Butch Harmon tells Rory McIlroy exactly what he needs to do to win The Masters after second round 66 put him in contention

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Rory McIlroy put himself back in contention at The Masters with an outstanding six-under-par 66 on Friday.

McIlroy left Augusta National extremely frustrated on Thursday evening after two double bogeys in the last four holes.

His mistakes ruined an impressive round, and he needed to bounce back with a solid performance to give himself a chance heading into the weekend.

The Northern Irishman did exactly that and now, legendary coach Butch Harmon has explained what he must do to finally get over the line.

• READ MORE: Butch Harmon claims he knows who golf’s ‘next superstar’ will be during the second round at The Masters, ‘he doesn’t have a weakness’

Rory McIlroy told how he can win The Masters this weekend

Harmon is still involved in coaching, but he’s spent much of his time at Augusta this week in the commentary booth.

He was asked on Sky Sports what McIlroy’s approach to the next two rounds should be to claim the Green Jacket on Sunday.

It’s no surprise that, on the back of a 66, Harmon urged him not to change anything because he’s already playing well enough.

Tiger Woods’ former coach said, “He has just got to do more of the same. He has to relax and do what he did today. He has to come out firing on all cylinders. He has to be Rory McIlroy. The Rory McIlroy we love and we kind of knew we were going to see.

“We thought he messed it up yesterday, but no, he came back today like all great champions do. He is in a great position. He doesn’t have to worry about leading The Masters. All he has to do is go out and play Rory McIlroy golf.”

Rory McIlroy predicts the winning score at The Masters

The winning score at last year’s Masters when Scheffler won his second Green Jacket was 11-under, but McIlroy thinks he will need to improve on that to finish on top this week.

The 25-year-old spoke about his objectives for the weekend in his post-second round press conference at Augusta.

“Again, golf tournaments are so long, and there’s so much that can happen, even in the next 36 holes,” McIlroy said.

“My mindset was, I shot even par yesterday. I probably need to get to somewhere between 12 and 15 under to win this tournament. You know, there was plenty of time to do that. So yeah, again, just about staying patient.”

Indeed, McIlroy doesn’t need to shoot 66 again on Saturday to be in the mix on Sunday. Anything under par in round three should see him in the final few groups.