It’s been an interesting afternoon at Augusta National as a tough course has made for a fluctuating leaderboard. Dustin Johnson pulled ahead early on, but fell apart down the stretch. Meanwhile, following a slow start, Rory McIlroy made a move up the leaderboard.
Masters leaderboard: Rory McIlroy surging, Dustin Johnson collapsing
There has been significant movement atop the leaderboard at Augusta as Rory McIlroy is working his way into contention while Dustin Johnson’s lead has evaporated.
After two bogeys in his first three holes, McIlroy settled down considerably. An eagle on No. 8 got him back to level and he moved into the red with back-to-back birdies at No. 13 and No. 14. McIlroy is 2-under through 16 holes on Friday. He’s currently tied for ninth and four strokes behind Marc Leishman who leads at 6-under.
Johnson held the lead to himself at 7-under earlier in the round, but the wheels came off over the final five holes. A birdie on No. 13 moved Johnson to 7-under overall and 2-under on his round. A bogey on No. 14 dropped him back to 6-under, and then it came undone. After laying up on No. 15, Johnson hit his approach shot into the water hazard. He wound up with a double bogey on the hole, which is usually a must-make birdie for such a long hitter like DJ. Following a par on No. 16, Johnson dropped another stroke on No. 17 before a double bogey on No. 18 left him at 1-under. He finished 6-over on his final five holes.
Leishman, who led after the first round, continues to sit atop the leaderboard. He’s even-par on his round and has a one-stroke lead at 6-under. Fred Couples remains in contention as he’s 1-under on his round and a stroke behind Leishman at 5-under. Couples is tied for second place with another veteran as Jim Furyk is 2-under on the day and 5-under overall.
The second round was not kind for Phil Mickelson and Sergio Garcia as both players finished 4-over on the day. Garcia was tied for the lead after shooting a 6-under 66 on Thursday, but he’s now tied for eighth at 2-under. Mickelson’s 76 dropped him to 3-over for the tournament and potentially in danger of missing the cut. He’s currently tied for 47th place with the top 50 and ties as well as anyone within 10 strokes of the leader making the cut. The cut is currently projected at 5-over, so barring a shift, Mickelson should be safe for the weekend.
Tiger Woods, Bubba Watson and the afternoon groups are now on the course. A complete scoreboard can be found at Masters.com.
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