5 things to know heading into Saturday’s Masters action: Accuracy is still key at Augusta

Augusta National is playing fast and firm and if the rain holds off the forecast is calling for gusty conditions, which could cause havoc.

Justin Rose saw his lead shrink from four shots after the first round to one shot after the 36 holes of the 85th Masters Tournament. There are 20 players within six shots of the lead and 12 within four, setting the stage for an interesting weekend at Augusta National Golf Club.

Augusta National is playing fast and firm and if the rain holds off – that’s a big ‘if’ – the forecast is calling for gusty conditions, which could cause even more havoc.

“When there’s very little friction on the greens, the wind affects the ball more than you think, I mean, more than any of y’all would imagine out here,” Jordan Spieth said. “It just gets very difficult to make a lot of putts. That’s why the scores will be, I think, more challenging over the weekend if we don’t get any rain.”

Here are five things we learned as we look ahead to the final two rounds: