Tom Curran • E-mail

AUGUSTA - There are worse places to spend an evening hour than overlooking the 15th green at Augusta National. During Saturday’s third round, with my main quarry Tiger Woods buttoning up his 68, I made my way down to the 15th to watch the leaders come through.

To me, a guy who’s never been to Augusta before, 15 has always had a great allure. It’s the last par-5 on the course, it’s got great risk-reward if you can hit the green in two and it’s drop-dead gorgeous. It’s a tournament changer.

Here’s a timeline from Saturday evening.

6:09: Here comes Retief Goosen. He’s 4-under, just under Tiger, four behind Brandt Snedeker, Trevor Immelman and Paul Casey who are all at 8-under. Goosen drove way right and punched down the hill but is still in the second cut. His iron into the green careens over and down toward danger behind the green. Playing partner Lee Westwood tells Goosen he’s safe. Goosen then chips close from about 25 yards and pops in a par putt. Huge play for him.

6:12: When the day began, the leaders were at 8-under and that hasn’t changed. Aside from Snedeker getting to 9-under briefly on the front-nine, the lead has stayed right at 8-under. Here’s your leaders: Trevor Immelman, Paul Casey and Snedeker (-8), Steve Flesch (-7), Woods (-5)

6:30: Paul Casey, who I think is the most likely candidate to win this tournament if Woods doesn’t, knocks his tee shot into the stand of pines at the top of the hill about 275 yards from the pin on 15. After punching out, he knocks his wedge over the green trying to attack the pin placed on the back left. Now his chip back onto the green hangs in the fringe and doesn’t release. He misses his 9-footer for par and is back to 7-under.

6:38: Behind me is the 16th tee. I can’t see the players tee off but I can easily see the green. Casey rebounds by putting his tee shot pin high and six feet left on the par-3.

6:40: It looks like the par-5 13th is taking its toll. The crowd rumbles as scores are posted on the big scoreboard looming over the 15th green. Immelman’s back to 9-under but Snedeker’s now at 6-under. Meanwhile, Casey’s staring at a birdie putt to get back to 8-under.

6:42: Casey knocks in his birdie to get to 8-under and take over second by himself.

6:49: Here comes Phil Mickelson and Flesch. Both men lay up. The bus full of leaders is pulling out of the station, it seems, and Mickelson needs to make something happen to get on it. He does by sticking a nice wedge that skips twice and sucks back to three feet to give himself a birdie chance. Flesch has himself in position too for a birdie to get to 8-under. On the big board, Snedeker gets back to 7-under to tie Flesch.

6:54: First Flesch misses his birdie from inside five feet, then Mickelson does the same from the other side of the hole. The reaction to Mickelson in the grandstand is over the top adulation. A standing ovation as he approaches the green and much gnashing of teeth when he pars. Meanwhile, Immelman just got it to 10-under.

6:59: Behind me on 16, Mickelson’s engaged in some weirdness. He’s hockeying his ball around the green on the par-3. Looks like a double-bogey. That party is likely over.

7:01: The Goose, who started my stay here by keeping out of trouble with a par, bogeys 17 and 18 to fall to 2-under. Oops.

7:03: Here come the leaders, Immelman and Snedeker (sounds like a composing duo from the 30s, doesn’t it?). Both men lay up on the downslope 120 yards away.

7:05: Snedeker’s shot snuggles up to birdie range but Immelman’s shot hits 20 feet on, skips twice then sucks back hard toward the fringe. It just barely crawls over the fringe and then gravity and momentum are warring to see the man’s ball stays out of the pond fronting the green. The ball isn’t rolling as much as it is creeping down the slope toward the water. After going about eight feet in eight seconds, it stops. Immelman stays frozen in the fairway 120 yards away, holding his follow-through, looking to see if it’s done rolling. Might be a good idea to lose the pose and hurry up and hit the next shot before it changes its mind.

7:08: Immelman plays a nice chip up onto the green leaving a makeable par putt. Snedeker gets to 8-under with his birdie putt. And Immelman rolls in his par.

Good. Stuff.

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