The most bittersweet evening of the spring has arrived. It’s like a Thursday work day. Hump day is in the past, and you still have Friday to go, before the weekend. Masters Saturday eve brings the promise of second-nine excitement on Sunday, the adorning of a new champion, and the inevitable conclusion of the tournament. The other majors are wonderful and unique, but April in Augusta, year after year, is comfort food, a thick blanket, and warming socks. The names may change, both on course and in the control room, but the course is the constant, with all of its vagaries and nuance.

On Saturday, Rory McIlroy’s six-shot advantage went away, and one of the best leader boards in modern times popped up. Deserving non-winners and former champions will figure in the outcome. Some will drift away on the first nine, while others will see their chance evaporate on the second nine. One will stand atop the field by nightfall, clad in a leafy chartreuse coat and a weary smile. Cheers to the combatants and their sword-bearers.

Thanks to Today’s Golfer and Inside Tour Golf for their reporting on player equipment choices.

Item #1: Betting on aces

Shane Lowry now has five holes-in-one on the PGA Tour, to accompany his pair from the DP World Tour, and his pace is increasing. Lowry first made an ace in 2014 in Dubai, then on the 16th at Augusta National in 2016. In 2018, Lowry dropped another in England, then took a few years off, perhaps for the pandemic. Forward march to 2022, and the famous 17th at TPC Sawgrass became part of his collection. Over the past year, Lowry has added the 7th at Pebble Beach, the 4th at Memorial Park in Houston, and today, the 6th at Augusta National. There is a growing chance that he will strike again, perhaps soon.

Gear Tub

Lowry is a Srixon man, and his seven iron made magic happen at Juniper. Lowry may game ZXi5 irons in when less loft and longer shafts are needed, but the seven iron was part of the quintet of ZXi7 model that serve his 6 through PW needs. Lowry employs KBS Tour 130 X shafts in all his irons.

Item #2: Where’d you come from?

Scottie Scheffler (remember him?) played his way back into the Masters conversation on Saturday, with a delightful 65. The Texan wrote a flawless essay of one eagle and five birdies, complemented by a dozen pars, in round three. Either a Qi10 14.75 degree fairway metal (Fujikura Ventus Black 8 X shaft), or a Qi4D 21 degree one (Fujikura Ventus Black 9 X) launched his Titleist Pro V1 skyward, on a curved trace that ended some six feet below the flagstick’s bottom, on the coolest, most exciting par five at Augusta National. Yup, better than 8, 13, and 15. Birdies were picked at seven, eight, nine, eleven, and sixteen.

Gear Tub

Scheffler’s five birdie putts all came from within ten feet. Only one, at eight, was not a full shot in. To truly contend on Sunday, Scheffler will have to break the course record, and get to 17-under par. It’s that kind of Masters, with the perfect weather, conditioning, etc. For at least part of the round, those TaylorMade P7TW irons with the True Temper Dynamic Golf Tour Issue X shafts did their job, and the TaylorMade Spider Tour X L-Neck putter fulfilled its role. The rest of the time, the irons and putter put the ball in the hole in regulation par figures.

Item #3: Cameron Young and his approach play

There’s not much more room for Cameron Young to improve on his approach play on Sunday. Over three days, he has gone from 10 to 14 to 16 greens in regulation. If he finds a way to better his day-three total on day four, he shall be difficult to overtake. Stellar approach play benefits from proper driving, and Young has harnessed that skill as well. He has collected 37 of 42 fairways on driving holes, and would love to rinse-repeat on Sunday.

Gear Tub

It’s all Titleist, baby! From the GT3 driver that finds fairways, through the 14.5 degree GT1 fairway metal and 20 degree GT1 hybrid, Titleist. Into the irons that begin with a T200 4 driving iron, T100 5 iron, and special Cameron Carves 631.CTY model of the 620 MB for 6 through 9 iron, and concluding with the wedges (all Vokey, at 48, 52, 56, and 60 degrees loft), Titleist. What rolls the Titleist Pro V1x Prototype? A Scotty Cameron Phantom 9.5 Tour Protype mallet.

Item #4: What a Rosey Day!

Someone turned back the clock ten years, it appears. Justin Rose (46 years of youth) and Jason Day (39 years young) are tied at eight-under par, three behind the leaders. They will tee off in the antipenultimate pairing, ahead of just Shane Lowry-Sam Burns, and Rory McIlroy-Cameron Young. Both Rose and Day have a single major title to their names, although I give Rose a second one, for his 2016 Olympic Gold Medal. Each would be the finest champion that Augusta National could hope to honor, and a victory by either would be a victory for golf. A glance at Jason Day’s statistics reveals no strong area. He simply gets the ball in the hole without need for explanation, and moves along. For Rose, it’s all about consistency. He counts 12-12-12 greens in regulation, alongside 11-11-12 fairways driven. The perpetuation of those numbers on Sunday will give him a third true chance at claiming a Masters title.

Gear Tub

If we could select one club to cooperate for Rose on Sunday, it would be his nine degree, Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Triple Dimaond Driver and its Mitsubishi Diamana WB 63 TX shaft. Finding the proper angle into the green is paramount at Augusta National. As he is not a long hitter, Rose must find the correct angles into the flagstick.

As for JayDay, his use of the Avoda irons is a bit of a gamble. If they were that good, wouldn’t more professionals carry them? Our desire is for a career day with the Avodas, and much greater proximity to the hole. Close approach shots, paired with Day’s putting prowess, promises a mid-60s score on day four.

Item #5: Let’s pick a longshot

It’s always fun to pick the longshot at Augusta National, because it never plays out. Well, almost never. If the longshot is 5 or 6 shots back, and has history with ANGC, then it might pan like San Francisco rivers. Haotong Li makes red numbers. He has ten birdies and two eagles on his combined cards. If he summons the talent to fire at flags and drain putts, he shall reach contention. The question is, can he handle the duress of a major-championship Sunday. For the sake of drama, we’ll say Sí se puede.

Gear Tub

Haotong Li utilizes a reliable but diverse lineup of clubs. He reps each of the big three, but relies on Srixon to get his ball close to the hole. Here is a quick run-down of his bats: Titleist GT2 driver, TaylorMade R7 Quad mini driver, Titleist T350 driving iron, Srixon ZXi7 irons, Vokey Design SM10 wedges, Odyssey Jailbird 360 prototype putter.