WHEN HE’S IN THE MOOD, magic happens and that was the case in the third round of the Wells Fargo championship, as Rory McIlroy overcame back-to-back bogeys on 10 and 11 to proceed to record four birdies in seven holes.
The upshot is he now has a place in the top ten, six shots behind leader, Keegan Bradley, who defied the wet, miserable conditions to shoot a 3-under round of 67. He leads by two from Max Hama who was 6-under thru 15.
McIlroy is four further back, sharing sixth position with six other players.
He’s looking good, though. Anyone who saw his tee shots at the two par 3s which he birdied, each landing six feet from the pin, couldn’t fail to be impressed, his approach at 12 spinning sideways before finishing six feet shy of the flag. He rolled that putt in confidently for birdie.
Next came a birdie at the easiest hole on the course, the 14th. He nearly drove the green but had to settle for a straightforward chip from just off it and an equally straightforward birdie.
Now level par, he began to look beyond the conditions to focus on his swing. And it was operating perfectly, his birdie on 17 being simply world class as he placed his tee shot at the back of the green, again within six feet. Again he birdied, rolling a left to right putt into the hole.
Next hole, he birdied again, after drilling a nine-iron to six feet. Nine pars came on the front nine.
Seamus Power, meanwhile, missed the cut on Friday.
