Previous champions can show Augusta pedigree on day three

Two-time Augusta champion Bernhard Langer is rated at 7/4 to eclipse Sergio Garcia in the third round at Augusta on Saturday.

Langer won the Green Jacket in 1985 and 1993, and on both occasions shot under 70 in round three.

With a pair of 71s thus far, the German is proving typically reliable. Despite lacking distance off tee, by the end of his round on Friday he had made 25 of 28 fairways – the highest percentage in the field at the end of his round.

First round leader Garcia is notorious for his erraticism, having thrown away strong positions on a multitude of occasions; it was at Augusta last year, in the wake of a 75 in the third round, that he declared he “wasn’t good enough to win a major.”

Regardless of whether or not he was being sincere, his 76 yesterday was certainly not the score of a champion – including as it did six birdies and no birdies – and was a full 10 shots worse than his opening effort.

He is priced at 4/7 to beat Langer, which certainly seems short for one so predictably unpredictable. A draw can be found at 8/1.

Another former Augusta champion, 2009 winner Angel Cabrera, was one of a handful of players to shoot sub-70 in round two, a 69 – joint-lowest in round two – following up a solid opening 71.

The Argentine went largely off the radar after that victory, but came back to compete at the 2011’s Masters to achieve his highest finish since that triumph, finishing seventh – thanks mainly to a 67 in round three.

He is priced at 8/11 to get the better of surprise first round leader Marc Leishman, who struggled to maintain the form that drove him to an opening round 66, stuttering to 73 on Friday. Those backing the draw can do so at 8/1.

The Aussies’ best previous Masters effort was making the cut in 2010, and in Cabrera he faces an opponent whose 72.13 scoring average here is second best among competitors who have played than 50 rounds.

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing