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AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Rory McIlroy entered Moving Day at the 2026 Masters holding a six-shot lead, the largest in tournament history after 36 holes, one so substantial that the last five (out of six) men to lead by five shots or more at the midway point went on to win a green jacket. Still, there was plenty of time for the field to come back to the defending champion should he falter, and that's exactly what happened over the first 12 holes on Saturday.
On a day when low scores were readily available, McIlroy's struggles to find fairways finally became a problem, and he found himself unable to take advantage of terrific third-round conditions. His driver remained crooked, and his iron and wedge play that buoyed him all week was no longer bailing him out. The result was a 1-over 73 that saw him lose his position as the solo leader.
McIlroy, the only member of the top 10 on the leaderboard to shoot over par on Saturday, is now joined at the top by Cameron Young, one of two players (Scottie Scheffler) to match McIlroy's round-of-the-tournament from Saturday with 7-under 65s.
With 18 holes remaining on Sunday, the green jacket is completely up for grabs at Augusta National Golf Club. Follow 2026 Masters leaderboard live coverage and updates throughout Round 4 on Sunday.
Young's tournament began with a disastrous first nine, as he went out with a 4-over 40 on Thursday morning, but he settled in and clawed his way back to 1 over. He then fired a second-round 67 to get back inside the top 10, and aside from the defending champion, no one was playing better golf entering Saturday than the 28-year-old New Yorker.
That positive momentum carried over into the third round as Young put together a phenomenal ball-striking effort -- and took advantage of some major breaks -- as he vaulted into a share of the lead at 11 under. to shoot a 7-under 65.
Young picked up his first birdie of the day on the short par-4 3rd after driving the green, and then, he got a bonus when he chipped in on the long par-3 4th from over the back of the green.
That was the first sign that this might just be Young's day. He added two more birdies on the 7th and 8th holes to reach 8 under and start applying a bit of heat to a struggling McIlroy. Young got another good break on the 9th when his approach bounded over the green but kicked back onto it after hitting a patron, setting up an easy two-putt par.
The big swing in Young's round came on the 13th, when he hooked his tee shot into the trees left, which is usually disastrous. Instead of ending up in a tributary of Rae's Creek -- or worse, losing a ball -- he kicked down into the fairway. That left a stock 6 iron into the green, leading to a birdie when bogey or worse was firmly in play after the ball left the tee.
Young lone stumble came at the 15th when he spun a ball back into the water on his third shot, but he hit a gorgeous wedge after a drop from the same spot to a few feet and rattled in the bogey putt to avoid a major step back. He added a birdie on the 16th to bounce back to 11 under, and got that into the clubhouse to take a share of the lead into Sunday.
Young did not score his 65 by playing hyper-aggressively, throwing darts at flags; instead, he remained smart and patient while hitting terrific golf shots.
"I think, if you're playing that well, it's a really nice opportunity to make it as easy as you can," Young said after his round. "There's no reason to take any unnecessary risk when, if you're hitting it well, you're going to have opportunities. If you hit it to 20 feet all day, you're going to make a couple. If you're aiming 20 feet, 25 feet all day, you're going to hit a couple closer than you mean to."
"To me, I just took the opportunity to try to make sure I had those opportunities. You just are constantly aware of the fact that this place can bite you," Young continued. "So to me, it's just a really, really clear mandate that an easy par is never bad, and if you're playing that well, you're going to back your way into some birdies at some point."
That's an incredibly mature approach for a player with Young's talent. If he can maintain that under the pressure of a final round at the Masters playing alongside McIlroy, he will be a serious threat to take home the green jacket Sunday evening.
Young noted the birdies on No. 4 and No. 13 were probably "more than I was owed," but every major champion needs some good luck and bounces to go his way over the course of four days. The key is to take advantage of those breaks, and by doing so, he is in position to capture his first career major.
2026 Masters leaderboard breakdown, Round 3
T1. Rory McIlroy, Cameron Young (-11): McIlroy seemed to have weathered the storm of the first nine after a birdie on the 10th and even got a break on the 11th, kicking out of the trees into the fairway after another errant drive. However, it was at that point that things began to unravel for the defending champion, as he hit a shocking approach into the water, taking on a front left flag he had no business attacking. Another dropped shot on the 12th put him back at 10 under and out of even a share of the lead.
He again seemed to steady his round with back-to-back birdies to reclaim the lead on Nos. 14 and 15, but a bogey on the 17th -- again after a drive in the trees -- took him out of the solo lead. Now he's tied with Young, who should be comfortable in the final pairing with McIlroy after playing the first two rounds alongside the defending champion. The biggest problem for McIlroy is that it's not just that Young produced a tremendous round to get into contention but that his stumble brought a whole host of contenders into the mix on Sunday.
3. Sam Burns (-10): Most fans expected Burns to fade away in the final pairing with McIlroy, but he put together a bogey-free 68 that kept him right in the mix for his first major title. That experience on Saturday should help him on Sunday, and if he can keep his strong ball-striking form up, his putting always gives him a shot.
4. Shane Lowry (-9): Despite being a major champion, Lowry's reputation for closing out events is not stellar. Still, he's put himself in contention going into Sunday and will still get the chance to be one of the chasers, which might be the perfect place for him. If nothing else, Lowry will exit this week having made Masters history, as his hole-in-one on the par-3 6th made him the first player to record multiple aces at the Masters.
T5. Jason Day, Justin Rose (-8): The two wily veterans are hanging around after Day's 68 and Rose's 69 on Saturday. They couldn't produce the same firepower as Young and Scheffler, but they are still very much in the mix, and if Sunday nerves come into play in the two final pairings, those two could certainly play their way into the conversation late in the afternoon.
T7. Scottie Scheffler, Haotong Li (-7): Scheffler's 65 on Saturday was nothing short of incredible, and it certainly seemed like he could have scored even better. Scheffler went 5 under on his first nine and had several birdie chances slide by on the second nine on his way to that 65, but despite feeling like he "left a few out there," he did something few thought possible and gave himself a chance on Sunday at the Masters.
Li, meanwhile, had it rolling early in his round and was also 5 under on his round and 9 under overall at the turn. He slid backwards on the second nine -- a stone-cold shank into the water on No. 15 was hard to understand -- but still acquitted himself nicely under the pressure of playing late on Saturday in a major.
T9. Patrick Cantlay, Patrick Reed, Russell Henley (-6): Reed began his day with three consecutive birdies and looked like he'd be the one to charge at McIlroy, but the wheels came off from there, and he could never get himself going again on the second nine. His 72 was not quite as disappointing as McIlroy's 73, but on a day where low scores were being posted everywhere, he missed a golden opportunity to put himself in position to win a second green jacket. Cantlay and Henley were among those to post low scores. Making up five shots with so many quality players ahead of them might be too tall an order for Sunday, but they can both make a lot of money and earn another quality major finish with another strong round on Sunday.
T12. Collin Morikawa, Jake Knapp, Ben Griffin (-5): Morikawa talked Thursday about being more nervous than he's ever been for a round due to his back injury, but he's settled in and could find his way into a gritty top 10. He was treading water for much of his third round before catching fire late on the second nine, holing out for eagle on the 15th and making two more birdies in succession to get in with a 68.
T15. Xander Schauffele, Brooks Koepka, Wyndham Clark, Tyrrell Hatton, Tommy Fleetwood, Ryan Gerard (-4): The first five here all stalled out a bit on Saturday and will feel they missed an opportunity to make a real move on a day with ideal conditions. Gerard's 68 was the best of the bunch, and the Masters rookie is now tantalisingly close to the top 12 finish that would guarantee him an invitation to next year's tournament.
Watch the 2026 Masters with expanded coverage from CBS Sports on Sunday. Masters Live follows in the world on Featured Groups, Amen Corner and holes 15 & 16. Watch those streams live across Paramount+, CBSSports.com and the CBS Sports App with extended broadcast coverage from 12-2 p.m. on Paramount+ and 2-7 p.m. on CBS.
CBS Sports kept you updated with 2026 Masters leaderboard scores and highlights below. Check out our complete Masters TV schedule and coverage guide.
