Live: World number one looms as McIlroy chases history in final round of Masters

Cameron Younger makes par on the fourth after which watches carefully from off the inexperienced as Rory McIlroy sends his par putt left after which he lips out his bogey putt!

It is a double for the defending champ as Younger immediately finds himself two strokes clear on 12-under.

And now the person who did not have interaction with the followers in any respect on his approach to the primary tee is prepared for some excessive fives as he makes his approach to the fifth.

Because the birdies begin to move round Augusta, Australian Jason Day finds his first bogey of the day.

If the pars on the primary 4 holes had been irritating, the bogey on the par-four fifth is agonising as he fails to hit one other inexperienced in regulation and leaves a 13-foot par putt simply left.

Day slips to 7-under, tied with Hideki Matsuyama, though I might anticipate Shane Lowry to affix them in a second after blasting his second shot from the sand into the lip of the bunker on the fifth.

To make issues worse for Day, taking part in accomplice Justin Rose is on an absolute tear together with his third birdie from the primary 5 holes.

Rory McIlroy produces a sensational shot out of the greenside bunker and rolls within the birdie putt to affix Cameron Younger on 12-under in prime spot on the leaderboard.

And each are actually three pictures away from the closest chasers.

Shane Lowry three putts the fourth to drop a stroke, leaving Scottie Scheffler looming ominously on 9-under.

He was briefly the one participant on that rating, however he is been shortly joined by Justin Rose (birdie on 5) and Russell Henley (birdie on seven).

On the thirteenth and the seventeenth yesterday, Cameron Younger’s tee pictures sailed into the bushes, solely to hit them and ricochet into beautiful fairway lies.

AND NOW IT’S HAPPENED AGAIN!

Having simply taken the outright lead with a birdie on the second, his tee shot was miles proper however someway has bounced again onto the green.

The Australian is even by means of 4 holes, however his birdie putts on two and three had been inside a few centimetres of the opening.

You may see his shoulders hunch because the ball settled simply off the lip.

He actually wants a few of these to begin falling to get among the many leaders.

Cameron Younger improves on his in a single day rating with a birdie on the par-five second to maneuver into the outright lead at 12-under.

Rory McIlroy has a birdie putt to affix him, nevertheless it’s juuuuuust left of the opening and curls across the again for a par tap-in.

It is Younger’s second time within the outright lead after briefly transferring forward of McIlroy yesterday earlier than the reigning champ reined him again in late.

It was a fast keep among the many leaders on 11-under for Sam Burns as he comes unstuck on the par-five second.

He hit his tee shot to this point proper that he needed to take a drop, then hacked out of the pine needles, then went over the inexperienced into the spectators and ultimately settles for a double bogey to slide again to 9-under.

As Australian Jason Day kicks off with a pair of pars after lacking a birdie putt on the second by millimetres, world primary Scottie Scheffler has continued his stellar kind from yesterday.

The 2022 and 2024 Masters winner tied the low spherical of the event with 7-under yesterday and has began with birdies on the primary …

… and third …

… to maneuver to 9-under for the event, simply two strokes behind the leaders.

If there’s anybody you don’t need chasing you down on Sunday at Augusta, it is the ice chilly Scheffler.

As Rory McIlroy prepares to tee off on the second, it is value a dialogue.

Holes two, eight, 13 and 15 will probably be of explicit curiosity at the moment as a result of these are the par fives at Augusta Nationwide.

McIlroy, traditionally among the finest drivers the sport has seen, has hit the green off the tee on these holes precisely as soon as in 12 makes an attempt on this event.

He is hit them into bunkers, into bushes, into the spectators … just about each the place besides the quick grass, nevertheless it hasn’t actually mattered for the reigning champ.

McIlroy birdied seven of eight par fives within the first two rounds and even yesterday was 1-under with three pars and a birdie on 15 as soon as he lastly hit a fairway.

2008 winner Trevor Immelman stated yesterday: “You’ll be able to’t be relying in your quick sport and placing for 4 days in a row.”

The margins must be finer at the moment with the stress ratcheted all the best way up, and the chasing pack nipping at his heels.

So, Rory McIlroy and Cameron Younger have each sunk quick putts for par on the first and which means everyone seems to be on the board for the day’s play.

It is taken only one gap and 29-yea-old American Sam Burns, who has by no means completed higher than seventh at a serious, has joined Rory McIlroy and Cameron Younger on 11-under with a birdie on the primary.

In the meantime, taking part in accomplice Shane Lowry drops a shot on the primary to slide again to 8-under.

And so we start a day of shuffling and reshuffling the leaderboard.

Present leaders Rory McIlroy and Cameron Younger have kicked off their closing rounds within the final group — McIlroy touchdown his tee shot on the green, narrowly avoiding the bunker Younger simply discovered off to the correct.

It was telling  to look at how they every made their approach by means of the throngs of followers to the primary tee field.

Reigning champion McIlroy admitted to struggling for motivation instantly after successful the profession Grand Slam final 12 months however has felt a weight off his shoulders at this 12 months’s event. And he was excessive fiving spectators and appeared to permit himself a slight smile as he walked by means of.

Younger, in the meantime, was head down and all enterprise, staying very a lot inside himself.

As Shane Lowry and Sam Burns begin their rounds, 445-ish yards forward, Jason Day and taking part in accomplice Justin Rose are finishing their first gap.

Rose kicks off by holing out an excellent quick chip from simply off the inexperienced for an unlikely birdie on the opening gap to instantly be part of Lowry inside two pictures of the leaders.

In the meantime, Australian Day makes par with a tough little three-foot putt after falling wanting the inexperienced together with his second shot from the green bunker.

After many years of ache and a few of the most dramatic close to misses in event historical past, Rory McIlroy received his first Masters title final 12 months in an exciting play-off with Justin Rose.

Try how that closing spherical performed out in our dwell weblog.

We have simply seen Englishman Tyrrell Hatton gap out from the center of the green on the par-four seventh gap, emulating countryman Aaron Rai who did it earlier at the moment.

And, moments after Hatton’s shot, 2015 winner Jordan Spieth chipped in from the bunker for the primary eagle of the day on the par-five thirteenth.

After 5 top-10 finishes on the Masters, together with a share of eighth final 12 months, Jason Day is kicking off his closing spherical three strokes off the lead.

The Australian is attempting so as to add to his solely different main victory, on the 2015 PGA Championship, and finish greater than a decade of heartbreak at Augusta.

He is discovered the sand on the correct of the green off the primary tee and falls wanting his first inexperienced in regulation out of the deep bunker.

He’s taking part in alongside Englishman Justin Rose, who misplaced a play-off to Rory McIlroy right here simply final 12 months, so possibly they’ll bond over their Sunday pains.

For the true nuffies amongst you, listed here are the opening areas for this closing spherical:

He could also be 4 pictures again to begin the day, however world primary Scottie Scheffler could have the gamers forward of him a bit nervous.

His 7-under third spherical launched him into rivalry from successfully nowhere and we have seen loads of final-round wobbles from leaders at Augusta, so if he can card one other low rating he’ll odor an opportunity so as to add to his 2022 and 2024 wins in Georgia.

He’s taking part in with China’s Haotong Li, who went 5-under by means of the entrance 9 within the third spherical due to an eagle on the eighth however three bogeys within the closing six holes pushed him again into the pack a bit.

Solely three males have received the Masters in consecutive years.

You’d suppose with the Masters being the one main performed on the identical course yearly that it might have occurred extra usually, however that additionally means the complete discipline is simply as educated as they chase these leaders.

If he can win at the moment, Rory McIlroy will grow to be the fourth back-to-back Masters winner after:

Jack Nicklaus in 1965 and 1966Nick Faldo in 1989 and 1990Tiger Woods in 2001 and 2002