Kirk, Henley pleased with Saturday play

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Chris Kirk hits his tee shot on No. 4 during the third round of the Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club.
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Chris Kirk walks on No. 6 during the third round of the Masters Tournament. He sits at 2-over through 54 holes in his first Masters appearance.
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Chris Kirk, a former University of Georgia golfer, shot 1-under 71 and sits at 2-over through 54 holes in his first Masters appearance.

On moving day at the Masters, former University of Georgia golfers Russell Henley and Chris Kirk did little of it.

Henley shot 3-over-par 75 in Saturday’s third round, while Kirk shot 1-under 71. Both are 2-over through 54 holes and tied for 18th in a group of six that includes Jason Day and Jimmy Walker.

Slick greens and swirling winds left both vexed about seemingly simple shots missed.

“That’s kind of what majors do to you,” said Henley, whose day included three sets of bogeys. “They make you think you’re not doing some stuff right when in reality it’s just a little break here or there, a little bounce here or there, and it’s a different story.”

Kirk made birdie at No. 2 to move to 2-over, but bogeys at Nos. 4 and 6 pushed him to 4-over. A par-saving putt on No. 7 gave him a boost of confidence, and he settled in with birdies on Nos. 8, 10 and 16 before finally ceding a stroke with bogey on No. 18.

“That was a nice putt I made on 7,” Kirk said. “There’s no such thing as easy putts out here, so to hit that one real confidently, to kind of make it right in the middle, it kind of got me going a little bit.”

Henley, who turned 25 on Saturday, was less pleased with his round but said making the cut at the Masters was still the best birthday present he could have been given.

“I feel like I did a lot of good things today,” Henley said. “I feel like I hung in there really well. I had a great attitude. A couple of things here and there go a little different and I get a little better feel for how the greens are and I save a couple shots.”