What happened in the second round of The Masters: 10 things to know

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Although the name won't be found on any leaderboard, Mother Nature unleashed her version of No. 64 on Friday at Augusta National Golf Club.

High winds swirled the contents of the bunker into the air throughout the day, occasionally moving the golf ball off its target and causing countless players to move and reevaluate their shots. When the dust settled, literally in this case, three American stars sat tied for first place with 36 holes to play.

Here are the most important numbers and notes to know from the second day of the 88th Masters.

1. The elite field averaged 75.08, the highest second round at the Masters since 2007. The increase of 1.65 strokes during the opening round was the largest jump from first to second round at the Masters since 1976, when 1.85 shots were played harder. In close-up shots, the number of greens on the field was 7 percent lower than it was Thursday, with the average close to the hole jumping more than 4 feet.

The carnage was not limited to the second round, of course. Players who had to finish their opening rounds had enough holes to complete to feel the wrath of Augusta National on Friday. Open champion Brian Harman posted a ninth-place finish with 47, the highest such score by an under-50 player since 2009. Four years ago, Dustin Johnson became the first man in Masters history to reach 20 under par. On Friday, he made back-to-back double bogeys for the first time in his Masters career. Jordan Spieth made his second tee shot on the 15th hole, the only player to do so multiple times in the past two decades.

2. It wasn't always pretty, but Scottie Scheffler managed a 72 in the second round to tie for the weekend lead. Scheffler hit just 10 greens in regulation, his fewest in 18 career rounds at the Masters. His short game was great again, however: Scottie ranked second in the field in strokes gained around the green, scoring more than a shot and a half on that metric in the second round.

The inevitability of Scheffler near the top of the leaderboard is a shadow of professional golf at this point. Friday marked the 30th round of a major tournament since 2021 in which Schaeffler was in the top 10 after play – seven more than anyone else in that period. He's been no worse than tied for 11th over two rounds of golf since January. Friday marked the 25th time since 2020 that Scheffler beat the field average in a major tour by three or more strokes, the most of any player in that stretch.

If the 27-year-old goes on to win this week, he will become the fourth-youngest player in history to win a second green jacket, behind Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods and Sevy Ballesteros.

3. This is the fourth time the No. 1 player has been at the top of the Official World Golf Ranking after 36 holes at the Masters. Other cases were Greg Norman in 1996 (placed second), Johnson in 2020 (won) and Schaeffler two years ago (won).

Scheffler did not make bogey for the tournament until the fifth hole of his second round. The last time the world No. 1 went more than 22 holes to start a major tournament without a shot was Woods at the 2000 Open at St. Andrews (37 holes). Johnson also went the first 22 holes of the Masters in 2020 without a bogey — and that week ended well for him.

4. A day after shooting a Masters-low par 65, Bryson DeChambeau shot his way to a second-round 73. In tough conditions, DeChambeau hit four fewer greens in regulation and was nearly neutral in his strokes gained a day after picking up more threes. Shots in that category. This is the first time Bryson has led after back-to-back rounds in a major tournament.

Polarizing as it may be, DeChambeau's victory would be an undeniable achievement. Since 1960, only four American players have won the US Open — which Bryson actually competed in — and the Masters at age 30 or younger. The quartet is Nicklaus, Woods, Spieth and Arnold Palmer. If DeChambeau gets there, his driver will play a huge role. He leads the tournament in strokes gained off the tee through two rounds.

5. Just hours before Scheffler and DeChambeau took the stage, Max Homa continued to compose his best headline performance to date. Homa hit a career-best 15 greens in the second round on his way to a second-round 71 and share the 36-hole lead.

The first nine at Augusta National was a puzzle that Homa couldn't solve in his first four Masters starts. He made bogey or worse on more than 28 percent of holes and had a total of 23 in 12 rounds. This week, he is under 6 on the first nine and bogey-free. Through two rounds, Homa ranks third in the field in strokes gained and sixth in strokes gained.

This is the first time three American players have shared the lead in the 36-hole Masters tournament since 1985, when Craig Stadler, Tom Watson and Payne Stewart tied. Bernhard Langer went on to win that week.

6. Woods moved his name to the top of another section of the Masters record book on Friday. Woods is now 24-for-24 in the Masters — perfect as a pro — giving him the record for the most consecutive wins. He broke a tie with Gary Player, who didn't miss a cut from 1959 to 1982, and Fred Cupples, whose career lasted from 1983 to 2007.

It is worth noting that all three players had years during their stints in which they did not compete. The mark for most consecutive years making the cut belongs to Watson with 21 (1975-1995).

These four legends make up half of the eight-name list of players who have made 24 or more Masters cuts all-time, let alone consecutively, as Woods did. Woods beat the field goal average in each of the first two rounds, giving him 80 such performances in his Masters career. Among players who have played 30 or more rounds, Woods' win rate on the course — 81.7 percent — is second highest, trailing only Lloyd Mangrum (81.7 percent) and just ahead of Ben Hogan (79.6 percent).

Phil Mickelson also made the cut, the 28th of his impressive Masters career. Mickelson's performance this week breaks a tie with Raymond Floyd and Langer for fourth place in tournament history. This is the 23rd Masters in which both Woods and Mickelson have made the cut.

Tiger Woods reacts to his shot on the 18th green after making his 24th straight cut at the Masters. (Michael Madrid/USA Today)

7. A couple of Masters newcomers who represented Europe at last year's Ryder Cup enter the weekend as part of the conversation. On Friday morning, Nicolai Hoggard completed a round of 67, equaling the lowest first-round score by a European player in his Masters debut (David Guilford, 1995). Højgaard — the only player with more putts around the green this week than Scheffler — is alone in fourth place through two rounds.

Meanwhile, Ludwig Aberg was the only player to break 70 in the second round. Aberg is the first rookie to have the single low round of the day at the Masters since Smiley Coffman shot a 69 in the third round in 2016. No player has won the Masters in his first major tournament appearance, and no player has won the Masters in his first major tournament. Once in green. Sweater since Fuzzy Zoeller in 1979.

8. The cut line of 6 is the highest at the Masters since 2017. It is only the fourth time since 2000 that players plus six and better qualifications have entered Saturday's match at Augusta National. Among those who missed the cut was the aforementioned Spieth, whose first-round 79 was the worst score of his Masters career by three strokes.

He wasn't alone as a multiple major champion going home early. Justin Thomas was even par for the tournament as he walked to the 15th tee but played the final four holes in 7 to miss the cut by one. Johnson shot 78-79, the worst 36-hole score of his major career. Johnson has made 27 Masters wins since winning in 2020.

9. In this context, the following fact becomes even more impressive: 61-year-old Vijay Singh and 58-year-old Jose María Olazabal have qualified and will play this weekend. Both players made their major-league debut during Ronald Reagan's administration. They have combined for over 15,000 strokes in official Masters competition.

It is the third time since 2000 that two players 58 or older have reached the Masters. Couples and Langer did it in 2018, and Nicklaus and Tommy Aaron did it in 2000.

10. Thirty-six of the last 37 Masters champions were in the top ten entering the third round. The last player to come back from more than four players over two rounds to win the Masters was Charl Schwartzel (six players) in 2011.

The biggest 36-hole comeback win belongs to Jackie Burke Jr., who was eight behind Ken Venturi at the halfway point in 1956.

(Top photo by Bryson DeChambeau: Maddy Meyer/Getty Images)