RORY McILROY unleashed the most explosive scoring burst in the 91-year history of The Masters — and stormed into a two-shot lead.
McIlroy opened his third round at Augusta yesterday with SIX successive threes, a run that included an eagle and three birdies.
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He led by four shots after six holes of day three.
And after a sticky patch around the turn, a second eagle at 15 took him clear again, with a second successive 66 taking him to 12 under.
With Bryson DeChambeau as his nearest challenger on ten under after a 69, McIlroy now has one hand firmly on the elusive Green Jacket — and the victory that would make him just the sixth golfer to complete the career Grand Slam.
Doubters will point out McIlroy had a bigger lead going into the final day in 2011 — four shots — but collapsed with a closing 80.
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Surely history cannot repeat itself, not with Supermac in this form.
McIlroy’s start was not just record-breaking, it was sensational.
It took him just two holes to wipe out the two-shot deficit he started with — and to hit the front for the first time this week.
And three more to put clear water between him and the rest, as he pulled three shots ahead.
McIlroy is one of the few men in the game capable of carrying the fairway bunker down the right side of the first hole — and he did just that with a monster 331-yard drive.
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That left the world No 2 a mere flick to the green from 104 yards.
He knocked it to within ten feet of the flag and the birdie putt never looked like missing.
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The roar that greeted that opening salvo was nothing compared to the din after his eagle at the second.
This time he muscled a drive 369 yards downhill — flying another fairway bunker mere mortals fear — and the adrenaline was clearly pumping as he knocked an mid-iron through the green from 220 yards.
No problem. A delicate chip just right of the flag turned slowly toward the hole. And the eruption of noise told you it found its target.
The short par-four third was at McIlroy’s mercy in this mood. Sure enough, a seven-footer for birdie dropped in and, after starting at six under, Rory was now ten under.
DeChambeau, who teed off one behind playing partner Justin Rose at seven under, must have been wondering what more he had to do.
He holed a 45ft bomb at the first, then two-putted from 70ft for another birdie at the second to get to nine under but was still second best.
And when he got too cute with a 65-yard chip at the third, which came back down the slope, it cost him a bogey.
Up ahead, McIlroy looked almost disgusted as his hot run stalled.
A long birdie putt at the fourth pulled up 7in from the flag.
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But seeing as that par three had been stretched out to 247 yards — and given up only three birdies all day — a par was acceptable.
A message flashed up on notice boards saying McIlroy was the sixth player to play the opening three holes in four under par.
But no one had EVER started with five consecutive threes — until now.
The 495-yard fifth at Augusta is another fearsome bunker-laden hole.
But it is a lot less daunting when you take a 342-yard chunk out of it.
McIlroy’s second shot left him an 18-footer for birdie and in it went.
The message boards barely had time to display Rory was the first player to start with five threes before it had to be amended to six.
But only after the first alarm of the round. The leader’s tee shot at the par three sixth spun back down a slope and finished 48ft from the flag. An over-enthusiastic birdie try left nine feet for par. McIlroy puffed out his cheeks in relief as it went in.
The run ended at the seventh. And so did the fun, as the game started looking a lot more difficult.
McIlroy’s tee shot flew way right, into the trees. A small gap allowed him to punch his ball up to the side of the green and salvage a par.
But a FOUR. Gasp. What a comedown!
McIlroy then offered his rivals hope by making a mess of the par-five sixth, stumbling to a bogey six.
But DeChambeau, Rose and Shane Lowry also dropped shots.
McIlroy missed a five footer for birdie at nine — and then three-putted the tenth for a second bogey.
McIlroy ended an eight hole wait for a birdie at the 13th. And after he hit a 220-yard approach shot to six feet to eagle the 15th, he suddenly looked a certain winner again.
Rose dropped a shot at the last to finish five under as DeChambeau’s epic birdie cut Rory’s lead.