Brooks Koepka (Foto: Patrick Smith/GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/Getty Images via AFP)
This will place very high demands on the leading players, but the organizers of the American Masters golf tournament have no intention of letting the tournament end on a Monday for the first time since 1983.
This is why they decided on Saturday that the leaders must play 29 holes on a marathon Sunday on the last day of the tournament at Augusta in order to finish the tournament on time.
This followed after Saturday’s third round remained in play when the leaders were on the seventh hole and driving rain made further play impossible.
The course was already soaked, some of the greens almost under water and more rain was forecast for later in the afternoon.
Good news was that good weather is forecast for Sunday.
The players will tee off early Sunday morning (US time) to complete their third rounds and the fourth round will begin shortly after lunch.
The American Brooks Koepka (-13) was four strokes ahead of the Spaniard Jon Rahm (-9), followed by the young American amateur Sam Bennett (-6).
Americans Patrick Cantlay and Collin Morikawa, Matt Fitzpatrick of England and Viktor Hovland of Norway were all at -5.
Veteran Phil Mickelson, Cameron Young, Russell Henley (all from America), Joaquin Niemann (Chile), England’s Justin Rose and Australia’s Jason Day were all at -4, followed by American Scottie Scheffler, the world’s top player, on -3.
Rahm struggled in the wet conditions, going under par on two of the six holes he completed. Koepka, who made a birdie on the second hole, kept his head and increased his lead.
The 23-year-old Bennett, who played alongside Koepka and Rahm and boasted rounds of 68 in the first and second rounds, is confident he can become the first amateur in 90 years to win the tournament.
But it won’t be easy, especially with Koepka going full steam ahead for his fifth major.
South Africa’s Charl Schwartzel (+6 after eight holes) was second last followed by Tiger Woods (54th at +9) after seven holes.
