On a day that saw rain soften the greens at Augusta National, there was plenty of movement on The Masters leaderboard. Overnight leader Justin Rose shook off a subpar second round and shot 1-under 71 on Friday to keep his outright lead with a three-shot advantage over the field. Defending champion Scottie Scheffler had a solid round but was unlucky not to birdie the 18th, which would have tied him with U.S. Open winner Bryson DeChambeau.
DeChambeau, who edged McIlroy by a stroke at Pinehurst last month, shot 4-under and is one back of Rose with Rory in third. Corey Conners and best player without a major Scott Langer are two shots back of the lead, while Ryo Ishikawa, Hideki Matsuyama and Ludvig Aberg are all in the group at -5.
It’s a fascinating Masters leaderboard heading into the final round, with star power aplenty. But it’s the storylines — the kind that make this tournament so special — that are attracting the most attention. Can McIlroy complete his career grand slam? Will Rose, DeChambeau or a player like Matt McCarty burnish his Masters resume?
The top 50 players plus ties will advance to Sunday’s final round, and any players who are tied after 36 holes will play in a sudden-death playoff. First adopted in 1976, the Masters’ sudden-death format begins on the 18th hole, then moves to the 10th if there are still ties. The Masters has never had a three-way playoff.