2015 Masters leaderboard: Tiger Woods shoots 69, will make the cut

After shooting a 1-over round of 73 to open the 2015 Masters on Thursday, Tiger Woods entered Friday right on the edge of the cut line. He made sure to put no doubt about his status for the weekend, firing off a 3-under round of 69. That was good enough to shoot him up the leaderboard and into a tie for 13th place.

Woods’ round wasn’t only a good round for someone coming off a two-month break from competitive golf, it was also one of his best rounds at Augusta National in years. Woods’ 69 was the first time he has broken 70 in the Masters since he shot a 67 in the final round in 2011.

Unlike on Thursday when he offset three birdies with four bogeys, Woods did a much better job of eliminating dropped shots and salvaging pars. He carded only a single bogey on the round, while rolling in four birdies. He found most of his success early on the front nine and got off to a great start on No. 1. Woods bogeyed the opening hole in the first round, in part to an errant tee shot and a three putt. Neither was an issue on Friday. He stripped his drive right down the middle, then hit a beautiful approach shot that set him up for a good look at birdie.

There would be no three-putt this time around. Woods drilled the seven-footer to open the round with a birdie. He went on to make three birdies in his first eight holes and made the turn at 2-under on the round. He added another birdie at No. 11 to drop to 3-under on Friday and 2-under for the tournament. That moved him into a tie for 12th place, even if it was well off Jordan Spieth’s lead.

The final seven holes of his round were much more of a grind. He had a few opportunities to make birdies, but putts didn’t drop. There were also a few occasions where he ran into trouble and needed to do well just to save par. That was the case at No. 17 when an errant tee shot left him scrambling. His approach found the front of the green but left a difficult two-putt. His lag putt ran beyond the hole some 15 feet. Woods, however, buried the par putt to stay at 2-under.

A closing par at No. 18 capped his round and sent him to the clubhouse in a tie for 13th place. At 2-under he’s a whopping 12 strokes behind Spieth, who is currently pulling away from most of the field. Still, Woods’ first 36 holes are about as well as anyone could have hoped he’d play coming off an extended absence and considering the state of his game just two months ago. He’s hit a few great shots, displayed a much-improved short game and grinded well when in trouble. Whether he can continue it into the weekend remains to be seen, but Woods will be around for the weekend, something a lot of people didn’t expect heading into Augusta.

Here is a snapshot of the current leaderboard with everyone looking up at Spieth. For a live leaderboard, head over to Masters.com.