AUGUSTA, GA. – The final pairing Saturday at the Masters will feature the player who might be the future of the PGA Tour and the player who previously held that title, and they were almost joined in the top three on the leaderboard by the player who wants to alter the future of golf itself.

Jordan Spieth. Rory McIlroy. Bryson DeChambeau.

Future present. Future past. Future future.

Hands. Body. Brain.

Spieth set a record by leading the Masters for a sixth straight round, and McIlroy equaled the best round of the day, a 71. Spieth is 4 under, McIlroy is 3 under. DeChambeau needed only a par at the 18th to tie McIlroy when he snap-hooked two tee shots, took a triple-bogey and fell to even par.

DeChambeau responded to that disappointment by shaking all the members' hands on the way to the scorer's cabin, then did lengthy interviews with TV cameras and then writers outside the clubhouse, then went to the interview room, a routine usually reserved for tournament leaders and former champions.

Jordan Spieth was the Masters leader for the sixth consecutive round, but couldn’t pull away at blustery Augusta National.

He repeatedly explained the intricacies of the snap-hook — "The face is only two degrees closed," he said — and that handling pressure is his way of "showing grace, showing my character."

Spieth is trying to become the fourth player ever to win consecutive Masters. McIlroy is trying to become the sixth player ever to win the career grand slam. And the player who pushed them for 17 holes on Saturday might be more fascinating than either.

DeChambeau wears a flat cap to honor Ben Hogan. His clubs all feature the same-length shaft so he can make the same swing with each, which he thinks simplifies the game and preserves back health.

He speaks the language of physics, and after he and Phil Mickelson played a practice round while spouting formulas, Dustin Johnson, who was also in the group but isn't known for bookishness, said, "If I thought about that stuff I'd never break 100."

DeChambeau is an amateur who will turn pro after the Masters. He is the fifth golfer to win the NCAA championship and the U.S. Amateur in the same season. He takes what looks like a simple, swift backswing and often reacts as if the flight of the ball is only confirming previous calculations.

He sounds like a professor. You would think that would make him unlikeable, but as he explained his 18th-hole misadventures, he smiled and patiently repeated himself and several of his competitors went out of their way to pat him on the back.

Minnesota amateur Sammy Schmitz had lunch with DeChambeau on a previous visit to Augusta National and listened to him give a speech at the amateurs' dinner. "He's awesome," Schmitz said. "He's a stand-up guy."

DeChambeau certainly wants to stand for something. At 22, he wants to alter a game moored to traditions and lengthen its list of patron saints. "It's as much me playing golf as it is growing the game," he said. "If I can do that, that's ultimately what I want to try and do, just like Arnold Palmer did and Jack Nicklaus. I think, yes, there is a following, and it's fun. It's fun to see those guys yelling your name out there and applauding you."

While DeChambeau turned a triple bogey into — what? An infomercial? A science lesson? Nothing more than a show of grace? — Spieth was holing a tough par putt on 18 to hold the lead.

Does golf really need Tiger Woods? Spieth competes like he bet his last dollar on every putt. McIlroy hit a drive 350 yards Friday, and could any day go from being the last next great thing to the next great thing again.

Then there is DeChambeau, who wants to use complicated equations to make golf easier, unless you're playing against him.

He wants to grow the game? Spieth and McIlroy would like him to let them handle that this weekend.

Jim Souhan's podcast can be heard at MalePatternPodcasts.com. On Twitter: @SouhanStrib. • jsouhan@startribune.com