McIlroy Tied with Young After Historic Collapse at The Masters

In a stunning turn of events, Rory McIlroy squandered a record six-shot lead, leaving him tied with Cameron Young heading into the final day of his title defense at The Masters. McIlroy had made history with the largest 36-hole lead in the tournament's history, but his chances of becoming a back-to-back champion alongside Jack Nicklaus, Sir Nick Faldo, and Tiger Woods suffered a significant setback on Saturday. The world No. 2 blew the tournament wide open with a slow start to his third round, dropping three shots in two holes around the iconic Amen Corner, while Young made a stunning charge from eight shots behind to take the clubhouse lead with a remarkable seven-under 65. McIlroy responded with consecutive birdies from the 14th but bogeyed his penultimate hole, pulling him back alongside Young on 11 under after a third-round 73, with Sam Burns just one shot off the pace in third ahead of Shane Lowry. Lowry, who fired a hole-in-one during a third-round 68, is one of eight players within four strokes of the lead, with last year's runner-up Justin Rose sharing fifth place with Jason Day, as world No 1 Scottie Scheffler charged back into contention by matching Young's 65. McIlroy lost ground immediately with a two-shot swing at the first, making bogey as playing partner Burns posted a birdie-birdie start, while Reed opened with three consecutive birdies to quickly cut the advantage to two. Momentum shifted back in McIlroy's favor when he drove the green at the par-four third, setting up a two-putt birdie, which lifted him four ahead when Reed failed to get up and down from the sand and carded the first of successive bogeys. However, McIlroy scrambled pars on the fourth, sixth, and seventh, then failed to birdie the par-five eighth, as Young closed in by reaching the turn in 32 and starting his second nine with a birdie. Young posted back-to-back birdies from the 13th but sent a wedge into the water on his way to a bogey at the par-five 15th, as McIlroy started his second nine with a birdie before finding water with his approach into the par-four 11th. McIlroy followed his first double-bogey of the week with another dropped shot at the par-three 12th, giving Young the outright advantage for the first time when he drained a 25-foot birdie at the 16th to get to 11 under. Burns was also within one until McIlroy birdied from 20 feet at the 14th and two-putted from a similar distance at the next to edge back one ahead. McIlroy safely navigated the par-three 16th but missed the green from the trees at the par-four next, resulting in a bogey to slip back alongside Young, with the pair set to go out together in the final group on Sunday. 'I would have wanted to be in a better position going into tomorrow, starting with a six-shot lead, but I still have a great chance,' McIlroy told Sky Sports. 'I'm in the final group, which is exactly where you want to be. I wish I had a little bit more of a cushion, but I'm going to go to the range and try to figure it out. I'll need to be better tomorrow. I still have a great chance, but if I'm going to win tomorrow, I'm going to have to be a little bit better than I was today.' Young mixed eight birdies and a lone bogey in his 65, and Burns posted a blemish-free 68 to bolster his hopes of a maiden major, with Lowry just two back after becoming the first player ever to post multiple aces at The Masters. Live coverage of the final round begins at 4:30 pm on Sunday on Sky Sports Golf, ahead of full coverage getting under way at 5 pm and running until long after the final putt has been holed.