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• Shaky two-over 74 leaves him one ahead
• Will play with McIlroy in round three
• Stumbled on back nine after being put on the clock

THE MASTERS | Jordan Spieth

Jordan Spieth picked a good day to play some of his worst golf at Augusta National.

What was beginning to look like a procession once again – with Spieth seemingly dominant – soon took a turn on the fifth, where he made a double bogey. After that, the 80th Masters was back on.

The American is bidding to become only the fourth player in history to successfully defend the tournament but slipped to an error-strewn three-over 74, his worst score at Augusta in ten rounds.

The 22-year-old leads on four-under, one ahead of Grand Slam-chasing Rory McIlroy (71) – who shot 71 in a topsy-turvy round – and two ahead of Danny Lee (74) and Scott Piercy (72). It means he will be paired in the last group on Saturday with McIlroy, something he joked he’d rather avoid.

‘I would rather play with someone less threatening.’ – Jordan Spieth on playing with McIlroy

“I would rather play with someone less threatening,” smiled Spieth. “He’s proved himself in majors. I have idolised his game coming up and I have the upmost respect for him. He’s a great guy, too.”

Spieth managed to get to eight-under walking onto the third tee but double-bogeyed the fifth, his first dropped shots at Augusta all week.

He was warned of slow play on the 11th, which he said led to him rushing the next few holes. He eventually played the back nine in two-over.

“All in all the back nine felt a bit rushed,” said Spieth, who had a five-shot lead after 22 holes. “But after two rounds I couldn’t ask for much better than to be leading.

“It’s tough, that’s the toughest thing that I’ll grab out of today. Not the lead, but where I am to par. Being eight under and finishing four, I felt I played a bit better than that. So much can happen around here, as we saw today. It’s very much a US Open-type course of course. Even par is going to be one heck of a score tomorrow.

Jordan Spieth – ‘Disappointed’

He added: “I’m a bit disappointed right now. I’ll settle down. There’s a long time before I tee off tomorrow. It’s almost a different golf tournament right now and I’ll approach it that way.”

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Bryce Ritchie is the Editor of bunkered and, in addition to leading on content and strategy, oversees all aspects of the brand. The first full-time journalist employed by bunkered, he joined the company in 2001 and has been editor since 2009. A member of Balfron Golfing Society, he currently plays off nine and once got a lesson from Justin Thomas’ dad.

Editor of bunkered

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