Rory McIlroy strays from Jack Nicklaus warning at Masters | Opinion

Q: What did Jack Nicklaus advise Rory McIlroy before the Masters?

Jack Nicklaus advised Rory McIlroy to skip the big numbers and avoid disasters during the tournament.

Q: How did Rory McIlroy's performance change during the Masters third round?

Rory McIlroy's performance in the third round led to a double bogey, causing him to lose his six-stroke lead.

Q: What impact did McIlroy's double bogey have on his standing in the Masters?

McIlroy's double bogey erased his six-stroke lead, significantly impacting his chances in the tournament.

Q: What are the consequences of Rory McIlroy straying from Nicklaus' advice?

Straying from Nicklaus' advice resulted in McIlroy's poor performance, raising doubts about his ability to manage pressure in critical moments.

AUGUSTA, Ga. – Rory McIlroy finally strayed from Jack Nicklaus’ warning. He made a bleeping double bogey.

Let’s leave out the profanity of the Golden Bear’s pre-tournament quote to McIlroy and give you the sanitized version: Skip the big numbers. Avoid disasters.

Well, consider McIlroy’s third round a dance on the edge of disaster.

McIlroy’s lead is gone. All six strokes of it, erased.

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The first man to ever lead the Masters by a half-dozen strokes after 36 holes is now tied with Cameron Young atop the leaderboard at 11 under. Young teed off nearly an hour before McIlroy on this round, an indicator of how much ground he’d need to close. Consider the gap closed.

On a sunny 84-degree Moving Day when so many other golfers posted red, red and more red numbers, McIlroy wobbled. He’d looked unstoppable, inevitable, incredible through 36 holes, but the Masters isn’t big on invincibility.

Rory McIlroy on the 18th green at the 2026 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club.

By the time McIlroy had exited Amen Corner on moving day, his round had gone to hell. If there was any solace, it's that it could've been worse.

Amen Corner gives Rory McIlroy trouble at Masters

Let’s breeze past McIlroy’s unremarkable but manageable front nine and zip straight to the danger zone.

McIlroy put his second shot in the water at the par-4 11th, lipped out his fifth shot, and after he finally tapped in for double-bogey six, he turned to look at the leaderboard. It still showed his name at the top. Not for much longer.

Up ahead, Young drained a 27-footer on the 16th, and McIlroy missed the green on No. 12 and took bogey.

As McIlroy walked to the tee box at Azalea, the final leg of Amen Corner, Young had become the Masters leader.

Remarkable, though not unbelievable.

If we thought this tournament was over after McIlroy set a 36-hole Masters record by establishing a six-stroke lead, we’d forgotten Augusta National’s history for humbling good golfers who enjoyed early leads and ignored Rory’s own history of weekend gaffes here.

As McIlroy’s tee shot on No. 13 sailed toward the pine straw, he asked the golf gods to allow him to “get lucky.”

His plea fell on deaf ears.

Cameron Young turns up heat on Rory McIlroy

Young got the luck on this day. Mostly, he just played great golf. Eight birdies filled his card.

If you watched Young’s first nine holes at the Masters, you could be forgiven for thinking he’d miss the cut. He had 40 strokes on the card at the turn on Thursday.

Just how rough was it?

Well, consider Young trailed his teenage playing partner, amateur Mason Howell, by one stroke after those first nine holes. Young got better on his second nine, he got good on his second round, and he became the best player on the course in Round 3.

Young had a prime view of McIlroy’s best work here. Young, McIlroy and Howell played together the first two rounds. Young said he wouldn’t have been surprised if McIlroy posted a 65 in this round and clinched his second green jacket.

No 65 came for either Young or McIlroy.

Young went 64. McIlroy went 73.

Now, we have Sunday drama.

“If he does open the door, you have to take advantage,” Young said on CBS.

Scottie Scheffler applies heat, too

Skinny numbers filled scorecards all throughout the leaderboard.

The sun baked the patrons, and SPF 30 was about 20 SPF too few.

One golfer near the top of the leaderboard, Haotong Li, said the greens “almost died” in the heat, but the conditions were still quite favorable to good scores.

Scottie Scheffler got in at 6 under, his lowest-ever Masters round. So did Patrick Cantlay. Young needed one stroke fewer. If not for a water-ball on No. 15, Young could have tied a course record.

That’s what made McIlroy’s 73 so glaring.

It’s not that 73 is a devastating number. Let’s not pretend this was the same as Greg Norman’s meltdown in ’96. But, 73 became a tenuous score on a day when several of the world’s top golfers filled their scorecards with 2s and 3s.

If a golfer were to give McIlroy fresh advice before the final round, it might sound like this: Straighten out the driver. Create more chances for birdies.

Blake Toppmeyer is a columnist for the USA TODAY Network. Email him at BToppmeyer@gannett.com and follow him on X @btoppmeyer.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Rory McIlroy flirts with Masters disaster as Cameron Young heats up