Masters 2012: What Rory McIlroy, Golf's Hottest Star, Must Do to Win on Sunday

Rory McIlroy will need to adjust a lot of things if he wants to have a chance to win this year's Masters. Back in 2011, Rory left Augusta National on Saturday with a four-shot lead; today he finished the third round 10 strokes behind the leader, Peter Hanson.

His frustration was visible and despite some tough breaks, McIlroy didn't lose his cool and even shared a few laughs and hugs with his pairing partner, Sergio García.

"Rors" needs to step up and bring his A game to the Masters tomorrow if he intends to wear the green jacket.

Tee Shots

Rory’s tee shots were bad enough to send him from a tie for third—in the second round—to a tie for 27th.

His first miss came on the first hole, the toughest hole of the week, with eight birdies, 76 bogeys and 14 double-bogeys or worse.

Today, McIlroy contributed to that count with a double-bogey after sending his ball to the trees. He has to work hard today on the range to adjust his swing.

Short Game

His approach shots weren't the best either. After a dreadful tee shot on one, he couldn't reach the green and took three shots from the fringe to get there.

This week, he has hit 34 greens out of 54, which means he has reached 63 percent of them in regulation. Rory can't afford to miss them or, even worse, to misjudge their speed.

Putting

The double-bogey he had on the seventh was the result of a bad tee shot and an even worse putting routine.

McIlroy had a good chance to par the hole, but he misjudged the speed of the green again. He could have stayed three over par, but instead he three-putted, the same way he did two holes before for bogey, and went up to five over par.  

Attitude

Rory McIlroy and Sergio García had a combined score of 10-over-par by the time they made the turn, so when both birdied the 12th they fused in an embrace.

Rors’ attitude has always been part of his charm and this time it wasn't the exception. Sharing laughs with García showed he knows how to take pressure the right way and when to let go.

At the end of the day: “If you can't laugh at yourself, who can you laugh at," he said after shooting a five-over-par 77.

So tomorrow he needs to keep it cool, no matter the outcome.

Media Scrutiny

Rory's third round resulted in comparisons regarding his meltdown at the 2011 Masters. The worst thing McIlroy can do is listen to those speculations.

He must take advantage of what he learned last year when he blew off his four-shot lead and finished 10 shots behind the winner.

It’s true that he’s very far from the leaders, but if he can put together his game and Mickelson and Hanson don’t score low, the miracle may happen. The largest comeback at the Masters is eight strokes.

At the end, this isn't over until the fat lady sings.

Enjoy His Pairing

Tomorrow, Rory will play with Graeme McDowell; they tee off at noon.

McDowell has always shown his support to his fellow countryman, both on and off the course. At last year's U.S. Open, GMac went out to see McIlroy claim his first major championship title.

Meanwhile, Rors picked Graeme as his partner for the World Cup held last November in China.

It is well known that these two have a good friendship.