AUGUSTA – Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy experienced his share of “firsts” on Saturday. McIlroy became the first player in Masters history to start a round with six consecutive 3s on the scorecard.
He also had a “second,” as the second player in Masters history to record six consecutive 3s during one round (Jack Renner/1983/R1/Nos. 12-17).
But it was McIlroy’s first time making two eagles in one round at the Masters (Nos. 2 and 15) and he became the first player to do so since 2020 (three players).
McIlroy joined Jordan Spieth (2015), Tiger Woods (2005, 1997), Raymond Floyd (1976) and Johnny Miller (1975) as players with consecutive rounds of 66 or better at a Masters.
And, the big one: McIlroy can also join only five players who have won all four major championships, otherwise known as the career Grand Slam.
If McIlroy completes his career Grand Slam, joining Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods, he’d be creating golf history:
- 90 years after Gene Sarazen/1935 Masters
- 60 years after Gary Player/1965 U.S. Open
- 25 years after Tiger Woods/2000 Open
As the great sports day of “Sunday at the Masters” is now upon us, McIlroy will not be out there alone. With a final-round score in the 60s today, Bryson DeChambeau (2nd/-10) would join Cameron Smith (67-68-69-69/2020/T2) as the only players to shoot all four rounds in the 60s in a single Masters tournament. DeChambeau owns the most rounds in the 60s at major championships since the start of 2024 (11).
In each of the last eight Masters, the eventual champion sat T2 or better through 54 holes.
Corey Conners (3rd/-8) seeks his best finish in a major championship (previous, T6/2022 Masters Tournament) as he looks to join Mike Weir(2003) as the only Masters champions from Canada.
Patrick Reed (T4/-6), Scottie Scheffler (T6/-5) and Zach Johnson (T10/-4) are the only past Masters champions among players at T10 or better on the leaderboard. Johnson’s 6-under 66 marks a span of 28 rounds since his last round in the 60s at the Masters (68/R4) back in 2015.
The Masters | Leaderboard After 54 Holes
1 Rory McIlroy 72 66 66 204 (-12)
2 Bryson DeChambeau 69 68 69 206 (-10)
3 Corey Conners 68 70 70 208 (-8)
T4 Patrick Reed 71 70 69 210 (-6)
T4 Ludvig Åberg 68 73 69 210 (-6)
Tournament Leaderboard: (link)
The Masters
COURSE: Augusta National Golf Club, Augusta, Georgia
ARCHITECT: Dr. Alister MacKenzie and Bobby Jones Jr.; Perry Maxwell in 1937
YARDS/PAR: 7,555 yards/Par 72
PRIZE Money/First Place Winnings: TBD
DEFENDING CHAMPION: Scottie Scheffler
OVERVIEW: (link)
PAST RESULTS: (link)
FEDEx CUP Points to Winner: 750
SOCIAL MEDIA: #PGATour #FedExCup @The Masters
 |