Scottie Scheffler stormed into a five-shot lead at the halfway stage of the Masters, seeking to become the second world number one to win in three years.
The Masters: Leaderboard after round two
-8 Scheffler
-3 Schwartzel, Im, Lowry, Hideki Matsuyama
-2 Smith, D Johnson, Varner, Na
-1 Thomas, Conners, Morikawa, Willett, Zalatoris, Niemann
Selected others: +1 Woods, +2 McIlroy, Rahm
As recently as January, Scheffler was without a single PGA Tour title to his name, but three wins from Phoenix to the World Match Play sent him to Augusta as the world's most in-form player, and right at the top of the rankings.
He made a bright start on Thursday with a three-under 69, before matching the round of the day on Friday as a five-under 67 sent him soaring into the biggest halfway lead since fellow Texas native Jordan Spieth bossed the 2015 renewal.
Scottie Scheffler: 5 shot lead through 36 holes
— Justin Ray (@JustinRayGolf) April 8, 2022
- Ties largest 36-hole lead in Tournament history
- 4 of previous 5 with 5-shot lead won (exception: Harry Cooper in 1936)
- 3rd reigning world no. 1 to hold 36-hole lead at Masters (1996 Norman, 2020 Johnson)
After two bogeys in his first three holes on Friday as difficult conditions made for a stern test, Scheffler was brilliant thereafter and played his final 12 holes in six-under, par saves at the final two holes capping an excellent afternoon's work.
Highlights included a fine approach to inside 10 feet at the 12, pitch-and-putt birdies at the 13th and 15th holes and then a textbook approach to the 16th which saw him bag what would be his final birdie of a fabulous round.
At eight-under, Scheffler leads Charl Schwartzel, Sungjae Im, Shane Lowry and Hideki Matsuyama by four, with Dustin Johnson and Cameron Smith among a group who are a shot further back on two-under.
Justin Thomas carded the day's other round of 67 to get back under-par for the tournament and in a share of 10th, while Tiger Woods recovered from four bogeys in his first five holes to end the day one-over and inside the top 20.
Click the image to watch the shots of the day - including a hole-in-one at the 16th
Woods was four-over early in his round but a superbly-struck long-iron to set up a birdie at the 10th helped get him back on track soon after he'd made birdie at the eighth, and birdies at the 13th and 15th holes helped complete the recovery.
Thomas performed one of his own too, Thursday's 76 flipped to a Friday 67 which might have been lower still, with a 20-foot eagle putt plus short misses at the eighth and 18th holes denying him the single lowest round of the day.
At seven back, he only has nine players to pass, but one of them has so far looked a class apart and it's top dog Scheffler who enters the weekend with a major breakthrough at his fingertips.
