12/04/2026

theSun on Sunday APR 12, 2026

SPORTS 12

JUSTIN ROSE feels no differ ent in his bid to go one better than last year’s heartbreaking Masters runner-up finish, but the Englishman will need to find a new gear after defend ing champion Rory McIlroy built a massive cushion atop a crowded leaderboard. Rose, who lost to McIlroy on the opening hole of a sud den-death playoff at last year’s Masters, was in a three-way share of fourth place after a 3 under 69 yesterday left him at 6-under on the week and six shots back of the Northern Irishman. The 45-year-old Englishman, a three-time Masters runner-up, said the passage of time has done nothing to dull either his edge or his ambitions. “No, I feel the same, which is good,” he said. “I think if I can feel the same, that means I’m doing a lot of other good things because I’m not feeling older and stuff like that. I feel the same. I feel in good form. I feel in good spirits.” The 2013 US Open cham pion added that while the desire to win is burning as brightly as ever, he was wary of the trap of trying too hard. “I don’t really need to try any harder; know what I mean? I think trying harder is -- I just think the experience in that is probably trying harder ain’t going to help me,“ he said. “So that’s probably the dance I’m doing with myself.” But now Rose will need a significant McIlroy stumble over the weekend to have a chance of finally slipping on the Green Jacket. Rose’s round was anything but straightforward. He opened with a bogey after an errant tee shot and then found his ball nestled under a bush at the fifth, threatening to derail his afternoon entirely before a par save steadied the ship. He then caught fire around the turn, picking up his first birdie of the day at the seventh before making three consecu tive birdies that included a run through the par-four 11th to briefly move into the lead. A bogey at the notoriously treacherous 12th was offset by a four-foot birdie putt at the par-five 15th. “I felt like the round could have gone either way,” Rose said. “I’m under a bush on No. 5, already one-over for the round. I felt like momentum was definitely going the wrong way at that point in my round, so I think I did a good job of digging in at that point and rebuilding the round, so I give myself a lot of credit for finding that momentum and finding that good play.” – Reuters Rose vows same hunger at Masters

Augusta water hazards frustrate World No. 1 Scheffler WORLD NO. 1 Scottie Scheffler sank down the Masters leaderboard yesterday, twice splashing into the water on a difficult day, but insisted he played much better than his score suggested. holes. Scheffler plunked his second shot at 13 into Rae’s Creek and found water again at 15.

that solid and kind of hung out there. “It was frustrating to get it back to even, have a couple of par-fives in front of me, and then not do many things I felt wrong and wasn’t able to convert really basically anything coming down the stretch.” Scheffler also struggled on the greens. “I would like to hole a few more putts. I felt like it was rolling nice but balls just weren’t dropping,“ he said. “Maybe my reads were a little bit off. I felt like I was starting on line, could have been speed on a couple of putts, but overall I felt like I definitely played better than my score.” – AFP

“Just the little things that I felt like I was close to having a really good round. Just a few things here or there, a few breaks that didn’t go my way. Yeah, the margins are small.” Scheffler’s round snapped the third-longest streak in Masters history of rounds at par or below at 11, his run eclipsed only by the record 16 of Tiger Woods and 15 by Jon Rahm. Scheffler stumbled early with bogeys at the par-three fourth and par-four fifth holes but responded with birdies at the par-five eighth and par-four 10th. The big heartbreak came with bogeys at the par-five 13th and 15th

“I got off to a slow start. A few up and downs early that I should have had that I didn’t convert. Then I fought back to get it to even,” Scheffler said. “And then the fairway on 13, probably my only shot I would rather be able to hit again. Maybe a different decision there. That’s a tough shot, but I felt like I could make something happen to that pin.” His 3-iron missed badly. “I just didn’t draw it enough,” Scheffler said. “I just tried to swing it with the slope and just didn’t catch it

The four-time major champion, seeking his third Masters crown in five seasons, struggled to a 2-over 74 in yesterday’s second round. It was his second-worst score in 26 rounds at Augusta National, leaving him on level par 144 at the tournament’s midway point. “Was really challenging. I played really pretty well. I felt like I played a lot better than my score,” Scheffler said.

Footloose and fancy-free

Rory McIlroy tees off on the third hole during the second round of the The Masters at Augusta National Golf Club yesterday. – REUTERSPIC

Carefree McIlroy strengthens grip on Masters title defence

RORY MCILROY needed a play off to win his first Masters last year. Twelve months later, nobody can get near the free wheeling Northern Irishman. The defending champion fired a 7-under 65 yesterday – the low est round of the week – to reach 12-under for the tournament and build the largest 36-hole lead in Masters history, six shots clear of Sam Burns and Patrick Reed. McIlroy finally completed the career Grand Slam of golf’s four majors with his victory in Georgia last year and he said it had lifted a weight from his shoulders. “I’ve ߑ always loved this tourna ment, I’ve always loved this golf course even when I felt it didn’t always love me back,” McIlroy told Sky Sports after his round. “I

Masters, a meltdown that began with a wild drive at the 10th that led to a triple-bogey. But the Northern Irishman said his plan over the final two rounds is simple H stay in his own world and block out the noise. “Obviously this golf course has certain characteristics that guys can get on runs, guys can make eagles, you ߑ hear roars all over the golf course,” he said. “I think the next two days for me is really about focusing on myself. “It’s hard to avoid those big leaderboards out there, but like I know that I’ve got a lead. So I don’t need to keep checking it all the time. So for me, just really focusing on myself and staying in my own little world out there is the best thing.” – Reuters

swinging. It’s been guided, tenta tive,” McIlroy told reporters. “I think the experience I’ve accrued over the years and obvi ously with what happened ߑ last year, it makes it a bit easier out there to keep swinging.” Despite his commanding advantage, McIlroy has no desire to play it safe over the weekend. “Look, I’ve built up a nice cushion at this point. I guess my mindset is just trying to keep playing well and keeping my foot on the gas,” he said. With a host of major champi ons lurking on a crowded leader board, McIlroy knows only too ߑ well that Augusta National can produce dramatic swings of momentum. McIlroy infamously collapsed from a four-shot lead heading into the final round of the 2011

feel like I’m playing with the house’s money which is a nice feeling to have.” McIlroy closed his round in breathtaking fashion, making six birdies over his final seven holes including a chip-in from off the 17th green before holing a six foot putt at the last for a fourth consecutive birdie. History is also in his ߑ favour. In the last 14 Masters, the eventual champion was no more than four shots behind the leader at the halfway point. It was a display of the kind of liberated, free-swinging golf that has eluded McIlroy at Augusta for much of his career, and one he attributed to finally getting the monkey off his back. “Over the years this golf course is sometimes H you know, my mindset hasn’t been keep