Three-time champion Phil Mickelson praised the set-up of Augusta National as "perfectly done" after carding a third round of 69 in the 85th Masters.
Mickelson made four birdies and a solitary bogey to move up the leaderboard after making the cut on the mark of three over par.
"In my opinion it's set up perfect to identify the best player and the guys that are striking it well are up on the leaderboard, the guys that are putting it well," the 50-year-old left-hander said.
"And I think it's very fair because we're making divots, the balls are stopping. It's not like the '90s where we weren't, but you (still) have to have quality shots. You've got to hit angles into the pins. You've got to be smart.
"I think it's perfectly done, and it punishes you, like it did me the first couple of days, when you make mistakes or don't put it in the right spot or hit poor chips.
"I love seeing it like this because you can score low, but you also need to respect it."
Speaking about his round, Mickelson added: "This was the first time in a long time where I just kept saving shots and putting it in the right spot.
"I didn't really strike it as well as I did the first few days, but I scored. I put it in the right spot. I got up and down a lot, and it felt good to shoot a number at least. It wasn't the easiest, but it felt good to shoot a number."
