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World primary Dustin Johnson opened with a par in Sunday’s ultimate spherical of the Masters as he launched his closing bid to seize the inexperienced jacket for his second main title. Johnson, who started the spherical with a four-stroke edge, has by no means transformed a 54-hole lead into a serious title in 4 makes an attempt, however regarded to finish the curse at Augusta National. The 36-year-old American, who grew up solely an hour’s drive north of the course, can be the primary top-ranked Masters winner since Tiger Woods in 2002.
“If I want to win, I’m going to have to go out and keep playing aggressive,” Johnson stated on Saturday. “There are a lot of good players out there, so I’m going to have to play really well.”
Johnson, whose solely main win got here on the 2016 US Open, fired a bogey-free seven-under par 65 on Saturday to match the 54-hole course report of 16-under par 200.
That gave him a four-stroke edge over South Korea’s Im Sung-jae, Australian Cameron Smith and Mexico’s Abraham Ancer, with South African Dylan Frittelli on 205 and world quantity three Justin Thomas sixth on 206.
Those nearest pursuers to Johnson have just one main win between them, the 2017 PGA Championship victory by American Thomas.
While Johnson has solely misplaced majors when carrying a 54-hole lead, he by no means loved as broad a margin as at Augusta National, which lacks its normal environment with spectators banned as a Covid-19 security measure.
Johnson stumbled on the 2010, 2015 and 2018 US Opens and in August on the 2020 PGA Championship, the place he settled for a runner-up spot.
If he breaks 70 on Sunday, Johnson would shatter the 72-hole Masters scoring report, the 18-under 270 set by Woods in 1997 and matched by Jordan Spieth in 2015.
Johnson, the PGA Player of the Year, has received or been second in 5 of his previous six begins, together with a victory on the Tour Championship.
After ending sixth on the US Open in September, he contracted Covid-19 final month and missed two occasions, however was a runner-up final week at Houston.
Johnson, a runner-up in three of the previous six majors together with final 12 months’s Masters, would silence critics of his missed alternatives with a victory.
But challengers will attempt to emulate the report eight-stroke Masters last-round profitable comeback by Jack Burke in 1956.
Tiger, Rory nicely again
Four-time main winner Rory McIlroy, needing a inexperienced jacket to finish a profession Grand Slam, started his ultimate spherical with two pars to face on 8-under after play received underway following a short delay for fog.
Defending champion Woods, who struggled with again points in settling for a third-round 72, birdied the par-5 second however took a bogey on the fifth and stood 5-under total.
The 15-time main winner, a five-time Masters champion, matched his greatest begin at Augusta with a 68 however couldn’t threaten for an 83rd profession US PGA title to interrupt the mark he shares with Sam Snead.
Im and Ancer, every making his Masters debut, might turn into the primary newcomer to swipe the inexperienced jacket since Fuzzy Zoeller in 1979.
Promoted
Ancer, making an attempt to turn into the primary Mexican to win a serious title, and Smith might turn into the primary golfers to shoot 4 rounds within the 60s in 84 editions of the Masters.
Im might turn into solely the second Asian man to win a serious crown after South Korean Yang Yong-eun captured the 2009 PGA Championship.
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