Lefty feels he still has a chance

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April 12, 2009

Phil Mickelson feels he still has an outside chance of winning his third Green Jacket – even if he is seven shots off the pace.

Phil Mickelson believes he still has an outside chance of winning his third Green Jacket – even if he is seven shots off the pace.

The World No 2 could only shoot a one-under-par 71 in breezy, rain-softened conditions at Augusta National on Saturday, but came away from the third round saying: “I don’t think I’m out of it by any means.

“I’ll need to shoot a 64 or 65 to do it but I think it’s out there on this golf course.

“A lot of things happen on Sunday at Augusta and I would never put it past (happening) again,” added 38-year-old Mickelson, who won his two Masters titles 2004 and 2006.

“I remember when (Jack) Nicklaus won in ’86, he came back with a 65 and it didn’t look like it was going to be enough.

“:Indeed, Not only was it enough, it won outright.

“If you get momentum on your side and you start making some birdies, you can make a lot of them. But when it starts coming apart, it’s hard to get it back and it’s easy to tumble.”

Six shots off the pace overnight, Mickelson ended the day seven behind leaders Kenny Perry of the US and Argentina’s Angel Cabrera after an erratic back nine featuring three bogeys and two birdies.

“It could have been a much better day,” the world number two said. “After the front nine, I turned in two under and that was pretty good. I liked that.

“If I could have shot three or four under on the back, I would have been in good position. But I missed a three-footer on 10, hit a poor chip on 11 and a poor chip on 16 and those cost me.”

Mickelson will play alongside World No 1 Tiger Woods in an intriguing pairing that could produce some real fireworks coming down the final stretch

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