Bubba's birdie blitz bags three-shot lead at the Masters

Bubba Watson likes the way he looks in green. He wants to get that colour back in his wardrobe.

Watson surged to the Masters lead with a spree of birdies on the back side on Friday, positioning him for a weekend run at his second green jacket in three years.

“I’m trying to get the jacket back,” Watson said. “I want that feeling again.”

The 2012 champion at Augusta National sparked the best run of the tournament so far when he stuck his tee shot at No. 12 within three feet of the cup. He tapped in for the first of five straight birdies that propelled him to a four-under 68.

Even after making his second bogey of the tournament by missing a short putt at the 18th, Watson walked off with his second straight round in the 60s, a 36-hole score of seven-under 137, and a three-stroke lead.

“It’s not science here,” Watson said. “It’s try to hit the greens, and if you’re hitting the greens that means you’re obviously hitting your tee shots well. So that’s all I’m trying to do, just hit the greens.”

Look who’s in the mix again, too: 54-year-old Fred Couples, who posted his second straight 71.

This is the fifth straight year the 1992 winner has gone to the weekend in the top 10 – he was leading two years ago – but he’s never been able to hang on.