Hideki Matsuyama shot a sublime seven under par 65 on Saturday to take a commanding four-shot lead into the final day of The Masters as he aims to become the first Japanese man to win a Major Championship.
The 29-year-old’s 65 was the first bogey-free round at Augusta National this week as he carded five birdies and one eagle to reach top spot on 11 under.
Matsuyama made a steady start with six successive pars before a birdie at the seventh kick-started his purple patch.
The World No.25 picked up two more shots on 11 and 12 to move into a share of the lead with Justin Rose after the Englishman had dropped successive shots on four and five.
Will Zalatoris, playing in the final pairing alongside Rose, joined the leaders after he birdied the 10th before Xander Schauffele made it four players in a share of the lead with an eagle at the par-five 15th, only for Rose to regain the lead with a birdie at 12 to move to 8 under.
But Matsuyama carded an eagle of his own at the 15th to snatch the lead from Rose before extending his lead to two after picking up a birdie at the 16th following a superb tee shot to within four feet of the pin.
The advantage was stretched to three shots with a 10-foot birdie putt at 17, while an impressive up-and-down on the last saw him save par and set the clubhouse target at 11 under.
