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LIV Golf’s Brooks Koepka extended his lead to four shots over Spaniard Jon Rahm before third-round play at windy and cold Augusta National Golf Club was suspended for the day due to intense rain that waterlogged the course.
Koepka, who began the day two shots clear of Rahm with amateur Sam Bennett a further two strokes back, had one birdie through six holes and was staring at an 11-foot par putt at the seventh when play was suspended at 3:15 pm local time.
It marked the second consecutive day that rain interrupted play at the year’s first major as 39 golfers returned early on Saturday to complete their second round.
“Yeah, it’s obviously super difficult,” said Koepka. “Ball’s not going anywhere. You’ve got rain to deal with, and it’s freezing cold. It doesn’t make it easy.”
Players went out in threesomes off split tees with hopes of completing the entire third round despite the forecast of heavy rain and wind that picked up shortly after the final group headed out with temperatures around 48 Fahrenheit (8 Celsius).
Koepka and Rahm birdied the par-five second hole just as the rain intensified while Bennett made a second consecutive bogey to drop off the pace as the year’s first major quickly turned into a two-horse race.
Four-times major winner Koepka moved three clear at the par-three fourth where he got up and down from the left greenside bunker while world number three Rahm made bogey after chipping over the green from the other bunker.
Rahm, who had to finish nine holes of his second round in the rain early on Saturday, fell four shots back after a three-putt bogey from 88 feet at the par-four fifth and was looking at a nine-foot birdie putt at the seventh when play was stopped.
“When we walked up to the seventh green it was clear to us that that green had been wet for a while. They had been squeegeeing it for a while,” said Rahm.
“I understand they’re trying to push us to play as many holes as possible, but it was very apparent when they tried to get the water out that it just wasn’t going to happen in our case.”
You can find the full leaderboard from the 2023 Masters.
When will the Masters start today?
After weather delays on Saturday, play will resume early on Sunday morning at 8:30am (1:30pm BST). The final round is expected to get going at 12:30pm (5:30pm BST) off of holes one and 10 and in pairings.
How can I watch on TV?
In the UK, the Masters is no longer available on terrestrial television. As exclusively revealed by Telegraph Sport, the BBC opted not to renew their broadcast contract.
Where is it?
Augusta National Golf Club, located in the north east of the US state of Georgia close to the border with South Carolina and the Savannah River.
Augusta National is one of the most private and exclusive golf clubs in the world. There are only 300 or so members, among them Bill Gates, Warren Buffet and Peyton Manning. The only way to play the course is by invitation of a member.
There is a more pernicious side to the club’s so-called exclusivity, though. Augusta did not permit an African American member until 1990, while there were no female members until 2012 when Condoleezza Rice joined.
Aside from the storied golf course, Augusta is also known as the former home of ‘Godfather of Soul’ James Brown, who is commemorated with a downtown statue.
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