Rory McIlroy Shoots 67 in 3rd Round to Surge Up Leaderboard at 2020 Masters

Rory McIlroy surged into the top 10 on the leaderboard of the Masters at eight under par after his third round Saturday. 

The Irishman shot a 67 to pull into a tie for ninth place with C.T. Pan and Jon Rahm as he walked into the clubhouse just after 3 p.m. ET. McIlroy's score was just one stroke higher than the 66 he shot Friday but an unequivocal upgrade from the 75 he shot in his first round Thursday. 

Whether or not McIlroy is able to stay in the top 10 before the third round concludes remains the biggest question. As McIlroy's round concluded, Dustin Johnson (14 under) had increased his lead by two strokes over Justin Thomas through 11 holes. 

Johnson, Thomas, Abraham Ancer and Cameron Smith all entered the day in a four-way tie for first place. 

Saturday's Leaderboard

Scores as of McIlroy's finish

1. Dustin Johnson (-14)

2. Justin Thomas (-12)

T3. Abraham Ancer (-11)

T3. Sungjae Im (-11)

5. Dylan Frittelli (-10)

T6. Sebastian Munoz (-9)

T6. Patrick Reed (-9)

T6. Cameron Smith (-9)

T9. Rory McIlroy (-8)

T9. C.T. Pan (-8)

T9. Jon Rahm (-8)

Full leaderboard via Masters.com.

McIlroy completely turned his tournament around after shooting three over par in his first round. Over the following 30 holes, McIlroy went 11 under par and vaulted himself into contention. 

Saturday was particularly critical for the Northern Ireland native as he finished the front nine with three birdies and no bogeys, then started the back nine with two more birdies to move to eight under. With a prime opportunity to gain even more ground on the par-five, 13th hole, McIlroy committed his first mistake of the day by launching his tee shot into the far rough and his second shot a few feet short of the green, only to see it roll backward and into the water. He then missed his birdie and par putts, giving him the first bogey on his scorecard all day.

The ensuing par five at No. 15 wouldn't go much better. McIlroy left his second shot well short of the green, plopping it straight into the water, though he would go on to save par. 

It could've been a massive momentum killer for McIlroy. Instead he responded with a birdie on the par-three No. 16 to move back to eight under. 

Overall, the 31-year-old hit 11 greens in regulation and needed more than two putts to escape just once. More importantly, the short game has become more of a strength for McIlroy as the week has gone on. After averaging 1.67 putts per hole in his first round, McIlroy dropped his average to 1.56 on Friday before reaching 1.33 putts per hole Saturday. 

That has him in prime shape heading into Sunday's final round as he looks to finish fourth or better for the first time at Augusta since 2015. 

After the way he performed Saturday, a green jacket isn't out of the question, either.