The Masters leaderboard is a key piece of the tournament’s dynamic drama. The shuffle up and down the rankings that comes with every birdie, eagle or unfortunate double bogey keeps fans engaged and creates suspense that is impossible to replicate anywhere else in golf. But for casual sports fans watching The Masters, or anyone who is not familiar with the scoring system used at Augusta National, it can be difficult to understand what those red and black numbers mean next to each player’s name.
Rory McIlroy rebounded from a poor finish to produce the lowest second-round score at The Masters, giving him a two-shot lead over Justin Rose. Bryson DeChambeau remains in the hunt for his first Masters title, while Scottie Scheffler, Shane Lowry and Ludvig Aberg are all within five shots of Rose.
5:40 p.m.: In what is likely his finest moment at The Masters, McIlroy plays a massive hook around trees from 208 yards on the par-5 15th, hitting it just over the green and riding the slope to leave 6 feet for an eagle. That might go down as the finest Masters tee shot in tournament history, and it gave him the momentum to make three more birdies.
After a slow start, Justin Rose is back on track for a weekend in contention. The Englishman ripped an iron to the right edge of the 16th green, then chipped to within a foot and two-putted for par. He’s now tied with Bryson DeChambeau and Corey Conners.