Seamus Power paints a picture of Augusta as he battles his way into ...

Mitchell capped off a magnificent run through the “Snake Pit” at Innisbrook on Saturday with a shot he never saw go in. His 7-iron from the 18th fairway one-hopped into the hole for eagle and a 5 under and a two-shot.

Mitchell was among a dozen players on the fringe of contention at a tournament so tight that it began with all 77 players who made the cut separated by a mere six shots.

That changed when he went 3-2-2 through the closing stretch of the Copperhead course, the first player to do that in tournament history. Mitchell holed a birdie putt just inside 15 feet on the 16th hole, hit 6-iron to inside 3 feet for birdie on the par-3 17th and then holed out on the 18th hole with a 7-iron from about 151 yards up a steep hill.

Mitchell, who needs a win to get into the Masters, has reason to feel the finish line feels a lot longer away than just 18 holes.

It was super packed at the start, and even with a two-shot lead, Saturday was a reminder how quickly it can change at Innisbrook and with so many players in the mix.

“No matter how well you played, it was going to be tough to get much better than 4, 5 under, I thought,” Power said. “It’s tough to get away from the pack, so it’s going to be some guys in with a chance.” 

Power added: "You got to drive it well, it's difficult when you're not in the fairways. And if you hit the greens, they're grainy and they're tricky and they're slopey. You got to hit it in the right spots and try to make some putts on greens like that. I think it tests all aspects of the game. I think that's why it's such a good golf course.

"I think they're going two balls tomorrow, so maybe some guys that get out early will have a chance to post something. So we'll see. Anything can happen, depends on conditions obviously as well. I'll look at the stats again after today, but through two rounds it's like pretty steady, there was no major weaknesses. I hit a lot of good putts, which was cool, a lot of good speed putts, so maybe some of those drop in tomorrow, give myself a chance."

Power made birdies at No 6 and No 7 before giving one back on 9. However he birdied the par-five 12th and par-three 15th to put him in the mix.

Victory at Innsbrook would stamp Power's papers for Augusta as he bids to snap out of a injury-beset period that has seen him fall to 103rd in the world.

Meanwhile, at the Hoag Classic in Newport Beach, California, a Champions Tour event, Padraig Harrington holds a one-shot lead going into the final round. 

Harrington carded a four-under 67 on Saturday to go with the eight-under 63 he shot on Friday to leave him 12-under for tournament. He leads second-placed Thongchai Jaidee, who is on 11-under. Miguel Angel Jiménez and Paul Broadhurst are both tied for third on nine-under.

The 52-year-old Harrington was on level par for second round until the final four holes where he carded an eagle and two birdies.

"The first 14 holes it was the opposite of [Friday], I seemed to play nicely and not score very well, but then those last four holes make up for it," said Harrington. 

"And I was pushing hard over the last four holes. We don't know what we're going to get [on Sunday], it was important to be tying the lead by the end of the day if not leading.

"I think I got my mindset a bit, maybe making a bogey at 14 kind of kicked it off a little bit and it was a nice way to finish."

Additional reporting: AP