Rory McIlroy’s Masters Bid Stalled by Stunning Three-Hole Collapse

Rory McIlroy requires just one Masters green jacket to achieve a complete career Grand Slam in majors.

After 14 holes on Friday morning (AEST), he appeared to be in a prime position to break his prolonged major championship drought, which has lasted over a decade.

However, calamity struck once again. On the par-5 15th hole, his third shot flew long past the green and he subsequently found the water with his chip, resulting in a double bogey.

After a steady par on the 16th, McIlroy stumbled again with a second double bogey on the 17th, mishitting his approach shot past the green and three-putting from a challenging chip.

“That was shocking,” Curtis Strange remarked during the commentary.

In the largest Masters field seen in a decade, McIlroy completed his round with an even-par 72, placing him seven strokes behind the leader, Justin Rose.

Tied for second, three shots off the lead, are Scottie Scheffler, Corey Connors, and Ludvig Aberg. Scheffler aims to become the youngest player since Jack Nicklaus to win three green jackets.

Leading the Australian contingent is Jason Day, who shares a four-way tie for seventh, five shots adrift of Rose. Day began solidly, making par on the first 11 holes before sinking a long birdie putt on the par-3 12th.

He followed that with another birdie on the par-5 13th and parred his way home for a bogey-free round, his first at Augusta since 2023.

“I executed my strategy well out there,” said Day, a three-time top-five finisher at the Masters.

“I tried to avoid difficult positions and when I did find myself in trouble, I managed relatively simple up-and-downs.”

“Unfortunately, I missed a few opportunities to birdie. But being 2-under right now … I’m quite pleased with that.

“Starting strong certainly makes things easier, as long as I maintain that level of performance. I’m really happy with how everything played out.”

Cameron Smith and Min Woo Lee trail him by just a stroke, both at 1-under.

Smith admitted he didn’t bring his best golf to the course, yet he was content with his score overall.

“It was a good battle today. I wouldn’t characterise it as my best play, but I managed to navigate my way around and post a solid score,” he told Fox Sports.

Cameron Davis and 2013 Masters champion Adam Scott faced challenging starts in Augusta. Davis finished at 2-over, while Scott ended the day at 5-over.

In his 40th Masters appearance, 1992 winner Fred Couples proved his enduring quality, finishing among the group of players at 1-under.

Couples made a remarkable chip-in for birdie from the left of the green at the first hole and followed it up with an extraordinary hybrid shot for eagle from 175m on the 14th. After securing four consecutive pars, the 65-year-old completed his round with a commendable 71, becoming the second oldest player to shoot a subpar round at the Masters.

The toughest round of the day belonged to Nick Dunlap, who made history as the youngest player ever to card an 18-over 90.