HOYLAKE, England — For the second consecutive major championship, the final round figures to be little more than a coronation.
Last month it was Martin Kaymer, who put the U.S. Open to sleep by Friday, marching proudly around Pinehurst No. 2 without a care in the world on Sunday.
This time it seems it will be Rory McIlroy, who takes a six-shot lead into Sunday’s British Open final round at Royal Liverpool, having the opportunity to make that magical walk as he tries to put the finishing touches on capturing the third leg of a career Grand Slam at age 25.
“Not a lot of people have achieved the career Grand Slam,’’ McIlroy said. “And if everything goes the right way [Sunday] to get to that three-quarters of the way, there is some achievement by the age of 25. I’d be in pretty illustrious company.’’
McIlroy, though, said he was not “getting ahead’’ of himself.
You would figure McIlroy learned from Saturday when he saw his four-shot lead erased by the 12th hole after a scorching run from Rickie Fowler — a rally that McIlroy dramatically staved off by going 4-under par on his final five holes with eagles on the 16th and 18th holes, both par-5s.
“I’m going to try to put all of that out of my head,’’ McIlroy said of the fruits that would come with a win Sunday. “First things first. It would be way too much to think about and way too much to sort of ponder.’’
McIlroy, who shot 68 on Saturday and is 16-under par, six ahead of Fowler and seven clear of Sergio Garcia and Dustin Johnson, was given quite a bit to ponder by a couple of players during the third round. And the sturdy way he staved them off has to galvanize his confidence entering the final round.
Despite taking a four-shot lead into Saturday, McIlroy endured some game challenges — first from Johnson and then from Fowler — before slamming his spikes on the accelerator and threatening to turn this thing into a runaway — just like the two previous major championships he has won, both eight-shot victories at the 2011 U.S. Open and 2012 PGA Championship.
A bogey on the first hole while Johnson birdied it provided a quick two-shot swing, cutting McIlroy’s lead from four to two, 11-under to 9-under.
Suddenly, it seemed it was game on.
Lost in the mix of an eventful day with some dramatic swings for McIlroy was a massive 10-foot par-save putt he made on No. 2 to steady himself.
That’s about the time Fowler began to make his run at McIlroy, with birdies at Nos. 1, 2 and 6 to get to 10-under par, just two shots off the lead.
Johnson fell back with consecutive bogeys on Nos. 7, 8 and 9 to drop to 6-under, six shots behind McIlroy.
Fowler, who was putting the “move’’ in “moving day,’’ then birdied 10, 11 and 12 to get to 12-under par, and when McIlroy missed a 3-foot par putt on 12, the two were tied.
Fowler began the day six shots behind McIlroy and caught him through 12 holes.
But that was when McIlroy showed his greatest bounce-back strength, burying a 40-foot birdie putt on the 14th hole moments after Fowler bogeyed it from the fairway rough. Fowler then carded a damaging bogey on the par-5 16th hole from a pot bunker to fall to 10-under par with McIlroy watching from the fairway.
Moments later, McIlroy eagled No. 16 to get to 15-under, completing a damaging three-shot swing from which Fowler would not recover.
“I knew that Rickie was playing well in front,’’ McIlroy said. “But I never panicked. I feel like my patience was rewarded.’’
After a Fowler birdie on the 18th as McIlroy watched from the fairway, McIlroy stuffed his approach shot to 12 feet once Fowler cleared the green and made the putt for eagle to open the lead to six shots.
“I was just sort of waiting for those two holes,’’ McIlroy said of 16 and 18. “And to be able to make two threes there coming in was very important, and obviously sets me up nicely for [Sunday].’’
There are few who have watched McIlroy play with the lead in big tournaments who expect him to go backward Sunday.
“If Rory plays the way he’s been playing it’s difficult to see anybody catching him when he’s playing like that,’’ Garcia said.
“He’s won the U.S. Open by eight shots, so he obviously doesn’t have any issue as the front runner and trying to extend that lead — much like Tiger [Woods] used to,’’ said Jim Furyk, who is at 6-under par.
“I’m comfortable leading the tournament,’’ McIlroy said. “It helps that I’ve been in this position before and I’ve been able to convert and I’ve been able to get the job done. I just need to go out there and play one more solid round and hopefully that’s enough.’’
It certainly figures to be. After Saturday’s round, the local bookmakers have installed McIlroy as a 1-10 favorite to win Sunday.
Of more interest, is a 400-pound bet at 500-1 odds that McIlroy’s father, Gerry, placed in 2004 that his son (then 15) would win a British Open by the age of 25.
So Sunday should be a big day for McIlroy and his family.