Rory McIlroy: Round 3 Comeback Has McIlroy Destined for PGA Championship Title

After shooting a terrible second round at the 2012 PGA Championship, Rory McIlroy is back in the hunt for a title with a remarkable Round 3 at the Ocean Course.

It's now perfectly clear that McIlroy will seize the moment and earn a well-deserved title at this year's PGA Championship.

McIlroy posted a poor score of 75 in the second round, where he was uncharacteristically missing his putts left and right, and found himself in awful position heading into the weekend. He posted five bogeys and just two birdies in that 18 holes of golf and failed to get a birdie until the 14th hole.

But just at the right time, he kicked it into the highest gear he could and had the field chasing him.

His third round featured a score of 67 and five birdies in his first eight holes. If one thing was for sure, he stepped up his game to open things up. In fact, McIlroy shot birdies in Holes 5 and 7, the two holes he bogeyed in during his Round 2 play.

It was not just his putting, though. It was a mixture of a top-notch drive and a multitude of great green approaches that have him in the spot he is today.

Currently, McIlroy sits at seven-under par and three strokes ahead of second place. Sweden's Carl Pettersson is at four-under for the tournament, but shot five strokes worse than McIlroy in the third round. 

Talk about an impressive lead for McIlroy.

The 2011 U.S. Open champion is set to continue to keep up the play, because he rides a special momentum. Unlike several of the top players on the leaderboard, McIlroy has played his best golf in the more recent holes.

This momentum will only continue on for this top-notch golfer, as it now seems a second career major is now right within reach. If McIlroy brings his Round 3 game right into Round 4, this is the surefire favorite to take the year's final major contest.