Justin Rose stepped up on day two at the 85th Masters with a fat, four-shot lead but that didn’t last long on Friday morning.
Rose bogeyed his first hole right out of the box and his lead dropped to just a shot as he was three-over through the first seven holes and reeling, his game looked nothing like it did on Thursday.
“The finger was heading toward the panic button a little bit,” Rose said. “I had a little talk with myself on eight and said, ‘You’re still leading the Masters,’ and I just changed my mindset a little bit and started to play match play against the golf course. I scratched a line on my scorecard and told myself I was three-down and could I go ahead and beat the golf course from that point on.”
Rose bounced back with three back-nine birdies and had an 18-footer for par at 18. His putt missed but Rose still rallied to shoot 72 and finished at seven-under par, good enough for the 36-hole lead. Rose deemed his round, his “match” against Augusta National — “An honorable draw.
“I think it was just a classic day at Augusta National when you’re just slightly off,” Rose said. “You can be a foot or two out on certain occasions and you end up struggling. I think maybe off the back of yesterday, yeah, you know, it starts to feel pretty different pretty quickly.”
Rose’s round opened the door for a number of challengers and some big names and not-so-big names stepped up to challenge Rose heading into the final 36 holes.
The course was much friendlier on day two, playing at least two shots easier. Still, it wasn’t easy enough for Dustin Johnson who three-putted his way to a 75 and missed the 36-hole cut.
Here’s how the challengers are lined up behind Rose:
138 Six-Under Par:
Will Zalatoris (70-68): Here’s the surprise name among the contenders. Played his way onto the PGA Tour from the Korn Ferry Tour. Superb ball striker although his putting can be inconsistent at times but he has a great feel for the Augusta National Greens so far. If he wins, you wonder if there are any Augusta National members who are as thin as Zalatoris? They might have to borrow Condoleeza Rice’s jacket for the ceremony.
Brian Harman (69-69): First of the two leftys to make the cut. Phil Mickelson rallied late to stick around for the weekend. As for Harman, he’s been on a roll the past month.
139 Five-Under Par:
Jordan Spieth (71-68): Jordy’s got momentum and good Mo-Jo here. If he can keep his drives in the fairway, look out for this guy.
Marc Leishman (72-67): Does he have what it takes to win a major? We’ll find out quickly on Saturday.
140 Four-Under Par:
Bernd Wiesberger (74-66): Shot one of two 66s on Friday. Decorated European Tour star.
Tony Finau (73-66): Could Tony’s second win possibly earn him a Green Jacket? Mind-boggling proposition.
Justin Thomas (73-67): If he goes low on Saturday, could be the man to beat on Sunday.
Si Woo Kim (71-69): Is he the first guy to shoot 69 putting with a three-wood? In a fit of anger, he snapped the head off his putter on the 15th hole Friday. Finished par-par-par putting with that three-wood. Not bad!
Cameron Champ (72-68): Can he win on Sunday and dedicate the victory to Lee Elder?
Hideki Matsuyama (69-71): Has enough experience at Augusta National to be in the mix on Sunday.
141 Three-Under Par:
Xander Schauffele (72-69): Needs to make some birdies on Saturday and shoot another round in the 60s to contend.
With a somewhat easier course on Friday, there are a total of 20 players in red numbers after 36 holes. PGA champ Collin Morikawa (73-66) is one of four at two-under par. Bryson DeChambeau (76-67) rallied with a nice round on Friday and is one of another four at one-under.
