Justin Rose remains the frontrunner at the 2021 Masters, but his incredible lead in the first round disappeared after posting a 72-point tie, while 17 players shot 69 or better at Augusta National on Friday. Rose maintains his lead at 7 under while we pay attention this weekend, but 11 players are within three strokes of the lead.
These include the pair of Brian Harman and Will Zalatoris, who fell just one stroke at 6 under, while Jordan Spieth and Marc Leishman hid at 5 under and are well within striking distance. Throw people like Justin Thomas, Tony Finau and Hideki Matusyama at 4 down, and it’s clear that Rose’s grip on this championship has completely changed from where we stood at the end of 18 holes.
While the points conditions were more favorable for most of the course, nearly half of them shot below the course mark on Friday after only 12 golfers finished in the red number on Thursday, but Augusta National still received beats against some of the best in the world. . Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson and Rory McIlroy were among the superstars who could not get better points and missed the cut for the weekend, while Patrick Reed and Webb Simpson tumbled on the leaderboard after shooting below the track mark on Thursday. .
With nearly a dozen golfers within striking distance of the lead, things could create a gripping atmosphere at Augusta National on Saturday. Let’s see how the top of the standings breaks down to 36 holes.
Justin Rose (-7): The real victory for Rose is how he was able to turn around a total collapse of a Friday. Rose had four overs on the first seven holes, which missed clean field, and in most aspects of his game generally looked pretty shaky. But he gained some confidence with key paths around the corner and finished strong with birdies at no. 13, no. 14 and no. 16. Even track figure would always be a good enough score to stay in the hunt for his healthy lead on Thursday so he could shake off the slow start and return to the track on Saturday afternoon with a fresh outlook.
T2. Sal Zalatoris (-6): The Masters rookie continued to perform on a world-class terrain and reached the 70th on Friday with a 4-under-68 on Thursday. While the first round was a leaderboard with an eagle, three birdies and three boogies, Friday afternoon was mostly steady until Zalatoris went on a heater and played the last eight holes at 5 under. Even more impressive was turning into a 68 without any birdies on one of the four par 5s.
T2. Brian Harman (-6): Harman is on the standings for one of his best tournaments in his third time ever, and with a few 69s is steady to ride on the standings on Saturday and tackle a late playing time. The key for Harman was the last six holes, where he had six birdies and no bullies through two rounds of action, including birdies on Thursday and Friday, at no. 18.
T4. Marc Leishman (-5): As one of the first players on the field, Leishman’s performance was the early sign that there was a low score on Friday. He did cool down after a birdie-birdie-birdie start of the round, but he limited errors and, just like the entire week in November 2020, utilized the par-5 points in the second nine.
T4. Jordan Spieth (-5): The longer Spieth stays at a striking distance, the easier it is to imagine how 2021 will eventually return to Butler Cabin. Spieth scored 14 of the 18 greens in regulation, scoring 3 for 4 on sand savings when he landed in the bunker. Whether it’s saving the bunker from the green side with a perfectly executed wedge shot or the role in the second nine in birdies, Spieth made Friday’s 68 look like another part of the game plan to win this thing on Sunday. .
T 6. Justin Thomas, Tony Finau, Si Woo Kim, Bernd Wiesberger, Hideki Matsuyama and Cameron Champ (-4): JT on a heater remains one of the most exciting things in golf today, and we had to see it when he tore through Amen Corner and the birdie-birdie-birdie at number 10, no. 11 and no. 12 struck. Si Woo was one of the biggest stories of the day after breaking his putter in frustration and continuing to use his 3-wood on the green to two holes in the last four holes of his round, while Wiesberger made the low round of the day with Finau, who we wonder if now is the time to break through as a great champion.
Xander Schauffele (-3): Friday looks more like a blow than it looks on the scorecard for Schauffele, who had to grind a bit on his way to his 69 after having an equal shot on Thursday. He seems to be a top 10 machine during the big championships, and he’s good for about three or four birdies and as many as three or four boogies per round. If he limits the errors, he can also jump up.
Check out the 2021 Masters streaming all weekend Masters Live while we follow the best golfers in the world by Augusta National with Popular groups, drop by the famed Amen Corner and see the leaders around the corner on holes 15 and 16. Watch live for free CBSSports.com en the CBS sports program. Also available on Paramount +.
CBS Sports updated this story all day Friday with scores, analyzes and highlights from the Masters. Check out a more detailed ranking at the top of this story and our complete viewer guide for the weekend.