Scheffler Holds Commanding Lead As Woods Makes The Cut

Have you recovered from the drama of day 1 of the 86th Masters? Well if you have or not we are here to bring you all the latest news, action and opinion as we go into day 2.

Leader Sungjae Im is in the morning starters, along with Rory McIlroy. Check out all the Masters Round 2 tee times.

Welcome to the second round of action at the beautiful Augusta National. I am Matt Cradock, and I will be taking you through the first few hours of play at The Masters.

Play is set to begin in just over half an hour, with 1988 Masters champion, Sandy Lyle, beginning proceedings. What a Friday we have in store!

PIN LOCATIONS

As the second round start gets nearer and nearer, check out the hole locations that will be in play for the day here.

Current leader, Sungjae Im, shot a five-under-par round of 67 on Thursday. Today, on Friday, he will be amongst one of the early starters, with his second round getting underway at 9.39am EDT/2.39pm

THE MASTERS CUT

We are just a few minutes away from the second round of action starting at Augusta National and, as is the case with most tournaments, we are likely to see a lot of chopping and changing on the leaderboard. That means there will be a cut at the end of play this evening. Find out how it is made here.

WEATHER REPORT

Conditions at Augusta National look sunny and will warm up as the day goes on. According to The Masters Weather Forecast, the wind will get up a little this afternoon, but we will be in for a relatively clear day.

BUBBA GOLF

Watson just plays golf in his own way. In the right-hand trees on the he plays an unreal shot

Now on the tee is one of the game's longest hitters, Cameron Champ, whose level-par first round has him currently in a share of 19th place.

With a fascinating second day in store, we spoke to Masters-winning caddie, Brennan Little, who offers some insight on how to tackle Augusta National. 

"The key to Augusta is getting it on the green in the right spots. If you’re going to miss the greens there, you’ve got to do it in the right spots too because then you can get it up and down. If you short side yourself at Augusta then it’s bogey. It’s really the ultimate in managing your game from a player’s and caddie’s standpoint."

Check out the full story here

Bernhard Langer begins his day with a par at the opening hole. The 64-year-old is making his 40th appearance at the event and will need a solid showing if he is to make it into the weekend.

NO BIRDIES

It may still be early days at Augusta National but we are yet to see a birdie in the second round! Signs to come maybe?

SPOKE TO SOON

And just like that we see the first birdies of the second round! With Cameron Davis and Christiaan Bezuidenhout both birdieing the par 5 2nd to get back to level-par for their rounds.

ROSE BEGINS WITH A BOGEY

Some fancied Justin Rose to do well at The Masters this year, but following a +4 first round, he has just bogeyed his opening hole to move to +5 for the tournament.

Charl Schwartzel moves under-par for the tournament. The 2011 Masters winner birdies the par 5 2nd to get to -1. 

Not sure about the shoes that Bernhard Langer is wearing today, but at least his golf is looking steady as ever! He remains level-par for his round.

Despite hitting 12 of 14 fairways, as well as driving the ball an average of 333.2 yards, the furthest of the day, Rory McIlroy could only produce a +1 first round. However, the four-time Major winner revealed that his round "was good," adding "I played really well."

He tees off at 10.45am EDT/3.45pm BST today.

CONNERS MOVES WITHIN TWO

Corey Conners' impressive form continues. The Canadian birdies the 2nd to move to -1 for the day and -3 for the tournament. He is now just two off the lead with Sungjae Im about to tee off.

Your Masters leader is on the tee!

BOGEY AT THE 1ST FOR IM

Despite a perfect drive at the opening hole, Im pulls his second and fails to get up-and-down. A bogey at the 1st moves him back -4 for the tournament and a share of the lead with Cameron Smith 

Following an early birdie at the 2nd hole, Lee Westwood drops a shot at the par 4 3rd. The 48-year-old moves back to level-par for the tournament.

HOT START FOR HOGE

Tom Hoge begins his second round perfectly! The American has just birdied the 1st and 2nd to jump from +1 to -1. 

STRONG WINDS EXPECTED LATER

Winds later this afternoon are expected to hit up to 30mph, with the graphic above displaying the direction of where it will be coming from. We could be in for some fun, especially around Amen Corner later...

With the early starters well underway it is time for me to hand over to my colleague at Augusta National, Elliott Heath, who will bring you all the action over the next few hours. I've been Matt Cradock and I hope you all have a great remaining Masters week!

HELLO

Good morning/afternoon all, Elliott Heath here coming to you live from the stunning Press Building at Augusta National. Myself and colleague Sam Tremlett, who takes over at 6pm and is currently out on the golf course, drove in at 8.30am local time in beautiful weather this morning. Wasn't very windy at all but it looks set to get up to 20mph with gusts of 30mph throughout the afternoon.

Rory McIlroy goes off in half an hour and I'm really excited to see how he gets on today. He played very well yesterday but threw away at least two shots coming home.

JON RAHM ON WHAT 'P***** ME OFF'...

'That's What P***** Me Off' - Angry Rahm Laments Masters 'Bad Luck'

IM BOGEYS THE 1st

The Korean made a bogey up the 1st and then parred the par-5 2nd hole so that's a real blow. Ideally he'd have liked to have reached six-under-par but is instead now back at four-under and tied with Cam Smith at the top.

DJ OFF TO A SOLID START

The big group of Dustin Johnson, Collin Morikawa and Billy Horschel have completed the 1st hole and DJ makes par to stay three-under, Horschel bogeys to drop to three-over and Morikawa makes a great birdie to get back a level par for the tournament.

I followed this group yesterday afternoon on the front nine (whilst Tiger was on the back nine) and it was crazy to see just how few people were following them. The 6th hole is next to the 16th and when we got there we were greeted with around 10,000 fans cheering and screaming for Tiger. A reminder of just how big he is.

IM BACK ON TOP

After that slow start, the Korean birdies the 3rd hole to return to the top of the leaderboard at five-under-par.

MORNING SCORING UPDATE

The lowest score on the golf course right now is Tom Hoge, who is two-under-par for the day after four holes. The highest score is amateur Laird Shepherd who is six-over-par after seven and 15-over for the tournament. Not the performance he'd have wished for but I'm sure it's still been a fantastic week for the 2021 British Amateur Champion.

RORY ON THE TEE...

The huge group of McIlroy (+1), Koepka (+3) and Fitzpatrick (-1) are off.

Fitzpatrick pulls it a little left, Koepka stripes a 3-wood down the middle and McIlroy absolutely hammers one down the middle - huge.

MISSED CHANCES FOR DJ AND MORIKAWA

Morikawa and DJ both see their short-ish birdie putts on the 2nd hole slide by the hole.

Whilst I'm discussing the pair, I noticed they walked the fairways a lot together ahead on their own yesterday with Billy Horschel and the caddies behind. They seem to be good friends after playing together at the Ryder Cup and also being part of Team TaylorMade.

YES RORY

After that huge drive down the 1st he had just a wedge or 9-iron in and hit a beauty to within 10ft. His approach play is certainly not his strongest point and it's really what you need to be on top of to win around here - that was a very good one. 

RORY FOR BIRDIE ON 1...

Misses right. Big missed opportunity there. Oh well, par-5 coming up next.

FANCY A GAME AT AUGUSTA NATIONAL?

Did you know that there are at least 11 ways to play Augusta National Golf Club without being a member?

WIND IS GETTING UP

The flag is going crazy on the 3rd hole for the DJ, Morikawa and Horschel group and it's only just gone 11am here. Should be a very fun day.

Scoring wise, Hoge has been joined by Jon Rahm at two-under-par for the day whilst Stewart Hagestad now has the highest score of the day going at seven-over. A word on Sandy Lyle who is two-over-par after 12 holes - fantastic effort.

Meanwhile a big 'FORE RIGHT' from Rory on the 2nd hole into the patrons and pine straw. Shouldn't harm him too much as it looks to have got down there a very long way.

LOVELY WORDS FROM MACKENZIE HUGHES

On playing with Matthew Wolff...

"Matt had a hard day. I know he's in the past been open about struggling with just being happy, and I just told him that he's a tremendous competitor and that we all want to do great but his golf score does not define who he is as a person.

"I've been young, and I've been there where you're really hard on yourself and you expect greatness every day. Then you're out here for a long time, and you realize that you're going to have lots of days that you don't like. It's just the nature of sports.

"So we just tried to maybe give him a couple words of encouragement because it's -- well, we've all been there before."

DJ BIRDIE

Johnson birdies the par-3 4th to get to four-under-par and within one of the lead.

Also his playing partner Billy Horschel is three-over after four holes and five-over for the tournament and he's beginning to get very angry.

RORY BIRDIE

McIlroy gets it back to level-par for the tournament with a birdie on the 2nd. His drive found the trees right before a fairway wood short right of the green and a lovely pitch up to within three feet.

SANDY LYLE UPDATE

He might be in 88th position and 12-over-par but he's just two-over-par after 14 holes today. What a round the 1988 Masters champion has going.

ANOTHER COMMENT ON CROWDS/TIGER

I was following DJ, Morikawa and Horschel on the 5th hole yesterday (where they are right now) and there's about five times the amount of people with them today - all because Tiger Woods isn't out yet. The pull Tiger has is truly incredible.

DUSTIN JOHNSON'S BIRDIE ON 4...

SHOCKER FROM MCILROY

From 108 yards in the middle of the 3rd fairway McIlroy comes up short of the green and his ball trundles back down the hill to leave a very tricky up-and-down. Big two shots coming up here.

MCILROY UPDATE

He just about gets the ball on the edge of the putting surface after opting for a bump-and-run from down low and short of the green following the poor second. Quite lucky that his ball stayed up I'd say. Long par putt coming up.

HUGE PAR FOR MCILROY

A stunning putt from the front fringe, up the hill breaking right-to-left, finds the bottom of the cup and he's got away with one there at the 3rd following a poor wedge shot. Stays at level-par for the tournament.

KOEPKA THREE-PUTT AT 3

It's amazing that Koepka made a bogey and McIlroy made a par when you see where their second shots ended up. Brooks looks furious after throwing a shot away there at the 3rd to drop back to three-over.

MCILROY'S PAR SAVE ON 3

THE AMATEURS

Looks like it will be a race between Nakajima and Greaser to make the cut and win the Silver Cup...

• Nakajima +2 
• Greaser +2
• Jarvis +9
• Piot +9
• Hagestad +15
• Shepherd +18

SCORING UPDATE

Just two players are two-under for their rounds today and they are Bubba Watson (thru 8) and JJ Spaun (thru 3). 

THE CUT

What is the cut at The Masters?

The top 50 and ties make it through to the weekend at The Masters and that's currently falling at two-over-par as of midday here at Augusta. It's going to at least move to three-over this afternoon and possibly even four or five.

BUBBA ON THE ROUND OF THE DAY

JJ Spaun bogeys the 4th hole, which means that Bubba Watson now has the best round of the day going at two-under-par.

BOGEYS FOR DJ AND RORY

Johnson drops a shot on the 7th hole after pulling his tee shot left and then finding a greenside bunker. He's now three-under.

McIlroy also bogeys, at the 5th, after a three putt from just off the front of the green. He drops back to one-over-par.

LOUIS OOSTHUIZEN WITHDRAWS

The South African is out of The Masters due to injury. That means Tiger Woods and Joaquin Niemann will play as a two ball at 1.41pm local time.

BIRDIE FOR FITZPATRICK AT 6

The Englishman, playing with winners of eight Majors Koepka and McIlroy, makes a lovely putt at the 6th for birdie to reach one-under-par for the tournament.

Meanwhile, McIlroy makes a stellar par save to remain one-over for the tournament and level-par for the day.

BIG PAR SAVE FOR DJ

After a bogey at the 7th, it looked like he may be dropping another at the par-5 8th but a fantastic par putt from 8-10ft keeps him at three-under-par and two back of Sungjae Im.

Morikawa birdied the eighth and he's at level-par.

HOW THINGS STAND

• Sungjae Im -4
• Cameron Smith -4
• Corey Conners -3
• Dustin Johnson -3
• Danny Willett -3
• Joaquin Niemann -3
• Scottie Scheffler -3
• Charl Schwartzel -2
• Jason Kokrak -2

BIG PAR SAVE FOR MCILROY

Rory holes another fantastic putt on the 7th hole to save a par after running his birdie effort well past the pin. He has a par-5 coming up next and is level-par for the day currently.

A WORD ON CHARL SCHWARTZEL

The 2011 champion, without a victory since 2016 and off the back of six consecutive missed cuts, is rolling back the years today with the best round of the day so far at two-under. He's also two-under for the tournament and currently T8th, just two back.

BAD LUCK FOR GOLF MONTHLY

Unfortunately myself and Sam will NOT be playing Augusta National on Monday after our names didn't come out of the media lottery. We're currently looking at municipals to play somewhere near Atlanta airport. Tears for us.

DJ BOGEY

Dustin Johnson is leaking oil here with a bogey-par-bogey end to his front nine. He'll be gutted not to have dropped two shots and not taking advantage of the par-5 8th. He falls to two-under-par and one-over for the day.

Meanwhile, McIlroy has hit a huge slice off the 8th tee so will be playing the par-5 as a three-shotter.

HERE COMES SAM TREMLETT...

I hoped you have been well informed over these past three hours as I'm now handing over to Sam Tremlett. Going to eat my 20th Classic Chicken sandwich of the week.

DROWNING MY SORROWS

Hello everyone, as my colleague Elliott mentioned neither of us came out the ballot to play on Monday, and as a result I just demolished a chocolate toffee brownie. Regardless I hope I can keep you entertained and clued up on all things Augusta for the next 3 hours!

COURSE OBSERVATIONS

A couple of things I noticed when walking the course this morning. The wind is truly swirling and tricky. For example the flags on 3 and 4 were moving in two completely different directions despite being reasonably close to one another. The gusts are very tough to gauge as well so Schwartzel's three-under par round is incredibly good.

Additionally Dustin Johnson continues to struggle as he has gone long of 10 but this isn't stopping his supporters, of which there are a lot out there

MORIKAWA LURKING

The two-time Major winner, fresh off consecutive birdies, nearly holes a long range birdie putt on 10. If he can pick up a couple more birdies, and the conditions worsen this afternoon, he will be one to keep an eye on this weekend.

DJ makes an excellent up and down on 10 by the way and Rory hits a bomb on 9. 

CUT LINE?

There are a lot of high scores and over par players on the course at the moment as the wind wreaks havoc here at Augusta. This raises the question - what will the cut line be? +4, +5? Who knows. 

WHAT HAPPENED THERE?

Morikawa has just hit a very odd and wild golf shot. Usually automatic with an iron in his hands he yanks his approach on 11 into the middle of the pond. He looks totally perplexed and so am I! 

What is not surprising is the poor wedge shot Rory McIlroy just hit into the 9th hole. 113 yards in and he doesn't get it inside Fitzpatrick who had 162 yards. 

OUTSTANDING SAVE

Morikawa looked like he could run up a big number on 11 but holes a putt from off the green for bogey. He gives a fist pump and knows how important that could be. 

Elsewhere Danny Willett has birdied the 2nd to join Sungjae Im at the top of the leaderboard at four under. 

PIMENTO CHEESE

One thing I was curious to try coming this week was the Pimento Cheese sandwich. Elliott did not enjoy but I can thoroughly recommend giving it a go. The peppers really add flavor. No peach ice cream sandwiches on site though which is devastating

DJ PAR SAVE

Facing a lightning putt for par on 11, DJ makes a great putt to save some momentum.

FRUSTRATED GOLFER

Rory is only level par for the round and one-over for the tournament but he looks very frustrated at the moment. Hitting an iron into 11 he loses it right and finds the bunker, leaving a tough up and down. No such thing as a stress free par with Rory

TIGER TEEING OFF

With what looks to be a lovely jumper and questionable Nike shirt, Tiger starts his second round with a drive into the fairway bunker. He has often played the 1st poorly so try and make a par and move on I say.

Obviously it will just be him and Joaquin Niemann today after Oosthuizen's earlier withdrawal. 

SCHWARTZEL SHOOTS 69

South African Schwartzel gets into the clubhouse with a 69 at three-under. Where will this stand at the end of the day? I would guess near the lead. 

SLOPPY, SLOPPY GOLF

From the middle of the fairway on 10, Rory makes bogey and things don't get easier as he approaches Amen Corner. 

Cameron Smith also has dropped out of the lead with a bogey on 1 and Tiger may look to be doing the same unless he gets up and down from the right hand side of the green.

BIG ROUND COMING FOR JUSTIN THOMAS

A lot has been said about Justin Thomas and how his Major record is not as good as it should be. Well now is the time to prove some doubters wrong after his 76 yesterday. He was excellent in tough conditions at The Players so can he do the same at Augusta?

TIGER BOGEYS FIRST

Tiger fails to get up and down on the 1st, moving back to level for the tournament. 

LYLE'S LAST YEAR IN 2023?

Sandy Lyle may be making his final appearance at The Masters next year. Fresh off a score of 14-over after two rounds, Lyle said; 

"I think probably next year might be the end of the Lyle attack on the golf course.

"I think my older son is coming out and a few of his buddies, and I think my younger son is probably coming out, so we're going to be full family, I think, so I think it will be the end of the day."

TWO FROM TWO FOR TIGER

Two tee shots, two fairway bunkers for Tiger. Not the best start with the driver which was definitely the worst club in the bag for him yesterday

A WORD ON KH LEE

A quick comment on the play of KH Lee. Playing in his 1st Masters, yesterday he was five-over through seven holes. But now he has worked his way back to one-under for the tournament. That is stellar stuff. 

PROJECTED CUT AT +3

As of right now, the projected cut is at +3 which would see some big players miss the weekend - Garcia, Schauffele, Thomas, DeChambeau to name but a few

WILLET LEADS ON HIS OWN

With a bogey at the 15th, Sungjae Im has dropped to four under. 2016 Champion Willett leads as a result. 

16 PLAYERS UNDER PAR

That's right, only 16 players are under par right now and this may get lower as the wind picks up even further as the day progresses. 

Tiger will look to get back into the red with a birdie putt on the 2nd of about 20 feet. 

NARROW MISS FOR TIGER

Tiger nearly makes a scrappy birdie on 2 as his putt slides by. His bogey at the first was annoyingly common though as Justin Ray's tweet below shows. (He is a great follow by the way)

Rory McIlroy also gets safely aboard the 12th hole and will have a good chance at birdie which I feel like he desperately needs to get some momentum. 

IM BIRDIED 16, BACK INTO TIE FOR LEAD

Getting over the bogey on 15, Im birdies 16 to join Willett at the top of the leaderboard. 

McIlroy's birdie putt didn't really threaten the hole unfortunately and he disconsolately takes the ball out of the hole after tapping in. 

BIG SACRIFICE

In all the hubbub of The Masters I have forgotten to change my Premier League Fantasy team. I hope you guys appreciate the sacrifice I have made as I continue to drop down my work leaderboard. 

This day seems to be getting worse as well because Tiger misses the green on 3 and I apologise for missing Rory's double bogey on 11. Even the featured groups coverage I have to rely on misses some shots apparently. 

MCILROY DOUBLE IS ALARMING

I have just watched how Rory made double on 11. Truly shocking golf from a player with what looks like no confidence or fight. As a huge Rory fan, this is tough to watch

ANOTHER BOGEY FOR WOODS

A sloppy start for Tiger as he misses another par putt on the 3rd. Difficult stretch of holes coming for him as well. 

GOLF ON MONDAY

I know you are all waiting to know where Elliott and I will be playing on Monday. After not coming out of the ballot we are heading to Cherokee Run in Georgia. Looks to be a fun Arnold Palmer design! 

TIGER MISSES ANOTHER GREEN

Tiger's tee shot on 4 comes up short and he has left himself another tricky up and down. He really needs to avoid another bogey. ALSO RORY MADE A BIRDIE!

DEFENDING CHAMP MOVING UP

Hideki Matsuyama has birdied two of the first three to jump up the leaderboard. Tony Finau has also moved to two under and after bogeying 1, Scheffler birdies 2 to get to three-under. A lot going on. 

THREE BOGEYS IN FOUR HOLES FOR WOODS

Tiger looks to be struggling out there as he makes another bogey on 4 to slide back to two-over. 

THIS IS NOT GOING WELL

Tiger carves his tee shot on 5 well right and it looks to be behind a tree. Will do well to avoid another bogey here

FIVE WAY TIE AT THE TOP

Sungjae Im and Danny Willett both make bogeys and the leaders are at three-under now alongside Schwartzel, Niemann and Scheffler. Things are officially getting spicy at Augusta. 

BUBBA GOLF

Watson just plays golf in his own way. In the right-hand trees on the 18th, and with no significant gap as far as I can see from 171 yards, he plays an unreal shot to just two feet. What a birdie.

(Bogey for Tiger on 5 as well)

WATCH BUBBA'S SHOT

For those of you who missed it, here is that Bubba shot

HALT IN BOGEY TRAIN

Tiger makes a solid par at 6 with his birdie putt not being given a chance. Elsewhere Harold Varner III shoots a second 71 in a row to sit one back, and Collin Morikawa continues to lurk on one-under. 

ICYMI - SPIETH TRIPLES 12

Apologies for missing this again but Jordan Spieth hit it into the water on 12 twice. He made a triple-bogey 6 and currently sits at +4. 

PROJECTED CUT AT +4

As more and more golfers struggle, the cut has now moved to a projected number of +4. 

SUBLIME STUFF FROM HIDEKI

Matsuyama nearly makes a hole in one on 6 to get to three-under and join the leaders. He really looks in control of his golf ball right now. 

TIGER WITH BIRDIE CHANCE AT 7

After splitting the fairway Tiger hits a lovely controlled iron into the green. He really needs this to drop. 

Danny Willett has also just taken the solo lead with a birdie on the 9th. 

STRESSFUL MOMENT

Tiger rolls his birdie putt a few feet by and faced a tricky par putt to walk off the 7th. Thankfully he rolls it in and moves onto the 8th, a hole he made a very sloppy bogey at yesterday. 

Woah and I've just seen Rory McIlroy make birdie on 16. He looked totally gone 40 mins or so ago.

ELLIOTT WITH THE KISS OF DEATH

Five minutes ago Elliott said Willett was awesome with the lead of a golf tournament. The Englishman swiftly leaves himself an almost impossible flop on the 10th hole...

IRON BREAK FOR SWAFFORD

There is something you don't see very often. Hudson Swafford, laying up on the 13th hole has broken one of his irons. Not through anger, but just making contact with the golf ball... 

See Swafford's WITB

TIGHTENING AT THE TOP

It seems no player can lift and separate themselves from the rest at the moment. When a birdie is made, a bogey is often following and there are lots of high-profile players in touching distance of the lead. 

BIRDIE FOR TIGER

A sublimely played hole by Tiger. Good drive, excellent five-wood around the corner and delicate chip leaves a tap-in birdie. 

Additionally that is my final post of the day as I hand you over to Dan Parker, the left-handed bandit of the Golf Monthly team. 

THANKS SAM, HELLO EVERYONE 

Left handed, yes. Bandit, yes. Sam has got me spot on there - great stuff from the chaps on the ground at Augusta National and the rest of the Golf Monthly team today. 

After an attritional few hours, the last hour or so has been a lot more enjoyable to watch. It's also given us a clearer picture as to who we'll be watching over the weekend. Check out the full list of the big players who might miss the cut line that'll be decided in a few hours.

SHANE LOWRY HOLE OUT 

We've just seen a stunning chip-in for Shane Lowry on the 10th hole. It's a birdie that gets him under par for the tournament. The Irishman chipped in yesterday too at the 13th and is sitting menacingly behind the leading pack. 

WATCH LOWRY

As if by magic, watch Shane's chip in below...

DISASTER (again) FOR SPIETH 

Jordan Spieth's horrible back nine was rounded off with a double-bogey on the 18th hole. He suffered a treble-bogey on 12th and now sits at 6-over for the tournament - looks like we won't be seeing the American at the weekend...

ICYMI: SWAFFORD'S CLUB BREAKS

In case you missed it, Hudson Swafford's club head came flying off during his approach shot on the 13th hole. Somehow, his ball still made it over Rae's Creek. 

BIRDIE & LEAD

Scottie Scheffler has just taken the outright lead after a birdie on the par-5 8th. The world number one seems unstoppable at the minute and has been steady all week so far

BACK-TO-BACK BOGEYS FOR WILLETT

He's looked promising all day, but Amen Corner has done for Danny Willett. Bogeys on 10 and 11 drop him back to -1. He's still in a good position though...

I heard someone refer to him as 'Dan' Willett earlier which was jarring. Obviously that's his name but it's always been Danny hasn't it. Busy as I am, I've thought of some more jarring but technically correct names. Thomas Fleetwood, Anthony Finau, Alexander Schauffele, Johnathan Rahm, Zachary Johnson... any more feel free to reach out to us @GolfMonthly. 

TIGER STIFFS ONE

The devilishly difficult 10th hole is no match for Tiger Woods. He stiffs his iron shot from some 200 yards out for what should be a tap-in birdie. He's steadied the ship after his rocky opening few holes. 

IMPERIOUS SCHEFFLER

If Scheffler wins this week, it would surely be the greatest winning run in modern golf? He's stuck his approach shot close to the 9th and should get to -5 very soon...

COMMENTATOR'S CURSE

Myself and Paul McGinley have done a number on Scheffler there. After bigging him up, he missed his short putt on the 9th and stays just one shot clear for now. The sun is beginning to peak from behind the clouds in Georgia and we're seeing some lovely golf being played by the field.

SI WOO KIM ON THE CHARGE 

He's not getting much TV coverage right now, but Si Woo Kim is 4-under par for his round as he exits Amen Corner. 

Elsewhere, Tiger and Niemann both play impressive approach shots into the 11th hole after finding themselves out of position. The pair are getting on well in a two-ball after Louis Oosthuizen had to withdraw from the tournament.

HOLE-IN-ONE

Stewart Cink (+8) was suddenly thrust onto our TV screens on the 16th tee. It meant his shot was either really close to going in, or he holed out. 

It was a delightful hole-in-one for the American, whose ball trickled down the slope and into the front of the hole - great scenes at the famous 16th hole. I've also been reliably informed it's his son's birthday, who is Cink's caddie. 

CINKS IT!

Gutted I didn't think of that pun first...we move.

SMITH SINKING

Cam Smith, who was at 6-under par at one point yesterday, is sinking fast. He just three putted the 12th hole and is now level par for the tournament. He looked dialled in yesterday but his short game has alluded him today.

LOWRY LURKING 

How about Shane Lowry at 2-under par! There's a cracking list of names lining up behind Scheffler atop the leaderboard. Defending champ Matsuyama and Chilean Niemann are also out on course at 2-under par...

NIEMANN JOINS GROUP AT -3

Just as I mentioned the Chilean's name, Joaquin Niemann makes a good birdie on the 12th hole to join Im and Schwartzel at -3. 

Elsewhere, Tiger is having a sandwich on the back of the 13th tee - I wonder what his filling of choice is? 

MORE SHANE!

Yesterday I couldn't stop taking about Tiger, today it's all about Shane Lowry. He very nearly holes out from the fairway at 15! It's a tap in birdie in the end that gets him into a tie for 2nd place at 3-under par. He's 4-under for the day.

NA WALKS IT IN 

I do love a Kevin Na walk in. He give it the infamous walk on his birdie putt at the 15th to get him to 2-under par. I know someone who had money on Na at 175/1 this week - crazy odds in my opinion for Na...

SCHEFFLER TWO CLEAR

Scheffler dismisses the 12th hole from his presence with the simplest of birdies to get to 5-under. That's a two shot lead now for the world number one...

MCILROY POSITIVE AHEAD OF WEEKEND CHARGE

Rory has just finished speaking to Sky Sports and believes he's 'still right there' to complete his career grand slam this weekend. As much as I like McIlory I don't quite see it...

BACK-TO-BACK BIRDIES FOR TIGER

After a quiet Amen Corner, Tiger Woods has just had consecutive birdies at the 13th and 14th hole. It's been an eclectic round for Woods, with six bogeys and four birdies. He's hanging in there though with the par-5 15th to come...

His playing partner Niemann follows him in - the Chilean has been really impressive so far this week.

CALMER AFTERNOON

The calmer afternoon weather has made for a much more enjoyable afternoon of golf I'm sure you'll agree...

SCHEFFLER THREE SHOTS CLEAR

A somewhat fortuitous birdie at the 13th gives Scottie Scheffler a three shot lead on Masters Friday. He carved his second shot incredibly far left, but makes a great up-and-down to secure another birdie. He's got a comfortable gap to the group at 3-under par now...

MORE WIND CHAT 

Sir Nick Faldo joining in the wind discourse. Let's get #WindChat trending. Or how about #Ihavewind...

THOMAS GRINDING

We've just seen pictures of Justin Thomas looking absolutely dialled in. He's 3-under for the day and now just 1-over for the tournament - an impressive day's work for the American.

68 FOR SHANE

Low round of the day goes to Shane Lowry. His 4-under par 68 was very nearly one shot better when his birdie putt on the last just slipped by. Great work by the Irishman though and he's right in contention going into the weekend. 

DEFENDING CHAMPION THREE SHOTS BACK

Hideki Matsuyama is putting up a seriously impressive defence of his title. He's joined the group at 3-under par with two holes of his second round remaining. 

SMITH'S FIGHTBACK

A tough front nine for Cam Smith, but his 1-under par back nine will do a lot for his tournament chances. He's fought back to 2-under par for the tournament after shooting 74 today. If that's one of his 'off' days I'm sure he'll be in and around the leaders all weekend...

FOUR SHOT LEAD

Are there any more superlatives for this man? Scheffler rolls in ANOTHER birdie to get to 7-under par and stretch his lead to four - amazing golf. 

TIGER PARS, NIEMANN DOUBLES

The two ball of Tiger Woods and Joaquin Niemann have just concluded their round. Niemann's double drops in to 1-under par for the tournament, but the big story has to be Tiger Woods successfully making the cut by a comfortable margin. 

Four over par will currently get you in to the weekend, and a battling 74 sees him to 1-over par for the tournament. He's only four shots back of second place...

SCHEFFLER TO EIGHT UNDER

Scheffler has opened up the golf equivalent of the Grand Canyon between him and the rest of the field. ANOTHER birdie on the 16th see him 8-under for the tournament and SIX shots clear - huge. 

SCOTTIE'S SAND SAVE 

He can even get himself out of trouble with serene ease. Scheffler makes a tricky bunker shot look like child's play and stays at 8-under going down the last. 

ONE FINAL BIRDIE CHANCE

Despite coming from the pine-straw with his approach, Scheffler has stuck it close again on 18. Could he have a six shot lead by the close of play?

SCHEFFLER PARS, HOLDS SIX SHOT LEAD

A tentative birdie attempt means it's just a par for Scheffler down the last. He shoots 67 and holds a five shot leading going into the weekend. 

In his group, Adam Scott squeezes into the weekend with a par and Tony Finau finishes at 2-over par. 

SIGNING OFF, WE'LL SEE YOU TOMORROW

With the final group now tucked away in the clubhouse, it’s time for me to get tucked into bed. 

That’s it from me and the rest of the Golf Monthly team for today - thanks for joining us and let’s look forward to a fascinating weekend in prospect. Can anyone make a charge on moving day? Or will Scottie Scheffler further cement his commanding lead tomorrow? We'll be back from 10am EDT (3pm BST) tomorrow for full coverage of the third round at the 2022 Masters.