With rally, Spieth stays in it; Couples makes 30th cut
AUGUSTA, Ga. — Given Jordan Spieth’s past experiences at Augusta National, there was no reason to panic. It was the front nine. It was the second round. It was nowhere near the worst he’s been through at the Masters.
So Spieth remained calm Friday despite losing a twoshot lead on the first two holes. He excused it as typical “punches” from a daunting golf course in difficult conditions. He responded by making two birdies over the final six holes, helping him recover from the inauspicious start.
He finished with a 2-overpar 74 that left him 4 under for the tournament. He trails leader Patrick Reed by five strokes heading into the third round.
“I’ve taken a lot of punches on this golf course, and in tournaments in general,” Spieth said. “I told (caddie) Michael (Greller), ‘Look, when this course plays tough, I’m good for a double here or some bogeys there. Let’s make these the only ones.’ ”
Spieth began the day at 6 under. He squandered that before more than half the field teed off.
The 2015 Masters champion pushed his tee shot at the par-4 first way right. He failed to get his second shot back to the fairway and then left his third one short of the green. He missed an 11-footer for bogey.
He pulled his second tee shot left and then missed a 5-footer for par. It opened the door for everyone else on the leaderboard. It also could have been a devastating start for Spieth.
The rough start probably should have been expected given what Spieth endured at Augusta National just two years ago. Spieth had a commanding lead at the turn in 2016 before stumbling on Nos. 10 and 11, both par 4s. He bogeyed both, and had a quadruple-bogey 7 on the par-3 12th. He finished second, three shots back of Danny Willett.
“Good starts are really nice out here. Bad starts are tough to come back from,” Spieth said. Couples makes 30th cut: Fred Couples made the cut at the Masters for the 30th time, tying Gary Player for the second most in tournament history. Only six-time Masters champion Jack Nicklaus (37) made more cuts at Augusta National.
Couples, the 1992 Masters champion, shot a 2-over 74 in the second round. He rallied after a tough stretch on the back nine, making three birdies in four holes to get to even. He limped home with bogeys on two of the final three holes.
Couples and Player hold the record of consecutive cuts made (23) at the Masters. Couples made every cut from 1982 through 2007. Briefly: The last two Masters champions won’t be playing on the weekend. Defending champion Sergio Garcia and Willett, the 2016 winner, missed the 36-hole cut . ... Phil Mickelson’s 79 in the second round matched his worst score at Augusta National and took him from contention to the cut line — but he will play into the weekend.