Associated Press
 Saturday, April 7
AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Augusta National was supposed to be drying out and playing slick, made even tougher by the pins tucked in tricky spots. Chris DiMarco thought it was the kind of a day where a lead could be nurtured by making pars in the swirling wind.

He did just that Saturday in The Masters, but it wasn't enough.

 Chris DiMarco
Chris DiMarco had three birdies and three bogeys during his third-round 72.
Not with Tiger Woods playing alongside. Not with Phil Mickelson just ahead.

DiMarco's bid to become the first rookie to win The Masters since Fuzzy Zoeller in 1979 took a detour under the towering Georgia pines even though he managed to shot an even-par 72 under the kind of pressure the 32-year-old player had never experienced.

It was good enough to keep him on a leaderboard littered with big names. But it couldn't keep him from being passed by Woods and Mickelson and tied at 10-under by Mark Calcavecchia.

"Of course I was nervous," DiMarco said. "I'm not going to lie and say I wasn't. I was playing with the best player in the world and we were playing in The Masters."

DiMarco, who held a two-shot lead over Woods and Mickelson entering the day, played cautiously but steadily over the front nine, recovering from a tee shot into the woods that cost him a bogey on the second hole to shoot a 1-under 35.

Ordinarily that would have been enough on Saturday at Augusta National, where scores tend to escalate as the pin positions get tougher and a player's collar gets a bit tighter.

This, however, was no ordinary Saturday. This was a day where Woods was chasing his fourth straight major and Mickelson was desperately seeking his first.

This was a day when Angel Cabrera shot into the lead at one point, and players like Calcavecchia, Rocco Mediate, Brad Faxon and Ernie Els all shot in the 60s to climb their way up the old fashioned white leaderboards that dot the course.

And this was a day where DiMarco would lose the lead because he did not attack while others were passing him by.

"I played the par-5s poorly today," DiMarco said. "If you play them a couple under like you should, it's 68 and right where I need to be."

Instead, he played the long holes 2-over, thanks to a drive into the azaleas on No. 2 and a wedge that flew the green on No. 15. He couldn't get up-and-down from behind the green, and when Woods chipped up and made a short birdie putt DiMarco was out of the lead for the first time since Thursday.

DiMarco came back by hitting a 7-iron within 5 feet for a birdie on the 16th that gave him some much needed confidence, but a bogey on No. 18 left him the same way he started the day -- at 10-under for the tournament.

"Chris can be proud of himself the way he played today," Woods said. "He's a great guy."

DiMarco said much the same about Woods, though he left little doubt he was a bit in awe of the world's best player.

"He hits it so far that, literally, par is 68," DiMarco said. "The par-5s are just long par-4s for him. He had two or three times today where he hit sand wedge in the holes where I was hitting 7-iron. That's definitely an easier shot out there, hitting sand wedge in."

DiMarco did learn something about playing with Woods, and it had nothing to do with the huge crowds that swarmed behind the final group as they made their way around the course on a warm day.

Mainly, he learned that to win at Augusta National, you have to take some chances on the par-5s.

"I tried to play the smart way on the par-5s and it got me a little bit today," DiMarco said. "I'm going to try to be more aggressive tomorrow."

He'll need to be, and he admits it may be easier because he won't be playing with Woods.

Instead, DiMarco will play with Calcavecchia just ahead of the final pairing of Woods and Mickelson. Both employ a similar claw-like putting grip that may look odd but seems to be working on Augusta National's slick surfaces.

"We'll be clawing together all day," said DiMarco, who has one PGA Tour win but hasn't distinguished himself on tour.

That's fine with Calcavecchia, who likes both his chances and those of his fellow former University of Florida student to win on Sunday.

"We've got to beat him by two or three shots to win the tournament and that's very doable," Calcavecchia said. "However, he is the best in the world and he has that going for him, which is nice."




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