Rory McIlroy Charges Up Leaderboard with 3rd-Round 66 at PGA Championship After Masters Win

Sunday at the PGA Championship could be another crowning moment for Rory McIlroy, who put himself in contention to win the second grand slam tournament of 2026 with an incredible third-round performance.

McIlroy, who entered play on Saturday tied for 30th, moved up 27 spots at the time his round ended after shooting 66 in the third round.

Since carding a 74 on Thursday, McIlroy is seven-under par over his last 36 holes. He did end round three on a slightly down note with a bogey on No. 17, but the overall result has him in contention to start the year with back-to-back major titles.

McIlroy could also make history as having the worst position in the standings after 18 holes by an eventual major champion if he goes on to win tomorrow.

The bulk of McIlroy's damage on Saturday was done over a nine-hole stretch from No. 5 through 13. He had five birdies during that span, including on the par-four sixth hole when he went for the green off the tee.

The driver was crucial to McIlroy's success in the third round. He was first in strokes gained off the tee (1.997) on Saturday when he walked off the course.

The PGA Tour noted that McIlroy's 66 was one shot off from tying his best single-round score at the PGA Championship.

McIlroy hasn't won the PGA Championship since 2014. He has three top-10 finishes in 11 appearances since, with his most recent one coming in 2023.

Another storyline to monitor for McIlroy on Sunday is his quest to start the year by going 2-for-2 in major tournament wins. The last player to win the year's first two majors since Jordan Spieth in 2015.

No one has accomplished the feat since the PGA adjusted the calendar in 2019 to make the PGA Championship the second major of the year after the Masters.

In the stroke-play era (since 1958), Jack Nicklaus is the only player to win the Masters and PGA Championship in the same year. He did it twice, in 1963 and 1975.

Sam Snead (1949) and Jack Burke Jr. (1956) are the only other players in PGA Tour history who have won both tournaments in the same year.

There is still a lot of work for McIlroy to do to join that historic group, but the fact he has an opportunity to do so given how poorly the weekend started is a testament to how impressive his play has been over the past two days.