Scottie Scheffler holds one-shot lead at Masters in enthralling battle for Green Jacket

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Tommy Fleetwood retains dreams of giving England its third Masters champion, despite three-putting the last for a 72 to stay at one-under and move into the top 10.

Fleetwood’s best performance in seven Augusta appearances is a tie for 14th and that unimpressive return has never made much sense for a player who has runners-up finishes in both the Open and US Open to his name. Augusta is a second-shot course and Fleetwood, one of the sweetest ball-strikers on Tour, has a marvellous approach game.

He is without his long-time caddie Ian Finnis, who is back in England recovering from a severe chest infection, but he has Gray Moore, the former Augusta caddie master, on his bag and if his putter obliges and he gets on a tear then he is within range. Cam Smith, the 2022 Open champion, is on the same mark and certainly believes he is in touch.

“I think I’m still in the golf tournament, the way that the golf course is playing,” the Australian said. “The temptation will be to attack, but you can’t do that at the moment. If you start playing the course that way, I can see where that heads. I’ve been down that road before. I’d like to think I’m a pretty smart golfer. I’ve just got to keep doing what I’m doing, hitting it to 15, 20 feet, and hopefully they go in.”

Scheffler’s eagle on the 13th – when holing a 30-footer – and his eight-footer for birdie on the last were perhaps the most notable events. They moved the 27-year-old ahead. From there he has the talent and the experience to take control. But this has been a strange Masters and it promises plenty of twists and turns yet.

Further down the leaderboard, Rory McIlroy is in a tie for 21st on three-over after a 71, while defending champion Jon Rahm is on five-over following a 72.

Sunday’s winner will earn $3.6 million (£2.9 million), the most ever for a major champion. This is further evidence of the LIV effect. The total purse is $20 million, $2 million up on 2023 and $5 million more than in 2022, when LIV had yet to be formed. The prize fund is twice as much as in 2015 and the largest in major history.

But it is still $5 million less than what the PGA Tour pros competed for in last month’s Players Championship and only the same as they will play for at next week’s RBC Heritage in Hilton Head. Silly money. And, as Saturday highlighted, silly game.