Augusta National could have hardly asked for a better first page of the leaderboard heading into the weekend at The Masters, with Bryson DeChambeau, Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy all within three shots of the lead.
It is setting up to be a mouthwatering finale to The Masters. While a number of big names will not be playing over the weekend, the biggest in the game right now will be there teeing it up for rounds three and four at Augusta National.
Of course, it would be unfair to overlook Justin Rose‘s performance so far. The Englishman built on his 65 on Thursday to remain at the top of the leaderboard after the second round. Rose posted a 71 to add to his remarkable tally of rounds in which he has led at Augusta.
But Bryson DeChambeau is one shot back. The LIV Golf star had never posted two rounds in the 60s in the same Masters tournament before, so it may be ominous that he has already ended that run this year.
Ryan Lavner suggests his favourite to win The Masters out of Rory McIlroy, Scottie Scheffler and Bryson DeChambeau
Elsewhere, talk of Rory McIlroy‘s demise has clearly been greatly over-exaggerated. A 66 on Friday brought the Northern Irishman right back into the mix after such a disappointing end to his first round.
And Scottie Scheffler battled with his game to match Rose’s 71. He joins the likes of Tyrrell Hatton and Shane Lowry at five under par for the tournament. So predicting a winner looks extremely difficult.
But speaking on the Golf Channel Podcast, Ryan Lavner suggested that McIlroy’s Friday fightback makes the idea of the 35-year-old winning the green jacket too irresistible to ignore.
“This is what you love to see from Rory McIlroy. This is exactly what we’ve seen from him over these past four years in the major championships. Each year he has given himself an agonisingly close chance to win a major championship. I’m not saying that’s how this is going to end. In fact, I think I’d probably put him as my favourite at this point in the championship.
“You have to credit him for not panicking, for realising he’s playing good golf, for sticking with the game-plan that he had Jack Nicklaus, the greatest Masters champion of all, the greatest grand slam champion of all, basically validate him, and say that is exactly how I would go shot by shot at Augusta National. His game-plan to this point, at least after 36 holes, a huge turnaround and now he has a chance to finally claim that green jacket in that elusive final leg of the career grand slam.”
How Rory McIlroy has performed over the weekend at The Masters across his career
It had previously been a hallmark of McIlroy’s Masters record that he would often produce his best rounds when the pressure was off and the chances of winning had all but gone.
But if he can keep himself in contention on Saturday, he can take so much confidence from how he has played in the final round over the years.
Of course, what happened in 2011 will come to mind for many. However, McIlroy has now posted 16 rounds in the 60s across his entire Masters career, and seven of those have come on Sundays.
| Round | Times Rory McIlroy has broken 70 at The Masters |
| One | 2 |
| Two | 4 |
| Three | 3 |
| Four | 7 |
While this year will feel different to many of those if he is in the mix, many of the pins will be familiar. And of course, there is probably not a single area of the golf course that McIlroy does not know about now.
If he can handle the pressure, he undoubtedly has the tools to get the job done.
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