AUGUSTA, Ga. — He wasn't stranded between the stately white cabins atAugusta National, not this time. But he certainly could see them from where he was standing.
Remember that strange image? Rory McIlroy, lining up a shot in an impossible spot well off the 10th fairway on Sunday five years ago, about to see his Masters lead evaporate in a brutal collapse.
This time, McIlroy was not far away under a pine tree on the 18th fairway, and the sense of impending doom wasn't quite as pronounced. Still: He had climbed the leaderboard with a brilliant flurry on the back nine.