McIlroy bogeys his first hole, Scheffler sizzling at sun-soaked Masters

AUGUSTA, Georgia, April 11 : Rory McIlroy bogeyed the first hole of his Masters third round as the leader looks for an encore to his triumph here a year ago but will have to contend with a sizzling Scottie Scheffler, who started hot to vault back into the mix on Saturday.

The Northern Irishman rode a birdie burst to take a six-stroke lead coming into the third round but saw it cut quickly to four shots with Americans Patrick Reed and Sam Burns quickly cutting into his advantage.

McIlroy is bidding to join Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo and Tiger Woods as back-to-back Masters champion.

Scheffler, who struggled to a disappointing 74 on Friday, was locked-in at a sun-drenched Augusta National, pouring in an eagle and four birdies through his first 11 holes to move into a tie for fourth.

McIlroy has been playing with greater freedom this year after finally winning the Masters 12 months ago to complete the career Grand Slam and shed the burden of expectation.

But Augusta has been the scene of past heartbreak for the 36-year-old, and the memories have not entirely faded.

He is playing in the final pairing with Burns as the Georgia sun continues to bake the course leaving the course's notoriously slick, sloping greens even firmer.

The winner will walk away with a Green Jacket and a check for $4.5 million out of a total prize purse of $22.5 million.