McIlroy double bogeys fourth hole, Young seizes Masters lead at Augusta

Rory McIlroy’s putter went cold at the worst possible moment, and the par-3 fourth hole at Augusta National Golf Club turned the final round of the 90th Masters into Cameron Young’s tournament to lead. McIlroy opened Sunday tied with Young at 11-under after 54 holes, but a double bogey at the fourth flipped the pressure and put Young alone in front.

The damage mattered because Augusta does not forgive hesitation when the stakes rise. McIlroy had arrived at the final round after watching a historic six-shot 36-hole lead vanish, the largest such advantage ever taken into the weekend at the Masters. Young had made that comeback real with a 7-under 65 on Saturday, and the fourth hole became the point where McIlroy’s margin for error disappeared entirely. A par-3 at Augusta leaves little room for recovery, and McIlroy’s 5 on the hole was enough to swing both the scorecard and the mood around the course.

The mistake also deepened the psychological pressure on McIlroy, who was chasing a place in rare company. He was trying to become only the fourth player to win back-to-back Masters titles, joining Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo and Tiger Woods. The week had already carried Nicklaus’s warning to him, a simple reminder before the tournament: “No double bogeys.” On Sunday, that line became the story.

McIlroy’s Masters history gave the moment even more weight. His 2025 victory completed the career Grand Slam and ended years of frustration at Augusta, but the final round also reopened memories of his 2011 collapse, when the tournament slipped away on Sunday. After the double bogey on four, that old tension returned as Young took or extended the lead and a star-studded group, including Justin Rose, Sam Burns, Shane Lowry and Jason Day, stayed close behind.

McIlroy later said, “I didn’t quite have it today.” At Augusta, that was enough. One missed par save on the fourth hole changed the shape of the round, shifted the burden onto McIlroy, and gave Young control of a Masters that was decided as much by nerve as by score.