Masters 2014: Leaderboard, live coverage, results and more from Saturday’s round at Augusta

If you attended the University of Georgia baseball game on Thursday, you didn’t miss updates from the Masters:

And if you attended the G-Day spring football game Saturday, you could actually WATCH the Masters on the big screen:

Jordan Spieth has been playing very well at Augusta National this week. That includes off the tee, where he’s had success finding fairways with his driver. That string of solid play, however, hit a temporary speed bump on No. 13 on Saturday. Spieth was not too happy about it.

The animated 20-year-old knew his shot was poor right away and had very little interest in holding the club any longer. That resulted in a Tiger Woods-esque driver spin in frustration.

Bubba Watson did an excellent job of avoiding dropped shots during the first two rounds of the Masters, carding just two total bogeys on Thursday and Friday. He more than doubled that bogey total during his first nine in the third round and has now lost sole possession of first place.

Watson got off to a rough start, dropping a shot on the opening hole with a bogey at No. 1. He appeared to right the ship right away, however, drilling a beautiful second shot in the par-5 second hole to set up an eagle try. Watson sank the putt to move to 8-under. The players below him were also running into early issues, so for a brief moment, Watson led by five strokes.

Miguel Angel Jimenez is well past the age most pros are able to stay competitive at the top tournaments in golf, and yet the Spaniard continues to post numbers against all the young bombers. On Saturday, what’s known as “moving day” at the Masters, Jimenez shot the low round of the tournament, a 6-under 66 to fly 34 spots up the leaderboard into third place.

While he’s already 50, Jimenez’s profile shot up in recent years thanks to his play at the game’s biggest events. His first major appearance came all the way back at the 1991 Open Championship, but his work in the Ryder Cup and at some of the majors in the last five years, notably in Scotland last summer, was the first introduction for many to the “most interesting golfer in the world.” The Mechanic, as he’s known to golf fans, can count 20 European Tour victories to his name, but has flown under the radar in the States until the last few years.

The absence of Tiger Woods at this year’s Masters continues to have a negative impact on TV ratings, with ESPN reporting that viewership for Friday’s second round was down significantly from that of last year when Woods was in the hunt for his 15th major.

In 2013, even before the full impact of Woods’ disastrous fracas with the flagstick on the 15th hole had come to light, the worldwide leader enjoyed its highest-rated (3.0) and most-viewed (4.2 million watchers) Friday telecast since it began broadcasting the Masters in 2008.

Following an eagle at No. 2 and some issues from the rest of the field, Bubba Watson appeared to be in control at the Masters with a five-stroke lead. That didn’t last long and now Watson leads by just a single stroke.

The issues began at No. 4, which has been the toughest hole on the course on Saturday. His tee shot came up short of the green and he was unable to get up and down to save par. He ended up with a bogey, his second of the day. Watson ran into more trouble two holes later at No. 6. He avoided a three-putt during the first two rounds of the tournament, a big reason why he led. That streak came an end on the sixth when his tee shot found the wrong tier and he was left with a nearly impossible birdie try. Watson’s par attempt at the seventh burned the edge for a second straight bogey.

The final group is now on the course and the third round of the Masters is in full swing. Bubba Watson didn’t get off to a great start on Saturday, but rebounded quickly and remains in control at the top of the leaderboard.

Watson opened the round with a comfortable three-stroke lead. His round, however, got off to a less than ideal start with a bogey on the opening hole. The immediate reaction was “here we go” but Watson did well to immediately end those concerns, at least for now. He drilled his second shot into the green of the par-5 second hole, leaving less than 15 feet for eagle. Watson has putted well all week and drilled the eagle putt to improve to 8-under on the round.

Brandt Snedeker used to be one of the best on tour with a flat baton in his hand, but even a maestro can strike a sour note. That’s just what the world’s 19th-ranked golfer did on Saturday at the Masters, when last year’s fourth-ranked putter 5-jacked Augusta National’s par-3 fourth.

That’s five (5) putts for a quadruple-bogey 7 on what played as the most difficult hole on the course in 2013. Saturday, the slick green completely bamboozled Sneds.

Rory McIlroy’s no good, very bad week at Augusta National continued on Saturday morning, when he finished a shot worse than his playing partner. That normally wouldn’t be the worst thing, but his playing partner was a noncompeting marker, the stand-in amateur Augusta forces single tee times to play with on the weekend.

Jeff Knox has the greatest job in golf. Knox is an amateur, an Augusta local, and a member at ANGC. When the cut is made at the Masters each year, he gets the call on the weekend if there’s an odd number of players and the first tee time off is a solo. Knox played last year with superstars Bubba Watson and Keegan Bradley on the weekend, and now he’s got another one of the game’s best, Rory.

Golf is a game of statistics. From scoring stats to driving stats to putting stats, there are numbers for everything a player does on the course. Some of those stats can be very telling, others, not so much. The same can be said about historical stats at Augusta National. The course has changed so much over the years that scoring stats may not be much of an indicator for modern-day success. Some trends, however, have held true during the 77-year history.

With the remaining field of 51 set for the third round of the 2014 Masters, here are 10 stats that could be a factor in who dons the green jacket on Sunday.

The least Phil Mickelson can do after missing the cut at Augusta for the first time in 17 years is help boost TV ratings for the Tiger Woods-less Masters tournament.

Thanks to a triple bogey in each of the first two rounds and a 36-hole total of 5-over 149, it looks like the three-time winner of the green jacket will do just that.

Bubba Watson, the 2012 Masters champion, is now a 2/1 favorite to take home his second green jacket in the last three years. The favorite through the first two days, Adam Scott, is right behind him at 9/2 to take him his second green jacket in as many years.

On a weekend that won’t have Tiger Woods or Phil Mickelson, it will be crucial to have these two players carry the tournament and broadcast through to Sunday afternoon. Bubba has become a marketing force, but hadn’t been a world-class player since the win at Augusta. He, understandably, retreated back a bit and cuddled up with his green jacket for awhile before really wanting to win again. A “Masters hangover” is what he called it yesterday in his news conference following as good a round as I’ve ever seen him play.