Mediate Has a Handle on the Situation

By THOMAS BONK

April 8, 2001 12 AM PT

TIMES STAFF WRITER

AUGUSTA, Ga. — Those long-handled putters may look like something tailor-made for the Senior PGA Tour, but Rocco Mediate has made a nice living with the thing--more than $6 million.

Mediate turned in a six-under-par 66 Saturday to pull into contention at the Masters, where he begins today’s final round tied for eighth, four shots behind Tiger Woods.

Mediate, who started using the long putter in the winter of 1990, is confident on the greens now more than ever.

“All of a sudden, I’m Mr. Putter now,” he said. “When I miss one, I’m shocked right now. Whereas before, if I made one, I was shocked.”

Mediate says he is one of the pioneers of the long putters on tour, although he took some abuse for using it.

“It was not looked at as something a professional would use,” Mediate said. “My comment was always: ‘Kiss my tail. I’m trying to make a living.’

“No one ever really bothered me after that.”

The last major Bob May played, he was in the last group at the PGA Championship, paired with Tiger Woods, and lost in a playoff. May barely made the cut at the Masters, where he was the first off the tee in the third round and played with a marker.

May, who shot a 73, had only three pars the last 12 holes to go with five birdies, three bogeys and a double bogey.

Say goodbye to Vijay Singh’s streak of 38 rounds at par or better. The defending Masters champion bogeyed the 16th hole and finished with a 73. He is nine shots behind Woods.

Franklin Langham shot a 75 and he was none too happy about being put on the clock for slow play along with Jonathan Kaye beginning at the fifth hole.

“It left a sour taste in our mouths,” Langham said. “It cost me at least two or three shots. What can you do?”

Uh, play faster?

“All you’re doing is rushing,” he said. “These are the toughest greens in the world and you can’t be rushed. I can guarantee they won’t time the last group.”

Langham said they weren’t really playing slowly (they finished in 3 hours 46 minutes) but they were out of position because they couldn’t keep up with May and the marker, who was allowed to pick up if he was out of a hole.

The final word on pin placements:

From David Toms: “A lot harder.”

From Fred Couples: “I don’t think they were ridiculous or overbearing. Nothing brutal.”

From Hal Sutton, on why the 12th hole is difficult: “It’s that H2O in front of the green.”

From Justin Leonard on whether his round of 72 was either up or down: “Mostly down.”

Jim Furyk’s last six holes were about as streaky as you can get. He birdied the 13th, 14th and 15th to reach nine under, but then closed with three bogeys.

Furyk three-putted the 16th from 40 feet, missed a five-footer for par on the 17th and drove it into the trees and made bogey at the 18th.

He turned a 67 into a 70 and is six shots behind Woods.

Said Furyk: “Whether I’m 10 back or two back, I’m going to attack the course.”