holes: birde-bogey-bogey-birdie. He's now tied atop the leaderboard with Campbell, who has yet to make anything but pars and birdies today.

Via Bacon: "If you want a player to bet on that isn't one of the top two, you'd be stupid not to pick Jim Furyk. The guy is 5-under today with no bogeys and has been there before in terms of a major championship. Oh, and he went to an awesome school." (Ed. note: Bacon went to University of Arizona. So did I, but I don't brag about it. That's the difference between us.)

5:50 PM ET: Echoing Bacon: While we've been talking about Tiger and Phil, and the two leaders, Furyk -- as he always does -- sneaks up the leaderboard. He's 5-under for the day, T-2, two shots behind Campbell and Perry.

6:05 PM ET: Stricker buries a four-footer on 18 to shoot 68. He's now 7-under for the week. Back on 17, Furyk's poor drive sets up a long par-saving putt ... which he just misses. First bogey of the day drops him to 8-under, but still in good shape heading to Sunday.

6:11 PM ET: Both Perry and Campbell could've reached the 15th in two, but opt to lay up. Makes sense given the situation, but when players get tight, it's a lot easier to hit full shots instead of feel, short-iron shots. We'll see what happens.

And more AK love, via Bacon (of course): Kim is tied for the record for most birdies in consecutive rounds with 16, tying Tiger. Shingo tied record for most cowboy hates wore on Augusta National.

6:15 PM ET: Kenny and Chad hit mediocre third shots to 15, likely pars for both. Not bad, but on the last par 5 of the round, you'd prefer a birdie.

6:22 PM ET: Like virtually every player before him, Perry misses left on 16, leaving himself a 40-foot uphill putt. No need to take a chance this late in the day.

Of course, Campbell does just that, missing long and right in the bunker. Possibly the worst place to keave your tee shot because, as Verne Lundquist reminds us, "believe it or not, the water comes into play."

6:27 PM ET: Guh. Campbell leaves his second shot in the bunker. Short of putting it in the drink, this is the worst possible scenario. He hits a lovely third shot to five feet, though, and has a chance to save bogey.

Bacon, teaching instructor, adds: "Right there, you can't be too cute, and Campbell is doing just that. You hear 'taking your medicine' a lot more during the U.S. Open, but even Augusta can force you to do things you're not supposed to do."

6:31 PM ET: Of course, Campbell pushes his putt and cards a double-bogey 5. That doesn't help. Perry, meanwhile, drains a four-footer to stay at 11-under. Cabrera promptly drains a birdie putt on 17 to tie for the lead, while Campbell falls to 9-under.

Up ahead, Furyk signs for 68, and is 8-under for the tournament.

6:37 PM ET: Rory's sunglasses just made par on 18 to stay at 6-under. To see Sabbatini's reaction, you woulda thought he got an eagle. Calm down, dude.

6:43 PM ET: Back on 17, both Perry and Campbell stiff their second shots and have great looks at birdie. Chad's putt falls into the cup on the last revolution -- back to 10-under; Kenny misses on the high side and heads to the final hole stuck at 11-under.

Up ahead, Cabrera has some work to do; his tee shot finds the trees on the right side, and his second shot to the green will likely be obscured.

6:50 PM ET: Tim Clark (5-under) and Kim (4-under) finish their work for the day (Bacon notes: "Pretty funny that after all the no-par talk, he ended with four pars...") and make way for Cabrera's approach shot to the 18th. Right on cue, he slices a perfect punch shot from the rough to the middle of the green.

7:05 PM ET: Cabrera heads to the clubhouse at 11-under after a Saturday 69, and will be in the final group tomorrow.

Campbell has the honor on 18 and pushes his tee shot into the pine straw up the right side. Perry follows with a perfect drive. On their second shots, Kenny hits a beautiful mid-iron to about 15 feet; Chad punches out to set up a manageable up and down. Unfortunately, he pulled his approach and limps in with a bogey (9-under, third place).

Perry's birdie try comes up a foot short, he taps in for par, cards a 70, and will join Cabrera in the last group.

That's a wrap. Rest up folks, because we're doing it again in 18 hours or so.