Golf-McIlroy leads Masters after electric start to third round
AUGUSTA, Georgia: Rory McIlroy reached the midway point of the third round at the Masters on Saturday with a two-shot cushion over Bryson DeChambeau after a blistering start that saw him leapfrog overnight leader Justin Rose after just two holes. Grand Slam-chasing McIlroy started birdie-eagle-birdie en route to becoming the first player to begin a round at the Masters with six consecutive threes on a partly cloudy day that offered pristine scoring conditions. Rose started the day atop a star-studded leaderboard but by the time he made the turn, he was looking up at McIlroy and DeChambeau after going one-over through his first nine holes. Popular American DeChambeau started hot with back-to-back birdies but a narrowly missed par putt on the third forced him to settle for the first of two bogeys he collected on the front nine. A glittering leaderboard has fans buzzing about the possibility of a classic finish on Sunday and many patrons are pulling for McIlroy to finally win the Green Jacket and become only the sixth player to claim all four of the sport’s majors. Augusta National has been the site of painful collapses for McIlroy and that gut-wrenching run threatened to repeat itself when he stumbled late in his opening round with two double bogeys. But the Northern Irishman bounced back admirably on Friday with a thrilling round of 66 to climb back into contention and that momentum appears to have carried over into Saturday’s round. A heavyweight battle between McIlroy and defending champion Scottie Scheffler could still materialize after the world number one went even through his first nine on Saturday to sit four-back of McIlroy.