Blown away

Jon Rahm went from fighting for the green jacket a year ago to fighting back from below the cut line at the Masters.

The defending champion was 6 over Friday and in danger of missing the weekend after a three-putt double bogey at the par-4 14th. But during a rollercoaster finishing stretch, Rahm made a pair of birdies along with a three-putt bogey at No. 17 before a par at the tough final hole left him 5 over for the tournament, and one shot inside the cut line.

The cut moved from plus5 to plus-6 as the last groups finished amid brutal wind that sent scores soaring.

Justin Thomas melted down for the second straight year and missed the cut by one. He went double, double, bogey, double over his last four holes, taking him from even par and in the thick of the championship to 7 over and out of it entirely.

Thomas wasn’t alone among the major champions missing the cut, though.

Georgia product and British Open champion Brian Harman had a disastrous eight holes to finish his first round Friday, playing the stretch 11 over with two double-bogeys and a triple.

Jordan Spieth, Wyndham Clark, Dustin Johnson, Bubba Watson, Sergio Garcia and Justin Rose also missed the cut.

Show me the money

The total prize money for the professionals competing in the 2024 Masters is $20 million.

The winner will receive $3.6 million.

Second place is worth $2.16 million, followed by $1.36 million for third, $960,000 for fourth and $800,000 for fifth.

The 50th place finisher will receive $50,400. The remainder of the finishers will range downward from $49,200 depending on scores. Sixty players made the cut, including one amateur.