The second round of The Masters 2026 brought a fresh shift in momentum at Augusta National, with several players trying to keep pace as Rory McIlroy remained the man to catch. Tommy Fleetwood and Patrick Reed were among those taking up the chase, while the live action on Friday also featured birdies, near misses and a few recovery efforts across the leaderboard.
Wyndham Clark continued to make progress in the early stages of his round. His birdie attempt at the sixth looked for a moment as though it might drop, rolling straight before drifting slightly to the right at the last moment. The putt stayed out, but Clark remained at three under par for both the round and the tournament. He was still among the players posting red figures on the day, even if the outright leaderboard remained tightly packed.
Clark’s run of consecutive birdies eventually ended at five, but he was still in decent position after finding the centre of the green at the sixth. From there he gave himself a look at birdie from around 18 feet, with the break on the green always a factor at Augusta. Even good approaches can still leave difficult putts on a course that punishes any lapse in precision.
There was also movement from Im Sungjae, who birdied the seventh and eighth holes to move under par for the day. The South Korean, who finished second on debut at the November Masters in 2020, took advantage of a stronger stretch to improve his position to three over overall. It was a timely response after a steady start to the round.
Freddie Couples, meanwhile, showed that experience still counts at Augusta. The veteran birdied the second hole to move back to five over, offering a reminder of the quality that has kept him in the Masters conversation over many years. His position was influenced by a brutal finish the previous day, when he went through holes 15, 16 and 17 in sequence with a quadruple bogey, double bogey and double bogey. At 66, he was still battling on, even if the late-afternoon heat had clearly taken its toll on Thursday.
Aaron Rai, winner of the Par 3 Contest, began his second round in composed fashion. He found Tea Olive in regulation and later sent a long birdie putt just past the hole. Rai remained one under overall after his opening-round 71, a score that had suggested even more might have been possible after he turned in 33. His start on Friday kept him well placed without having to force the issue.
Elsewhere, the broader story at Augusta remained focused on the pursuit of McIlroy at the top, with Fleetwood and Reed among the names looking to close the gap as the day developed. The Masters often turns on small swings in momentum, and Friday’s play was already showing how quickly a player can move from steady to threatening with just a couple of birdies.
The live action continued to underline how demanding Augusta National can be. Even when players hit strong tee shots or produce good approach play, the course still asks for exactness on the greens. Clark’s missed birdie putt at the sixth was a good example: close, promising, but not quite enough. Rai’s near miss was another reminder that solid golf does not always translate into immediate reward here.
As the second round progressed, the leaderboard remained fluid and the challenge for those near the top was to stay patient. McIlroy held the lead, but the pressure behind him was building. Fleetwood and Reed were among those trying to force their way into contention, while other established names and surprise challengers kept themselves in the mix with careful, measured golf.
With much of the field still working through the course, the day remained wide open. Augusta had already produced enough moments to suggest that the battle for the green jacket would not be straightforward, and the second round was beginning to shape the story of the tournament.
