The second round at Augusta National produced another ebb and flow of scoring on day two of The Masters, with players trying to build momentum while the course continued to demand patience and precision.
Wyndham Clark remained at three under par for the tournament after a birdie chance at the sixth just slipped away. His putt looked well judged and tracked towards the hole before drifting right at the last moment, leaving him with a par and keeping him at -3 both for the round and overall.
Clark was no longer the only player in red figures for the day. Im Sungjae, who finished second on his Masters debut in November 2020, birdied the seventh and eighth holes to move into the red for his second round. That left him at +3 overall. Freddie Couples also picked up a birdie at the second to recover to +5 after a difficult stretch the previous day, when he went quadruple bogey, double bogey, double bogey at 15, 16 and 17. At 66, the veteran was again showing the resilience that has long made him a favourite at Augusta.
There was also a steady start for Aaron Rai, who began his second round with the same composed approach he displayed in the opening round. The Par 3 Contest winner found Tea Olive in regulation and sent a long birdie attempt close, just shaving the hole. Rai stayed at one under par after an opening 71 that had promised even more when he went out in 33.
Clark’s birdie run ended at five holes, but he continued to keep pressure on the field. At the sixth, he found the centre of the green from the tee and used Augusta’s slopes to bring the ball towards the front-left flag. That left him with a putt from around 18 feet, one with movement in it but still a realistic chance to add another birdie.
The leaderboard remained tightly packed as the second round developed, with players trying to balance aggression and caution on a course that can change quickly over the course of a few holes. Augusta National continued to reward those who could manage its tricky greens and punish even slight lapses in control.
For some, early birdies offered a chance to improve position and settle into the round. For others, small misses were enough to halt momentum. That was the story of Clark’s near miss at the sixth, where a putt that looked destined for the cup refused to drop. It was also the story of Rai’s opening holes, where a good strike and a strong approach almost produced an immediate gain.
As the day wore on, attention stayed fixed on how the leaderboard would settle by the end of play. Some established names were pushing forward, while experienced hands like Couples continued to grind through a demanding test. The Masters, once again, was shaping up as a tournament where one hot stretch or one untimely mistake could alter the picture quickly.
This was live coverage from the second round at Augusta National, with the latest updates tracking the action as the field moved deeper into the tournament.
