Jordan Spieth navigates winds of change at Masters ... barely

In Thursday’s opening round of the 80th Masters, the 30 mph wind gusts at times felt like 50 mph to golfer Danny Lee — but the conditions were supposed to be fleeting.

Only it was just as volatile on Friday at Augusta National, where one surge blew Tom Watson’s cap off his head as he prepared to putt on the ninth hole.

Another seized a piece of paper inscribed with “kansascity.com” and swirled it toward the 18th tee as Watson prepared for the last drive of his Masters career.

For a panicked second before an alert friend snatched it from fluttering into Watson’s immediate vision, a headline flashed to mind: “Hometown Paper’s Carelessness Ruins Watson’s Final Moment.”

This was all supposed to subside for real by Saturday.

It escalated, though, before it ebbed to make for the most blustery three-day sequence here anyone could remember.

The chaos was nicely encapsulated in the preposterous sight of Billy Horschel watching the whimsical wind huff his sitting ball off the 15th green down a slope into a water hazard.

Accordingly, the play Saturday was among the most futile overall on the third day in modern Masters history: The field average of 75.719 was the third-worst since 1956 and highest since 2007 (77.352).

Within all this flux, one thing remained anchored.

But only sort of.

Jordan Spieth, for a record seventh straight round of the Masters, remained fixed in first place.

But even Spieth was left flustered on a day symbolized by his drive off the 12th tee that left him stepping back with what he called a unique feeling of having “no idea where this ball is going to land.”

Ultimately, instead of wielding a commanding 4-stroke lead into Sunday for the second straight year, he bogeyed No. 17 and double-bogeyed No. 18 to leave him talking about needing to “probably go break something really quick” to get over it.

So even as Spieth advanced on the feat achieved before only by Jack Nicklaus (1965-66), Nick Faldo (1989-90) and Tiger Woods (2001-2002), he remained vulnerable.

Weathering the conditions better, or at least with more fortune, on Saturday was PGA Tour rookie Smylie Kaufman, who was a stroke behind after shooting 69.

Hideki Matsuyama (72) and two-time Masters champion Bernhard Langer (70) were tied at 2 back.

“For a 58-year-old, it’s fun to be in this position and play with the best in the world,” said Langer, accounting for his place at this age by adding “we’re not playing tennis or soccer or football, where it all comes down to speed and strength:

“Golf is a lot more about knowing yourself and technique.”

Spieth’s late lapses even lent hope to Rory McIlroy, who took a 77 to plummet from 1 behind Spieth to 5 back.

“To be honest with you, I would be feeling a lot worse about myself if I hadn’t just seen what Jordan did the last two holes,” McIlroy said.

Much as it might sound like he was reveling in Spieth’s misery, McIlroy meant that he was heartened by “how fast things can happen on this golf course, especially when the conditions are like they are.”

Meaning …

“It’s hard to pick a club; it’s hard to trust what you have in your hand,” McIlroy said. “And then you’re reading putts, and you’re trying to determine how much the wind is going to be a factor and how much it’s not going to be a factor.

“Then, if have you a little lull in wind, or the wind starts to pick up … you saw us backing off a lot of shots today and there’s a reason for that.”

It was hard to find anyone, in fact, who didn’t feel that way Saturday.

“Every shot is just guessing and hitting and praying,” said Kevin Kisner, who finished the day with a 2-over-par 76 to stand 12 behind Spieth.

He planned to soothe himself by going home to “have a beer and sit on the couch and laugh at everybody else.”

If the day was about controlling what you could and trying to have the mindset to not let inevitable stray shots domino into more, it also was about sheer luck.

Or lack thereof.

That perhaps was best illustrated by Horschel suffering a penalty stroke through no action of his own as he was preparing to putt for birdie on the 15th hole.

“Obviously I didn’t have my scuba gear to play it from the water,” said Horschel, who was 7 behind after shooting a 73.

After hitting to the green, Horschel had made a “light jog” to the ball to mark it but thought it was safe when he put it back down.

“I mean, it wasn’t gusting that hard,” he said, “(and) it was in the flat spot.”

But when another blast of air abruptly arrived, you could see the water Horschel had just cleared rippling as he raised an arm as if to say “what can I do?”

It was that fluctuation that made this so turbulent.

“If it was a 20 mph constant wind,” Justin Rose said, “it’s an easier job than if it’s gusty.”

Once again, the winds are supposed to dissipate on Sunday, presumably making the last day more about guts than gusts.

But one way or another, it also will come down to what Langer said: “knowing yourself and technique” and being able to apply it in a crucible made up of challenging knowns … and confounding unknowns.

This story was originally published April 9, 2016 at 9:34 PM with the headline "Jordan Spieth navigates winds of change at Masters ... barely."