By Rory Carroll
AUGUSTA, Georgia, April 11 (Reuters) – Rory McIlroy’s overnight six-shot lead was cut to two by the time he made the turn in Saturday’s third round of the Masters, with a cluster of contenders closing in at Augusta National.
McIlroy, who has battled inconsistency off the tee this week, leaned on his wedge play and a hot putter to steady himself but his round lacked momentum in warm, sunny conditions.
The Northern Irishman bogeyed the opening hole but responded with a birdie at the third, then drained key par putts at the fourth and seventh to reach the turn at even par for the day.
He missed a chance to pick up a shot at the par-five eighth, where much of the field was making birdie, and after another par at the ninth remained at 12-under for the tournament.
That left McIlroy two shots clear of American Cameron Young, with Ireland’s Shane Lowry and China’s Li Haotong another stroke back.
McIlroy is chasing a rare Masters double, bidding to become the fourth player to win back-to-back titles and the first since Tiger Woods in 2002.
World number one Scottie Scheffler surged back into contention with an eagle at the second and five birdies in a bogey-free 65.
After starting the day 12 shots behind McIlroy, Scheffler moved within five of the lead and said he remained firmly in the hunt.
“I don’t feel like I’m out of this tournament,” Scheffler said.
The loudest cheer of the day came at the par-three sixth, where Lowry made a hole-in-one.
Using a seven-iron at the 190-yard hole known as Juniper, Lowry landed his tee shot on the green before it took a couple of bounces and spun into the left side of the cup, sparking a huge roar from the gallery.
(Reporting by Rory Carroll in Augusta, Georgia; Editing by Ken Ferris and Pritha Sarkar)
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