Mother Nature and Augusta National have joined forces this Friday to offer a memorable golf day. A nightmare to remember. A ruthless battle against the wind where only the strongest and the best have remained standing. Gusts above 50 kilometers per hour that swept away the sand from the bunkers, in a different direction from the first day, have tested the resources and nerves of all golfers in the second round of the Masters. It has not been the toughest round of golf of all times, far from it, but it has caused a massacre.
Only eight players have gone under par and Ludvig Aberg has been the only one who has been able to break the 70-stroke barrier. Tremendous the Swede in his first participation in the Masters. You already know that if one day your life is in danger and you need a stable and powerful swing that remains intact in the middle of a gale, you should call his phone. The average number of strokes has been 75.08, the highest of a second round in Augusta since 2007.
Hunting streets has been complicated and putting the ball on the greens, let alone near the flag, almost a chimera. The most difficult thing on days like this is to accept that even impeccably touched shots can turn out to be a disaster due to a bad appreciation of the wind or an unexpected gust. Therefore, the most important thing is to stay mentally strong, otherwise, a field like this eats you raw. That’s why today there have been eight rounds of 80 or more strokes, the same as under par.
It has been a beautiful golf battle that leaves three outstanding leaders at the top: Bryson DeChambeau (-6), Max Homa (-6) and Scottie Scheffler (-6). There is no doubt that they are the three best of this Masters so far. It is not a question of whether they have put more or less putts, whether they have recovered better or worse or whether they have hit longer drives than the rest. They are the first because they have been the best in all areas. That’s what these playing conditions have, which more easily separate the wheat from the chaff. They identify the best more accurately.
They are the three leaders, each in their own way. DeChambeau is doing very well on the greens and surroundings, Scheffler continues to be the most powerful from tee to green, although even he has suffered on a day like today, only missing, and Homa has been the one who has missed the least strokes, the most orderly of all.
Two strokes behind the leaders is the Dane Nicolai Hojgaard (-4), a debutant at the Masters and a partner in the Ryder of Italy of Jon Rahm, with whom he shared the practice round on Tuesday. Three are Cam Davis and Collin Morikawa (-3) and complete the list of players under par Aberg (-2), Mattthieu Pavon (-1), Cameron Young (-1), Danny Willett (-1), Ryan Fox (-1), Cameron Smith (-1), Ben An (-1) and Tommy Fleetwood (-1). All in the top 10, with five Grand Champions.
The Masters has become very interesting because really anything can happen. Obviously, all those who are under par have options, but players like Patrick Reed (PAR), Matthew Fitzpatrick (PAR), Xander Schauffele (PAR), Tiger Woods (+1) or Brooks Koepka (+2) should not be ruled out either. Jon Rahm (+5) seems too far away, who could only get into the battle with a supernatural Saturday.
Among the players who have been left out of the cut, victims of this infernal day, stand out Dustin Johnson, Jordan Spieth, Brian Harman, Justin Thomas, Sergio García, Viktor Hovland or Wyndham Clark. Almost nothing.
