Masters second round recap

Just like day one, scoring conditions were ideal on Friday at Augusta. In fact the scoring average for the field was exactly the same as it was on Thursday. Despite the conditions, Augusta can still yield big numbers on holes if you miss in the wrong spots, but at the same time it can reward players for hitting good shots. Here are a few thoughts from round two at the Masters:

– 21 year-old Rory McIlroy still holds the lead in the first major of 2011. He shot a 3-under 69 on Friday, and will go into the weekend with a two shot lead. Friday’s under par round was a major confidence boost for McIlroy as he held the lead after day one of the British Open last July, but followed that up with a second round 80.

– The low round of the day went to Jason Day who shot a 8-under 64 and is now only two shots behind McIlroy. The two played together the first two days, and will also be in the final pairing on Saturday. Day had eight birdies and zero bogeys. He was very solid, as everything was working for him from tee to green. It will be interesting to see how he follows Friday’s round up on Saturday.

– Don’t look now, but Tiger is on  the prowl. Tiger Woods shot a 6-under 66 and is now only three shots out of the lead going into the weekend. Tiger got off to a rough start, but recovered nicely playing the final 11 holes in seven under par. For the first time in a long time Woods seemed to feel comfortable on the golf course and trust his game. Tiger will be in the second to last pairing on Saturday. He will be paired with K.J. Choi, who is also at seven under par.

– It is a pretty stacked leader board which a bunch of big names within five shots of the lead. Geoff Ogilvy and Alvaro Quiros both are at 6-under, four back. There are a bunch of players five shots back and those include Lee Westwood, Ricky Fowler, Fred Couples and Y.E Yang. Phil Mickelson couldn’t really get anything going on Friday and finished at 2 under, shooting an even par 72 on  the day.

– Some notables to miss the cut of +1 were: Anthony Kim, Zach Johnson, Tim Clark, Retief Goosen, and world number one Martin Kaymer. There are many scenarios where there could be a new number one player by the end of the weekend.

– Saturday is always moving day at the Masters and tomorrow should be no different. Last years Saturday was one of the most exciting in Masters history, with plenty of eagles including Mickelson having two in a row on 13 and 14. All of the players near the top of the leader board want to set themselves up for Sunday’s final round.

– Tomorrow might be most important for Tiger Woods. He has never won a major in which he trailed entering the final round, so if Tiger wants to win then history would show that he needs to go low again tomorrow and be in control of the lead. The one thing  that Woods has as an advantage is he will be in the group right ahead of McIlroy and Day so if Tiger gets hot, they will hear the roars and the pressure would be on.

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