McIlroy chipped in for eagle as part of his amazing start. And then he delivered another eagle late in the round as contenders were lining up behind him, a majestic 6-iron to 6 feet on the par-5 15th hole that carried him to a second straight 6-under 66.
“It was an awesome day and puts me in a great position going into tomorrow,” McIlroy said.
He led by two shots over a familiar foe — Bryson DeChambeau, who delivered some magic of his own with a 45-foot birdie putt to start his round and a putt from nearly 50 feet for birdie on the 18th hole that gave him a 69.
It was DeChambeau who crushed McIlroy’s spirit last year at Pinehurst No. 2 by beating him at the US Open, stretching McIlroy’s drought in the majors to more than a decade.
Also familiar to McIlroy was his position going into the final day at Augusta National .
It was 14 years ago when McIlroy, a 21-year-old with long, curly locks and unlimited potential, took a four-shot lead into the final round of the Masters. What followed was a meltdown that left him in tears when he shot 80.
“I just have to stay firm and just stay in my own little world,” McIlroy said.
He hasn’t had a better chance at that green jacket until this week, when he recovered from two double bogeys in the opening round and responded with rounds of 66-66.
At stake on Sunday is a chance to become only the sixth player to capture all four professional majors, a feat last accomplished nearly 25 years ago by Tiger Woods at the British Open.
Corey Conners, who went from a five-shot deficit to one shot behind McIlroy in a span of three holes on this wild Saturday, closed with eight straight pars for a 70. He was in third place, four shots behind.
No one else was closer than six shots of McIlroy. Justin Rose, who had a one-shot lead at the start of the day, shot 75 and was seven shots back. (AP)
