Get ready, golf fans: Tiger Woods’ Masters return is upon us

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Jordan Spieth shot a 5-under 67 on Saturday to move into a tie for the lead heading into the final round of the Valero Texas Open. Spieth and Englishman Matt Wallace are at 12 under after each player birdied their final two holes of the day. Wallace also posted a 67, and Charley Hoffman is alone in third at 10 under after shooting a 65. RELATED: Full leaderboard Hoffman was seven shots back after a bogey at No. 4, but he finished up with six birdies and sank a five-foot eagle putt at the 14th. He won here five years ago. Three consecutive bogeys early on the back nine sent second-round leader Cameron Tringale to a 1-over 73 that put him at 8 under for the tournament. India's Anirban Lahiri is at 7 under after a 69. Tom Hoge finished with five birdies and moved up 26 spots on the leaderboard with a third-round 66. He is in a group of four players at 6 under that includes Lucas Glover (70), Gary Woodland (67) and Matt Kuchar (70). The start of play was delayed for more than two hours by rain. Time has just about run out on Rickie Fowler's chances to make his 11th straight Masters appearance next week. He has to win to get in, but his 69 Saturday has him in 21st place and nine shots out of the lead. With four birdies in an eight-hole stretch, Spieth was tied with Wallace and Hoffman for the lead heading to the 308-yard 17th. Spieth sailed his tee shot about 50 yards off line, right of the green, still just about pin high. His ball had rolled several yards down a concrete cart path and settled onto a gravel maintenance path. Wallace nailed his tee shot to the fringe of the green. Spieth got free relief with a drop off the gravel. From about 52 yards, Spieth opened the face of his wedge and sailed it upward, a nifty recovery shot that trickled the ball to about three feet from the cup. With his chip and short putt, Wallace also birdied 17. Wallace and Spieth reached the 18th in two and each birdied again. Spieth, winless since his 2017 Open Championship title, has been knocking on the door the past two months. He led heading into the final round at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. He shared the lead with 18 to go at the Waste Management Phoenix Open and he led at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard with 11 holes to go. Wallace was a stroke back of Tringale entering the day and took the lead after opening with two birdies. He bogeyed No. 11 but came in with four birdies after that. The 2016 Valero Texas Open is one of four wins on the PGA TOUR for Hoffman. He also was runner-up here in 2019 and 2011, and finished third in 2013. Hoffman bogeyed his fourth hole Saturday and was seven back. But he birdied 6 and 8 with putts inside eight feet, and put away a 17-footer for birdie at the 12th. His putter stayed hot at 16 and 17 - both of those birdies came from past 13 feet. He finished it off with a 340-yard drive on 18, reached the par-5 in two from 260 yards out and left his 40-foot uphill eagle putt just a couple of feet short for an easy birdie.

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AUGUSTA, Ga. - The rain was falling softly in the semi-darkness as Tiger Woods stood on the practice putting green awaiting his 7:55 a.m. tee time, while legends Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player were on the nearby first tee preparing to hit their ceremonial first tee shots. Woods sensed something flying over his head. He looked up. "There was a drone flying over the putting green," he said after shooting a 4-under 68 in which he didn't make a bogey, his first bogey-free round here since 2008. "Down one today you could hear the drone over there. You don't hear drones here." Yes, CBS has added drones to the coverage. It was, all in all, a new kind of experience in the first round of the pandemic-delayed Masters at Augusta National. No patrons. No flowers. Strange plot twists. RELATED: Leaderboard | Like ‘old' times at Augusta | DeChambeau bounces back from calamity Paul Casey shot a 7-under 65 to take the early lead, although half the field didn't finish. At 5 under through 10 holes, Justin Thomas had the best round going among the late starters. "I’ve got a lot of golf left," said Thomas, whose best finish in four Masters starts was his T12 last year. "Just go home and get some rest. It’s a long day tomorrow." The rain-delayed first round was suspended for darkness with 44 players, roughly half the field, still out on the course at 5:30 p.m. They'll restart at 7:30 a.m., with round two set to begin at 9:35 a.m. Friday, if all goes according to plan. The way things have gone, that's a big if. Indeed, Thursday was an odd one. Bryson DeChambeau, the most talked about player in golf, double-bogeyed the short par-5 13th hole, the most vulnerable hole on the course, and shot 70, the same score as Larry Mize, 62. Woods began his round at the 10th hole at 10:55. He'd never started a Masters on 10, but then there's never been a November Masters, with daylight a precious commodity. Another difference: no blooming azaleas, or much of anything else. It's just too late in the year. The course does, however, have more Bermuda grass in it than normal, causing the ball to react differently. And it was humid Thursday, like East Lake in September, Casey said. Tony Finau, one of his playing partners, spun his approach shot into the bunker at the first hole. "On a good-looking wedge shot," Casey said. Woods said putts just weren't breaking. Casey said the greens were softer than ever. "There was a shot I hit on number two, a 6-iron to that left hand pin that you can’t hit that shot in April," said Casey, who eagled the hole. "It was just left of the flag. It pitched and stopped instantly, and that shot in April would have one hopped over into the patrons, and probably would have walked off with a 5 instead of a 3." A first-time Masters participant this week could return in April only to find a totally transformed, much firmer and faster course. "They are going to have a rude awakening," Casey said with a laugh. Still, he added, there remained something special about just being here, even with the quirks. Woods agreed. "There’s no patrons, no roars," he said. "Yes, as the camera guys would say, ‘Where did the ball end up? Because we just don’t know.' That’s very different. A lot of firsts today. That’s kind of the way this entire year has been. The fact that we’re able to compete for a Masters this year, considering all that’s been going on, it’s a great opportunity for all of us."

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Michelle Wie West now has a little one of her own.

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