Masters turned into duel

Rory McIlroy’s six-shot Masters lead disappeared on Saturday, and he will start the final round tied with Cameron Young at 11-under par. (pgatour.com) McIlroy shot 1-over 73 in the third round after opening the tournament with a record six-shot advantage through 36 holes at Augusta National. Young came from eight shots back with a 7-under 65, making eight birdies and one bogey. (espn.com, golfchannel.com) The swing happened fast. McIlroy’s margin was gone by the 11th hole, and by the end of the day nine players were within six shots of the lead. (espn.com) Young’s charge changed the shape of the tournament from a one-man march into a final-group duel. He will play Sunday with a chance to add the Masters to the Players Championship title he won last month. (pgatour.com, pgatour.com) The leaderboard also tightened behind them. Sam Burns is one shot back at 10-under, while Scottie Scheffler moved to 7-under after a 65 that matched the low round of the day. (nytimes.com, pgatour.com) Saturday played easier than a typical Augusta moving day. The third-round scoring average was 70.63, the lowest for any third round in Masters history, and that gave chasers more room to make up ground. (espn.com) McIlroy said, “I’m still tied for the best score going into tomorrow,” but he also said, “I’m going to have to be better if I want to have a chance to win.” (espn.com) Young’s 65 was not clean all the way through. A tee shot on the 13th hit a pine and kicked back into the fairway, and earlier on the ninth his ball caromed off a patron and stayed in play, breaks he turned into par saves and momentum. (pgatour.com) Scheffler’s round kept the defending world No. 1 close enough to matter on Sunday. He went out in 31, made eagle at the second, birdied three straight holes from the seventh through the ninth, and finished four shots behind the co-leaders. (pgatour.com, espn.com) Sunday now starts with McIlroy and Young side by side instead of one player protecting a cushion. After three days at Augusta, the Masters is down to 18 holes with the lead tied. (pgatour.com, nytimes.com)