2025 Masters leaderboard breakdown: Rory McIlroy, Bryson DeChambeau close gap with Justin Rose after 36 holes

Rose remains in front at the 89th Masters, but there is major starpower firmly on his heels

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Overnight rain created a slightly softer Augusta National Golf Club for Round 2 of the 2025 Masters on Friday, and while winds picked up in the afternoon, there were low scores available for the 95-man field that met the cutline at close of play. While overnight leader Justin Rose could not replicate the magic of his opening round, he nevertheless managed to claw his way to a 1-under 71 on Friday and maintain hold of the lead alone after 36 holes.

The problem for Rose is that a lot of notable names went immensely low around him, narrowing the gap and moving within just a couple strokes of his advantage. Suddenly, Rose's effort to hold the lead through 36 more holes look like it will be even more difficult.

Some of the names in the top 12 going to the weekend include Bryson DeChambeau, Rory McIlroy, Scottie Scheffler, Shane Lowry, Tyrrell Hatton, Viktor Hovland, Jason Day, Ludvig Åberg, Hideki Matsuyama, Patrick Reed and Collin Morikawa. That is a veritable who's who of the professional golf world with whom Rose now must contend beginning with Moving Day on Saturday.

With ideal weather conditions in the forecast and the game's best stacked on the first page of the Masters leaderboard, a truly great Saturday and Sunday may be in store at Augusta National Golf Club.

Let's take a look at where the leaderboard stands after 36 holes.

2025 Masters leaderboard breakdown, Round 2

1. Justin Rose (-8): Rose entered Friday with a fairly conservative game plan, hitting a lot of 3 woods off the tee and just trying not to make mistakes. Like everyone else, he probably expected the weather to make scoring difficult later in the day, but while winds picked up, it was never quite as blustery as we saw a year ago. That meant even guys in the afternoon were able to pull a bit closer to his lead -- though 11 of 13 rounds in the 60s came from the morning wave, per Justin Ray -- and now he'll be put to a real test on the weekend. 

2. Bryson DeChambeau (-7): Sitting 4 under through his first eight holes, it looked like DeChambeau might go really low. However, he wasn't as sharp on the second nine and had to grind just to get it to the clubhouse with a 68 and solo second. How he handles the weekend with a ton of stars around him will be fascinating as he proved last year at the U.S. Open he has the game to beat them all, but he'll have to fight the temptation to be overly aggressive at a course ready to penalize that. 

T3. Rory McIlroy, Corey Conners (-6): No one took advantage of those conditions better than McIlroy, who flipped the script on his Thursday second-nine meltdown with an incredible 31 coming in. He shot the round of the day with a 6-under 66 to make a huge move up the leaderboard. His second nine featured three of the best iron shots from anyone all week on Nos. 10, 11 and 13, punctuated by a 4 iron from the pine straw that was not meant to go right at the flag but did and barely found the surface to set up an eagle. McIlroy now sits T3 alongside Conners as the Canadian played quite well once again and posted a 70 in the afternoon to maintain his place in the top 5 going into the weekend. 

T5. Scottie Scheffler, Shane Lowry, Tyrrell Hatton, Matt McCarty (-5): Scheffler had an uncharacteristically wild round with five bogeys and four birdies, including a visit to the magnolia trees left of the 18th leading to a closing bogey. After not putting a bogey on the card on Thursday, Scheffler appears to have some things to work out going to the weekend and appears at least a little bit vulnerable for the first time in a couple years at the Masters. 

Lowry rather quietly put together a terrific 68 to join the group at 5 under and moved himself into the mix going to the weekend as he seeks his second major championship. Hatton had it to 7 under late in his second nine before a mini meltdown on the greens of the 16th and 17th dropped him back to T5. 

McCarty had an even crazier round than Scheffler as he opened with with a double bogey-bogey start to fall outside the cut line before roaring back with four straight birdies to close his first nine. He made four more birdies on the second nine to briefly get to 6 under before a bogey on 18 dropped him back to -5. 

T9. Viktor Hovland, Jason Day, Rasmus Højgaard (-4): Højgaard had the second-best round of the day to McIlroy with a fantastic 67 to move from the cut line sweat to the top 10. Hovland had it to 6 under after four straight birdies on his second nine but gave two back to close his round and slip four off the pace. Day also gave one back on the 18th, his only bogey of the day. 

T12. Ludvig Åberg, Hideki Matsuyama, Patrick Reed, Collin Morikawa (-3): It's nothing but heavy-hitters and Masters champions in the group at T12. Åberg is the only one in the top 20 that had an over par round on Friday as he had never quite got it going and finished bogey-bogey to drop down the leaderboard. Matsuyama, Morikawa and Reed all put it in red figures on Friday to erase somewhat disappointing first rounds, and now can start thinking about contending with another round in the 60s on Saturday. 

T17. Xander Schauffele, Tommy Fleetwood and three others (-2): Two more pre-tournament favorites moved up into T17 as Schauffele and Fleetwood both posted 3-under 69s to give themselves an outside chance at a green jacket. 

T22. Min Woo Lee, Bubba Watson and 3 others (-1): The last group in red figures includes the two-time Masters champion Watson, who has found some life at Augusta National once again. Lee, meanwhile, hung steady with a 72 but continues to struggle stringing together birdies like we're accustomed to seeing from the Chef. 

T27. Max Homa, Justin Thomas, Wyndham Clark and 7 others (E): Homa and Thomas continue to absolutely grind it out despite not having their best stuff. Clark, meanwhile, looked like he was headed for a plane ride home on Friday night before making five birdies in his final 11 holes to not only make the cut but get in range for a top 20. 

Notables who missed the cut: 

• Russell Henley
• Dustin Johnson
• Fred Couples
• Bernhard Langer
• Sergio Garcia
• Tony Finau
• Brooks Koepka
• Cameron Smith
• Robert MacIntyre
• Cameron Young
• Will Zalatoris
• Phil Mickelson

Some players with great histories at Augusta National won't be around for the weekend, including Couples and Langer, who were inside the cut line until the very end of their second rounds at 65 and 67 years old, respectively. 

Watch the 2025 Masters all weekend long with expanded coverage from CBS Sports. Masters Live follows the best in the world across Featured Groups, Amen Corner and Holes 15 & 16. Check into those streams live across Paramount+, CBSSports.com and the CBS Sports App with extended broadcast coverage Saturday and Sunday from 12-2 p.m. on Paramount+ and 2-7 p.m. on CBS. 

[Apr 11, 2025 at 7:35 pm ET · Adam Silverstein]

Langer, 67, ends run after 41st Masters tournament

Bernhard Langer's first Masters start came in 1982. On Friday afternoon of the 2025 Masters, he walked off the 18th green for the final time in his 41st appearance. It was nearly a storybook week for the 67-year-old in his sendoff from Augusta National as a competitor as he remained in the mix for the weekend all the way until his final hole.

Bernhard Langer, 67, ends run at Masters: 2-time green jacket winner nearly makes cut in 41st trip to Augusta

Robby Kalland

[Apr 11, 2025 at 7:05 pm ET · Robby Kalland]

Scottie Scheffler's adventurous round ends in a 71

After a bogey-free 68 on Thursday, Scottie Scheffler looked every bit of the strong favorite to win a third green jacket, even starting Friday three shots off Justin Rose's lead. 

Six holes into the second round, he looked to still be on cruise control with two birdies and four pars to move to 6 under, two back of Rose in the clubhouse. However, things quickly became much more difficult for the world's No. 1 player from there, as the typical rock-solid play of Scheffler became uncharacteristically uneven.

Scheffler took a page out of fellow Texan Jordan Spieth's book for the remainder of the round, putting a ton of squares and circles on the card in a rollercoaster final 12 holes. He would bogey No. 7 and bounce back with a birdie on No. 8 to make the turn at 2 under before unraveling a bit to start his second nine. Bogeys on No. 10 and No. 11 dropped him back to even on his round, and then on the 12th tee he rocketed his tee shot over the green and into the bushes behind, creating the possibility of a big number. 

But the golf gods were on Scheffler's side and gave him a friendly bounce out of the bushes and back down into the fairway cut behind the green. Gifted a break, Scheffler jumped on the opportunity to capitalize and chipped in for birdie to stop the rot. 

Scheffler found the creek with his second on 13, but managed to get up and down to salvage par and escape Amen Corner somehow at even par. A birdie on 14 moved him back to 6 under, but his adventurous round was far from over. A three-putt on 16 after failing to find the top level dropped him back to 5 under, but he bounced back with a birdie on 17 after a gorgeous approach to just a few feet from the cup. 

All he needed was to par 18 to get in at T3, but a quick left miss off the tee put him in an unfortunately familiar spot in the magnolia trees with no option but to pitch out sideways. 

The Masters

His third shot bounded over the green, leaving a tricky pitch back down the hill towards the pin that he executed beautifully to salvage an under par round with a 71. It was not the round we've come to expect from Scheffler at the Masters, as there were more loose swings than is typical, but he's still just three back of Rose in the lead. 

I'm not sure anyone would've believed you if you'd told them on Thursday night that Rory McIlroy would be ahead of Scheffler going into the weekend, but that's the case as we now get to watch Scheffler as the chaser on Saturday -- with plenty to clean up if he's to win a third green jacket. 

[Apr 11, 2025 at 6:20 pm ET · Robby Kalland]

Nick Dunlap improves 19 strokes from Thursday to Friday

After shooting a 90 on Thursday to make some unfortunate Masters history, Nick Dunlap returned on Friday for his second round and made an incredible bounce back. The 21-year-old from Alabama improved 19 shots from his first round, posting a 1-under 71 in the second round in one of the most impressive shows of resilience we'll see all year in golf. 

Dunlap looked completely lost at times on Thursday, hitting a few of the worst tee shots you will ever see from a professional and appearing to have fully lost confidence in his swing. A lot of players would have withdrawn in the middle of the round, citing some back or wrist issue and called it a week, but Dunlap to his credit played his round all the way out, signed his card and then got to work trying to find something for Friday. 

Whatever he did on the range before his round on Friday paid off, as he put it in red figures for the day and made sure he took something positive away from his second Masters appearance. 

[Apr 11, 2025 at 5:56 pm ET · Robby Kalland]

Corey Conners stays steady and near the lead with 70

Probably the least discussed man from the first page of the Thursday night leaderboard was Corey Conners, but the ever-steady Canadian did not falter in his second round on Friday. Conners backed up his opening 68 with a 70 on Friday in the more difficult afternoon wave to hold steady in T3, one shot off the Justin Rose lead. 

Conners was cruising on his first nine, making the turn at 2 under before an adventurous start to his second nine, alternating bogeys and birdies on Nos. 10-14. In that stretch he had one of the shots of the day, as his approach on the always difficult 11th nearly went in the hole for an eagle. 

Conners came into this year's Masters playing some of the best golf of his career and has always seemed to have an eye for Augusta National with three top 10s in his appearances at the Masters. Now he's poised to not just get another solid finish, but will be firmly in the hunt for the green jacket on the weekend. 

[Apr 11, 2025 at 5:19 pm ET · Patrick McDonald]

McIlroy rewrites 2025 Masters story with sensational 66

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- As the wind began to calm down ever so slightly, Rory McIlroy started running downhill in lockstep with the curvatures of Augusta National. The Northern Irishman who limped his way to the finish line just under 24 hours prior was bouncing about as if nothing had occurred. The patrons adopted him as one of their own, and despite having gone a decade without a major championship while coming excruciatingly close at various venues -- none more pristine than this one -- McIlroy made them believe he would be enshrined on these grounds soon enough.

Rory McIlroy rewrites 2025 Masters story with sensational 66 as career grand slam chase crystalizes

Patrick McDonald

[Apr 11, 2025 at 5:06 pm ET · Robby Kalland]

Scottie Scheffler's wild ride to start the second nine

After going bogey-free for his first 24 holes, Scottie Scheffler hit the first rough patch of his 2025 Masters. A bogey on the seventh interrupted another strong first nine, and then he dropped shots at the 10th and 11th holes to fall back to even par on his day. The typically rock-solid Scheffler swing suddenly looked a little out of sorts, and when he hammered his tee shot on the 12th over the green and into the bushes long, he looked in danger of spiraling. 

However, you get some friendly bounces when you're the two-time Masters champion, and his tee shot somehow kicked out and back down into the fairway cut behind the green. From there, he turned what looked to be a third straight dropped shot into a birdie in the way only he can. 

We'll find out over the next two days how significant that friendly kick out of the bush and incredible chip-in matter to the outcome of the tournament, but it got Scheffler back on track in his second round and feels like the kind of break and capitalization that could help him win a third green jacket. 

[Apr 11, 2025 at 4:39 pm ET · Robby Kalland]

Cut line drama to watch

While there's plenty of action going on at the top of the leaderboard, as players make a charge at Justin Rose's lead, there's the ever-present Friday drama around the cut line. At the Masters, it's the top 50 and ties that make it to the weekend, which right now would be +2. As winds pick up (13-23 mph right now), those in the clubhouse at +3 will hope it moves back one more shot, but that will require 10 players at +2 or better right now to drop to +3 or worse by the time play ends this evening. 

There are some big names already in the clubhouse waiting to see if they need to book flights or if they'll get a tee time Saturday and Sunday. Guys like Patrick Cantlay, Jon Rahm and Akshay Bhatia are part of the group done for the day at +2 and will almost assuredly be back for the weekend. However, Dustin Johnson and Russell Henley will need some help after posting +3. 

Currently on the course, Tony Finau and Keegan Bradley have it to +2 early in their second nines, while Cameron Smith has fallen to +3 thru 15 and has work to do. 

Bernhard Langer and Fred Couples are perhaps the most fascinating players on the course right now at +2, as the two Masters champions are looking to make some history. 67-year-old Langer is playing in his final Masters and can break Couples' record from 2023 as the oldest player to make the cut. Couples, meanwhile, authored the highlight of the week with his eagle on 14 on Thursday and is trying to hold on for the weekend at 65. 

As of now, it seems unlikely +3 makes it as there are only 7 players at +2 on the course. There would need to be some major backing up done by guys at +1 or even par to bring +3 into play, but as the winds whip it's not impossible. 

[Apr 11, 2025 at 4:13 pm ET · Robby Kalland]

Bryson DeChambeau rockets up leaderboard in Round 2

After some light rain fell overnight, the greens at Augusta National softened up for the morning wave of second-round tee times at the Masters, presenting low-scoring opportunities. There is no one in the golf world happier to get a green light to be more aggressive than Bryson DeChambeau, and after a strong start to his Masters with a 3-under 69 on Thursday, DeChambeau came out firing on Friday to make another move up the leaderboard. 

The two-time major champion has not had the best history at the Masters, but after taking the 18-hole lead a year ago and finishing T6, it seems he's started to figure out how to plot his way around Augusta National. That was on full display Friday as he took advantage of the morning's light winds and softer greens to go low on the first nine, making the turn in 4-under 32. 

Read more on Bryson DeChambeau's incredible Round 2 performance below: 

2025 Masters: Bryson DeChambeau balances patience, aggression to soar near top of leaderboard in Round 2

Robby Kalland

[Apr 11, 2025 at 3:25 pm ET · Robby Kalland]

Rory McIlroy posts best round of Friday with a 66 (-6), jumps back into contention

On a day where there were low scores to be had for those playing in the morning, Rory McIlroy took full advantage. A day after collapsing in his final four holes with double bogeys on 15 and 17 to turn a promising 4-under round into another mediocre even par start at the Masters, McIlroy went out and posted the low round of the day with a 6-under 66. 

It was a relatively slow start for the man making his 11th attempt at winning the career grand slam as he made eight pars and one birdie (the par-5 second) on his first nine. With Justin Rose staying solid at the top and Bryson DeChambeau making a big move on the first nine, it felt like McIlroy would once again be left too far off the pace to make a real weekend charge at a green jacket. However, McIlroy found something as he made the turn and righted the wrongs of Thursday with a magnificent second nine 31 to move into T3 at the time he signed his card, just two behind Rose at the top. 

He got things started on the difficult 10th when he hit the best approach shot of the day, stuffing an iron to a few feet and converting the birdie putt. If that raised eyebrows, his almost identical approach on the even harder 11th hole got patrons on the course and fans at home starting to believe again. 

After a great up-and-down to make par on the 12th from over the green, he arrived at the 13th still needing to make a big move to have a chance. His drive ended up in the pine straw, but he was far enough left that he had a clear lane and no tree trouble to take aim at the green. While it wasn't intentional, he went straight at the flag and was rewarded with the shot of the day to set up an eagle that created one of the biggest roars of the week. 

McIlroy sprayed his drive on 14 into the trees but managed to find a gap up high and launched an iron onto the green, saving par before he moved over to the 15th where everything fell apart on Thursday. There, he exorcised some demons with a great two-putt birdie from 90 feet away to move to 6 under for his day and the tournament. A great up-and-down at 16, a stress-free par on 17 and a solid two-putt par on 18 got him into the clubhouse without any damage as he posted the best round of Friday so far. 

When McIlroy ejected from the top of the leaderboard on Thursday, it felt like his chances to win were close to gone, but his Friday 66 will go down as one of his best individual rounds at the Masters. Now he'll wait to see exactly where he stands going into the weekend, but with tough conditions in the afternoon, he figures to stay within a couple shots of the lead when Saturday rolls around. 

[Apr 11, 2025 at 2:43 pm ET · Robby Kalland]

Viktor Hovland and Rory McIlroy making big moves on the second nine

The leaderboard at the 2025 Masters is starting to see big names making big moves up to the top. Bryson DeChambeau (-7) still sits one back of Justin Rose (-8), but just behind them are a pair of stars who are tearing up the second nine at Augusta National. 

Rory McIlroy is 5 under thru 16 on his second nine, with three birdies and an eagle. Most recently he exacted some revenge on the 15th hole, where his disaster began on Thursday with a double bogey after chipping in the water. On Friday, he found the front right portion of the green in two and was able to cozy his 90-foot eagle putt up within a few feet and roll in the birdie putt from there. A squirrelly iron shot on the 16th threatened to derail things, but a nice up-and-down kept him on track and in T3 at -6. 

Joining him there is Viktor Hovland, who has made four straight birdies on the second nine from 13 thru 16, punctuated by a rare made putt from the lower level on 16 putting back up to the far right hole location. 

Hovland has been struggling with his swing for some time, but recently won at the Valspar and seems to be turning the corner and returning to the form that made him a serious contender at majors. Both McIlroy and Hovland will be looking to post a number in that -6/-7 range and watch from the clubhouse as the rest of the field tries to navigate windier conditions on Friday afternoon. 

[Apr 11, 2025 at 2:07 pm ET · Robby Kalland]

Justin Rose posts a Friday 71, heading to the weekend at -8

After taking a 3-shot lead on Thursday, many expected Justin Rose to come back to the field on Friday, but the Englishman acquitted himself nicely with a 1-under 71. While there were low scores on the course around him that closed down his lead, he played very sensible, smart golf all day, plotting his way around Augusta National to avoid any big numbers. That was the most important thing to avoid coming into Friday, and a day with four birdies and three bogeys was rock solid. 

He had some leaky swings on the first nine and it looked like the wheels could fall off at any second, but he stuck to his game plan off the tee, hitting 3 wood almost all day instead of driver, and was continued to scramble well to keep the ship steady. His best swing of the day came on the 16th when he found the tiny shelf on the top right portion of the green near the flag to make birdie and, briefly, get it back to 9 under. 

He would give that back on 17 after his approach came up short in the front bunker and he tugged his approach on 18 left of the green into the patrons, but a sporty bump and run with a fairway wood got him up-and-down for a key par to post another round in red figures. 

Now Rose will wait to see if anyone reels him in the rest of the day. The winds have started to pick up at Augusta National and it certainly seems like conditions will be difficult for scoring, but Bryson DeChambeau is just one back at -7 for the tournament thru 13 and Rory McIlroy is surging as well at -5. 

Whatever happens the rest of the day, we know Rose will be in the mix on Saturday, but the names creeping up the leaderboard behind him are some of the game's best and he will need to produce some magic on the weekend to capture his first green jacket in his 20th try. 

[Apr 11, 2025 at 1:51 pm ET · Robby Kalland]

Rory McIlroy moves to -5 with an eagle on 13

Rory's heater continued on the second nine thanks to some good fortune on the 13th hole. His tee shot went through the fairway into the pine straw, but he was far enough left to have a clear angle to the green and no trees or branches in his way. From there he clubbed up with a long iron and choked down on it to avoid having to over-swing out of the slippery straw, but pushed it right of his intended line and watched anxiously to see if it'd stay dry. It did, and more, as it bounced to inside 10 feet below the hole for one of the shots of the week so far. 

That approach finding the green felt like cosmic justice for his disaster at the 15th yesterday, and McIlroy took advantage of that break by rolling in the putt (which took a victory lap around the cup before dropping). The eagle moved him to -5 for the day and the tournament, as he is suddenly right back in the hunt for that elusive green jacket. 

[Apr 11, 2025 at 1:20 pm ET · Robby Kalland]

Rory McIlroy: Percolating

After the disastrous close to his first round, Rory McIlroy had a lot of work to do to get into the mix going into the weekend. A birdie early at two got him going, but it was otherwise an uneventful first nine with eight pars the rest of the way. As he's started his second nine, he's found a groove with the swing, stuffing back-to-back approach shots on 10 and 11 to make birdie on two of the tougher holes at Augusta National. 

Those birdies have him to 3 under for the round and the tournament, which is good for T9 on the leaderboard. With conditions expected to toughen up as the day wears on, I think most players will be looking at the 4 under mark as where they need to be to have a chance on the weekend. That's now firmly in Rory's sights as he looks to turn in an opposite performance on the second side today from Thursday's 39. 

[Apr 11, 2025 at 12:43 pm ET · Adam Silverstein]

Matt McCarty making major charge, Bryson DeChambeau gaining

Playing in his first Masters having won the Black Desert Championship last October, five-year PGA Tour professional Matt McCarty is in the midst of a torrid run through Augusta National. Though McCarty missed the cut at the 2022 U.S. Open (his lone prior major appearance), he seemed to enter the Masters with momentum fresh off a T20 in The Players Championship.

A 1-under effort in his opening round was respectable, but it looked like a green jacket was slipping out of his potential grasp early Friday when he started Round 2 with a double bogey and bogey across his first two holes. Settling himself with three pars, McCarty has since found himself on fire. He made the turn with four straight birdies on Nos. 6-9 and three more across a four-hole stretch on the 12th, 13th and 15th. Just like that, the Santa Clara alumnus sits 5 under, four back of leader Justin Rose and three behind Bryson DeChambeau, who is off to his own immense first nine with four birdies through his first eight holes of the day.