AUGUSTA, Ga. — It was just too good to be true.
After two nearly perfect days, the weather bug hit Augusta National again Saturday afternoon when thunderstorms rolled through the area, delaying play for the fifth straight year and eighth time in the past nine years.
Storms had rocked Atlanta, two hours to the west, overnight, but most of the storms went south of Augusta. However, at 1:02 p.m., just after Utah's Mike Weir teed off, play was suspended for four hours and 18 minutes.
If it wasn't for television, a lot more holes could have been played Saturday.
But because CBS wants the Masters to fill the 3:30 to 7 p.m. EDT time slot, the first tee time wasn't until 10:40 a.m. Saturday, well after the 8 a.m. starts of the previous two days. Because it didn't start raining until after noon, a lot of golf could have been played during the almost three hours before the first tee time.
The good news is the storms that battered the Midwest earlier in the week have headed out to the ocean and sunny skies are expected today.
MORE RAIN: Rain has played a part in 41 of the 70 Masters. Last year it rained the first two days, backing up play so that much of the second round had to be played on Saturday and much of the third round on Sunday.
Despite all the rain over the years, only three times has the Masters been forced to finish on Monday, in 1961, 1973 and 1983.
FINAL PAIRING: You won't know who they are until later this morning, but watch to see who is in the final pairing for the fourth round.
The winner of each of the past 15 Masters has come from the final group.
LEARNING EXPERIENCE: Utah amateur Clay Ogden didn't qualify for the weekend after rounds of 83 and 76. Still, he learned a lot during his stay at Augusta that will help him become a better golfer.
"It was nice to see where my game compares to the other players," he said. "My ball striking is fine. But I've got a lot of work to do on my short game and need to learn to manage my game a little better.
Ogden was planning to learn even more on Saturday and Sunday, watching from the gallery.
DRIVE FOR SHOW: The Masters stats bear out what Ogden is talking about.
On the first day, his two measured drives averaged 313 yards, ranking him fourth in the field. One of his drives was 341 yards, the longest on the first day.
On Friday, he wasn't quite as long, averaging 278 yards off the tee. For the two rounds, Ogden was 14th in driving with a 295.5-yard average.
His putting actually wasn't that bad, as he ranked in a tie for 39th with 1.66 putts per hole.
Where he struggled was in greens in regulation, ranking in a tie for 86th place in Friday's round at 33.3 percent.
JUST LIKE DISNEYLAND: Not only is Augusta National the best manicured course in the world with nary a weed on the deep green fairways, it's also the cleanest.
That's probably due to the young men dressed in bright yellow, wearing hats that say "Litter," who patrol the grounds at Augusta picking up every bit of stray litter.
MASTERS NOTES: Jim Furyk was the first man off the tee Saturday and because there was an odd number of players who made cut, he played with a "marker," who was a member at Augusta National. Furyk made a dramatic move, going from 47th place into a tie for 18th at even-par 216 after shooting a 4-under-par 68 . . . The best year for scoring at Augusta National was 1992 when the field averaged 71.909. The toughest year for scoring was 1956 when the scoring average was 77.183 . . . For the third straight day, the 505-yard par-4 11th played the toughest with a 4.74 average, while the par-5 15th was actually easier at 4.58. As Colin Montgomerie said earlier in the week about No. 11, every hole he's ever seen that starts with a "5" is a par-5.
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