Six‑shot lead disappears

Rory McIlroy’s six-shot Masters lead was gone before Saturday’s third round was over, turning Augusta National from a runaway into a tie at the top. (sports.yahoo.com) McIlroy started Round 3 at 12-under par, the largest 36-hole lead in Masters history, and finished Saturday tied for first at 11-under after a 1-over 73. Cameron Young, who began the day eight shots back, shot 65 to pull even. (pgatour.com; espn.com) The collapse happened fast. Yahoo Sports reported McIlroy had lost the entire margin by the time he walked off the 12th green, while every player on the first page of the leaderboard was even par or better on Saturday except him at that point. (sports.yahoo.com) That reversal came one day after McIlroy built the cushion with one of the sharpest closing stretches of the week. ESPN said he birdied the final four holes of Round 2, and he finished Friday with six birdies in his last seven holes for a 7-under 65. (espn.com; espn.com) The swing changed the shape of the tournament because McIlroy was not protecting a normal halfway lead. ESPN reported his six-shot edge was also tied for the third-largest 36-hole lead in major championship history, behind only Henry Cotton’s nine at the 1934 Open Championship and Brooks Koepka’s seven at the 2019 PGA Championship. (espn.com) Saturday’s scoring conditions made McIlroy’s round stand out even more. The PGA Tour said Augusta National played to a third-round average of 70.63, the lowest-scoring third round in course history, while McIlroy moved the wrong way with that 73. (pgatour.com) His hole-by-hole card showed where the damage landed. ESPN’s scorecard lists a double bogey 6 on the par-4 11th and a bogey 4 on the par-3 12th, part of a back-nine 37 after an even-par front side. (espn.com) The tournament now heads to Sunday with McIlroy no longer chasing distance from the field, only one round to regain it. A Masters that looked close to settled on Friday night is back to level entering the final day. (sports.yahoo.com; pgatour.com)