AUGUSTA — Rory McIlroy is in position to complete the career Grand Slam, but he will have to overcome his own Augusta National demons, as well as Bryson DeChambeau, to win the Masters on Sunday.
McIlroy used a fast start Saturday to go from a two-shot deficit to leading the tournament, becoming the first player in Masters history to begin a round with six consecutive threes.
The run included a chip-in eagle at the 2nd and three birdies. After cooling off in the middle of the round, he made a birdie at the 13th and an eagle at the 15th on his way to a 6-under-par 66 that put him three strokes ahead of DeChambeau—until DeChambeau canned an unlikely birdie at 18 to cut the margin to two.
McIlroy and DeChambeau will play together in Sunday’s final group.
The reigning U.S. Open champion, who defeated McIlroy by a stroke last summer at Pinehurst on a riveting final day that saw him make a clutch up-and-down from a bunker for par to win by a stroke, shot 69. Canadian Corey Conners withstood McIlroy’s early onslaught to stay in contention and is four strokes back.
Second-round leader Justin Rose dropped back with a 74.
McIlroy has overcome a poor finish to his first round when he made two double bogeys in a three-hole stretch to drop seven strokes out of the lead. Even after a lull in his round Saturday that saw him make two bogeys in three holes, McIlroy rebounded again.
“This is the maturity of McIlroy that we didn’t see in the past,” said longtime golf instructor Butch Harmon on the Sky Sports broadcast. “He’s handled it beautifully.”
McIlroy, who has been trying to complete the career Grand Slam by adding the Masters to the U.S. Open, PGA Championship (twice) and British Open, has not had this kind of opportunity to win here since 2011, when he took a four-shot lead into the final round, still led at the turn, then imploded, making a 7 at the 10th and finishing with an 80.
He went from four ahead to 10 behind winner Charl Schwartzel and finished in a tie for 15th.
Since then, McIlroy, 35, has seven top-10s at the Masters, but none in which he was solid to position to win over the closing holes. His second-place finish to Scottie Scheffler in 2022 came after a final-round 64.
McIlroy would become just the sixth player to complete the career Grand Slam, joining Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods—who accomplished the feat in 2000.
DeChambeau will be trying to win his third major championship after winning the U.S. Open twice.
McIlroy went birdie-eagle-birdie-par-birdie-par before finally making a par at the 7th hole. He was 5 under through the first five holes to move from two back of second-round leader Justin Rose to three in front.
He made his first over-par score since the 17th hole on Thursday when he drove into a bunker at the 8th hole and ended up making a bogey 6.
McIlroy was seemingly out of the tournament Thursday when he let a solid round get away with two double bogeys over the closing four holes, going from 4 under par to even. He trailed Rose by seven shots and was eight back early in the second round.
But after a first-nine 35, McIlroy got hot on the back nine, making birdies at the 10th and 11th holes, an eagle at the 13th and a birdie at the 15th. His 66 was the lowest score of the day.
Adding the final nine Friday to his first nine Saturday, McIlroy had 63 strokes, 9 under par.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Rory McIlroy Leads Bryson DeChambeau by Two Shots Heading to Sunday at Masters.