If Rory McIlroy was offered a two-shot lead heading into the final round of The Masters before the tournament began, he would have taken it without hesitation.
Well, that’s exactly the situation that Rory McIlroy finds himself in now, after a second consecutive round of six-under par 66 launched him to the top of The Masters leaderboard after day three.
The Northern Irishman currently sits at twelve-under par, two shots clear of his main rival Bryson DeChambeau.
Rory McIlroy already has a new plan for the final round of The Masters to help him defeat DeChambeau – one that involves avoiding missing greens on the short-side.
Augusta National is an alluring temptress, and there will be plenty of twists and turns throughout the final day’s play.
McIlroy will have a lot on his mind right now, but things could have been so much easier for him had events unfolded differently late on Saturday.
Rory McIlroy has one thing to worry about ahead of final day at The Masters
Bryson DeChambeau finished off his round incredibly well on Saturday.
The 31-year-old American was three-under par for his final four holes, and he closed the gap between himself and Rory to just two shots heading into the final day.
Jason Day warned Rory McIlroy that the pressure will be on his shoulders with Bryson DeChambeau chasing him down on Sunday.
And the Australian is absolutely spot on. This tournament is Rory’s to lose, make no mistake about that.
The 35-year-old has a lot of recent scar tissue when it comes to his attempts to win his fifth Major Championship.
We only have to looked back to the U.S Open at Pinehurst in June of last year for evidence of that.
Bryson’s finish at Augusta on Saturday evening was the last thing that McIlroy needed.
The American’s excellent final four-hole stretch ensured that Rory will have to look him right in the eyes on the first tee on Sunday afternoon.
Bryson DeChambeau to stare down Rory McIlroy on Masters Sunday
McIlroy was pipped to the U.S Open crown by DeChambeau 10 months ago.
The American brought the energy to Pinehurst and rode the wave of the crowd all the way from the start of his round up until his final winning putt.
He will definitely be in ‘high-octane’ mode again for the final round of The Masters on Sunday.
It goes without saying that Corey Conners would have been a much better final day partner for Rory.
Now the Northern Irishman will have to watch DeChambeau up close and personal.
If the LIV Golf star makes a couple of early birdies around Augusta, the pressure will be piled on McIlroy’s shoudlers.
And let’s not forget, he didn’t handle that pressure very well back at Pinehurst did he?
In fact, McIlroy spoke a few weeks after his final round at The U.S Open and made the concerning admission that he was so wrapped up in avoiding three-putting the final green, that he failed to focus on actually holing his first putt.
He said he noticed that DeChambeau was in trouble behind him.
As a result, he hit his first putt far too softly, and never really had a chance of making it.
The PGA Tour star also admitted that he couldn’t help himself from watching Bryson’s shots in the group behind him throughout the day.
Rory McIlroy will have to focus on his own game in the final round at The Masters, and block out everything that Bryson DeChambeau does.
What a final day we have in store for us. Two gun-slingers shooting it out for the first Major Championship of the season.
Who will blink first? That remains to be seen, and I for one can’t wait to see how it all unfolds.
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