He wasn't the headliner coming into the week, hell, he wasn't even the headliner in his own grouping, but Max Homa finds himself center stage heading into the weekend at the 2024 Masters. Playing alongside Tiger Woods the first two days, the Californian put together a sensational effort and finds himself in a share of the lead at 6 under alongside Scottie Scheffler and Bryson DeChambeau.
Homa is naturally the underdog of the three Americans atop the leaderboard. Scheffler has the form, DeChambeau has the power, but that won't render Homa without advantages of his own over the weekend as a new secret weapon of his has emerged at Augusta National.
"I'd like to maintain this outlook I have on how I'm playing golf," Homa said. "Good shot, bad shot, doesn't really matter. Did I go through my process; did I commit to my shot? And once it takes off, I might as well close my eyes. I'd like to see if I can continue to do that this weekend. I think that's something I would like to take with me going forward.
"... Just having a bit of moxie, I guess. I feel like I showed it the last couple days, especially [Thursday] the first few holes playing with Tiger in front of a lot of people at the Masters and played some great golf. So, I know I have that one in me. I'd like to see if I have the mental discipline for a whole week. I'm going to hope for that one."
The 33-year-old was brilliant next to his childhood hero across the first 36 holes, thanks in large part to this discipline. Putting the finishing touches on a first-round 67 Friday morning, Homa experienced a quick turnaround for his second round and found red figures once again in the form of a 71.
He got a front row seat to Tiger's 24th consecutive made cut, but Woods also got a front row seat to Homa's major coming out party.
"He's got all the talent in the world," Woods said of Homa. "I got a chance to play with him at the Open Championship at St. Andrews, and his ball flight, as solid as he hits it, it's just a matter of time before he starts winning in bunches. I saw it up front; he doesn't really mishit shots. That's something you just have to do around this golf course."
Homa has certainly done that and as a reward will enter the weekend in a major championship not only with a chance to win but with his name atop the leaderboard. Just recently cashing his first major top 10 at the 2023 Open, where he entered through the backdoor, Homa has never been one to take the direct route.
He found his footing on the professional level later than his peers. It took him time to figure things out. But once he got the experience, there was no denying him. He has been a gamer on the U.S. Presidents Cup team and a lone bright spot on the U.S. Ryder Cup team. Homa has won big-time tournaments at major championship venues like Riviera and Quail Hollow.
He has done just about everything there is to do in the game except contend in major championships. Homa will check that box off this weekend, that is for sure, and if this mental discipline and moxie of his persists, he may well check off another.
Watch the final two rounds of the 2024 Masters continuing Saturday as Round 3 will air live from 3-7 p.m. on CBS. You can also stream the entire round with Masters Live as we follow the best golfers in the world through Augusta National with Featured Groups, check in at the famed Amen Corner and see leaders round the turn on holes 15 & 16. Watch live on CBSSports.com, the CBS Sports app and Paramount+.
2024 Masters leaderboard, Round 2
T1. Max Homa, Bryson DeChambeau, Scottie Scheffler (-6): What an immense group. There's a little bit of everything for everyone among the leaders. Scheffler is going to über steady, DeChambeau is going to be a show, and Homa is going to be a bit of an unknown. What we do know is these three guys are certainly playing the best golf as Scheffler ranks first from tee to green, DeChambeau ranks first in ball striking and Homa ranks first in greens in regulation.
T4. Nicolai Højgaard (-4): The young Dane is holding tough thanks to some serious scoring upside. Højgaard has carded 11 birdies along with seven bogeys and 18 pars to get himself in the mix in his Masters debut. He had gotten as low as 6 under on Friday, but a pair of dropped shots over his last two means that he will feature in the chasing pack and not the leading.
T6. Collin Morikawa, Cameron Davis (-3): Morikawa has been average in 2024, largey because his iron play has been lackluster. It has been much improved this week -- fifth in strokes gained approach -- but a new putter in the bag has been the true difference-maker. The two-time major champion gained nearly three strokes putting while posting his second-round 70.
"This is exactly where I'd want to be," Morikawa said. "Obviously, I'd rather be a little lower and closer to the lead, but for right now, after I've been playing the past kind of month, I'm very, very happy. It feels like I have control of the golf ball, and that's the biggest thing. My irons have been holding me back, and normally that's not the case. It's kind of nice to just hit some quality golf shots."
7. Ludvig Åberg (-2): The only man to break 70 on Friday was the man who is making his major championship debut. Åberg had everything rolling in his second round as he ranked first in ball striking and seventh in strokes gained putting en route to a 3-under 69. Making six birdies, the young Swede filled it up on a day few did. He now finds himself inside the top 10 and in with a chance to become the first debutant to win the Masters in 45 years.
"Me and Joe [Skovron] talked about [hitting away from pins] quite a lot today and just tried to give ourselves chances," Åberg said. "You would prefer to putt from 40 feet than chip from 12. I think a lot of those times we're not necessarily trying to go for the pin, we're just giving ourselves chances, especially when the conditions are tough."
T8. Cameron Young, Tommy Fleetwood, Cameron Smith and four others (-1): Thirty-six of the last 37 Masters champions were inside the top 10 at the halfway point, meaning this group is still very much alive. Only five strokes off the pace, a number of major championship stalwarts find themselves with a conceivable path to Butler Cabin. Fleetwood has gone 72-71 across the first two days and is well-suited for the weekend test. He's got a couple major championship scoring records, but those performances have come too late in the competition.
T15. Xander Schauffele, Patrick Reed, Matt Fitzpatrick and four others (E): Consider Schauffele lurking. The world No. 5 hasn't been all world the first two days, but he has been good enough to give himself a chance heading into the weekend. He's got four birdies and four bogeys to go along with a whole lot of pars which are never a bad thing in major championships. The bad news is he will not have the luxury to par Augusta National to death given the deficit.
T22. Tiger Woods and Eric Cole (+1): Woods put on a short-game clinic the first two days. Getting up-and-down from just about everywhere throughout Augusta National, the five-time champion not only made the cut for a record 24th consecutive time, he gave himself a chance to post a really quality result. Woods has hit 22 fairways through 36 holes, his best mark at the Masters since 1999 (!), but the iron play has not been vintage Tiger-like; it's has been holding him back from going under par.
"I have a chance going into the weekend," Woods said. "I'm here. I have a chance to win the golf tournament. ... I got my two rounds in. Just need some food and some caffeine, and I'll be good to go."
T24. Brooks Koepka, Tyrrell Hatton, Patrick Cantlay and three others (+2): Koepka will need a big one tomorrow, but it's not out of the realm of possibility. He looks very close after two rounds of 73 and will just need to piece the entirety of his game together for a memorable Moving Day. After struggling most of the season on the greens, the five-time major champion took a big step with the putter on Friday.