Reporting from Augusta, Ga. — A day after Charley Hoffman fired what’s being called the most impressive first round in recent Masters history, things returned to normal at Augusta National Golf Club.
There’s a leaderboard that even the casual golf fan can get excited about, with four players tied at four-under-par 140.
There’s the rebel. Sergio Garcia, labeled the best player to have never won a major, made six birdies and three bogeys.
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There’s the villain. Belgium’s Thomas Pieters, best known for shushing the U.S. crowd at the Ryder Cup, ignited his round with an eagle on No. 13 and birdie on 14.
There’s the fan favorite. Rickie Fowler, maybe the second-best player to have never won a major, holed out for an eagle on No. 2 and added four birdies for a 67, the best round of the day.
And there’s the underdog. Hoffman, who shot an otherworldly 65 on Thursday under difficult conditions, survived a run of five bogeys in six holes to stay in a tie for the lead.
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Two strokes back is William McGirt. Justin Rose and 57-year-old Fred Couples are among four at one under. Former Masters champions Phil Mickelson, Jordan Spieth and Adam Scott are at even par. Rory McIlroy is another shot back.
It’s going to be a fun two days as the weather starts to warm up and the wind subsides.
Trying to figure out who had the most interesting day is an insult to Augusta National, which can force any golfer into making an Oscar-worthy performance.
But Garcia’s 10th hole might fit. After he birdied four holes on the front nine (1, 2, 3 and 9) mixed in with one bogey, things on the 10th got a bit squirrelly.
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He hit a bad tee shot left as did playing partner Shane Lowry, who promptly hit a provisional. They were both dressed in light-colored pants and a blue sweater. So, when they went near the trees on the left the scorekeeper got things mixed up. Garcia was given the penalty strokes.
“Yeah, I saw it at 13,” Garcia said. “The most important thing is I knew where I stood. I knew I wasn’t one under. I knew I was three.”
Garcia bogeyed the hole as he did the 13th. But he birdied 15 and 17. He had a six-footer on 18 for the outright lead but missed it.
“I got a couple nice breaks,” Garcia said. “So things are happening at the moment. So I want to make sure that I keep riding the wave and go out there tomorrow, be positive, be like I’ve been the first two days.”
Pieters made a nice recovery from Thursday, when he played the first 10 holes in five under and the last eight in five over. Friday he was a little more consistent. He bogeyed the first hole, his only one of the day.
He picked up birdies on six and nine but it was the nine-foot putt for eagle on 13 that jumped him up the leaderboard. He followed that with a four-foot birdie putt on 14 for a share of the lead.
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“I’m a bit tired,” Pieters said. “It’s been a long two days. It’s been pretty slow out there. But I’ve been hitting a lot of good golf shots the last two days, so it’s nice to see my stats, as well.”
Pieters has modest goals for the next two days.
“I’d just like to get within three shots on a Sunday afternoon, three or four shots,” Pieters said. “Then you really give yourself a chance.”
No Belgian-born player has ever won a major.
Fowler would have the lead by himself if he hadn’t hit his second shot into the water over the green on the par-five 15th. It led to his only bogey.
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Sergio Garcia of Spain celebrates after winning the Masters golf tournament in a playoff on Sunday at Augusta National Golf Club.
(Harry How / Getty Images)
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Sergio Garcia is greeted by fiancee Angela Akins after winning the Masters in a playoff.
(Harry How / Getty Images)
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Justin Rose, left, congratulates Sergio Garcia on the 18th green after Garcia won the Masters on the first playoff hole.
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Danny Willett, left, the 2016 Masters champion, congratulates Sergio Garciaduring the green jacket ceremony at Augusta National Golf Club.
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Sergio Garcia get help putting on the Masters champion’s green jacket by 2016 winner Danny Willett.
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Sergio Garcia admires the winner’s trophy during the awards ceremony following his victory at the Masters.
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Sergio Garcia reacts after making an eagle putt in front of Justin Rose at No. 15e during the final round of the Master.
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Justin Rose and Sergio Garcia walk over the Hogan Bridge at No. 12 with their caddies Mark Fulcher and Glen Murray during the final round of the Masters tournament.
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Justin Rose of England reacts to a putt for birdie on the sixth hole during the final round of the Masters.
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Rickie Fowler reacts after a drive on the fourth hole during the final round of the Masters tournament.
(David Goldman / Associated Press)
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Sergio Garcia of Spain hits a drive on the fourth hole during the final round of the Masters.
(David Goldman / Associated Press)
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Justin Rose of England plays his shot from the third tee during the final round of the Masters.
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Paul Casey of England plays his second shot on the first hole during the final round of the Masters tournament.
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Jordan Spieth plays his third shot from a bunker at No. 10 during the final round of the Masters tournament.
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Adam Scott of Australia hits his tee shot at No. 4 during the final round of the Masters.
(David Goldman / Associated Press)
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Jimmy Walker reacts to his missed birdie putt on the sixth hole during the final round of the Masters tournament.
(Charlie Riedel / Associated Press)
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Sergio Garcia hits from a bunker alongside the seventh green during the final round of the Masters tournament.
(Chris Carlson / Associated Press)
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Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland lets go of his club on the follow through of his tee shot at No. 4 during the final round of the Masters tournament.
(David Goldman / Associated Press)
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Justin Rose hits his tee shot at No. 2 during the final round of the Masters at Augusta National Golf Club.
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Rickie Fowler lines up his putt with caddie Joseph Skovron at No. 8 during the third round of the Masters tournament on Saturday at Augusta National Golf Club.
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Sergio Garcia celebrates after making a birdie putt at No. 6 during the third round of the Masters tournament.
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Charley Hoffman hits his tee shot at No. 4 during the third round of the Masters tournament.
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Jon Rahm reacts after missing his birdie putt on the 17th hole during the third round of the Masters.
(Chris Carlson / Associated Press)
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Jordan Spieth hits his tee shot on the 12th hole during the third round of the Masters tournament.
(Charlie Riedel / Associated Press)
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Justin Rose makes his club selection at the second tee box during the third round of the 2017 Masters
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Sergio Garcia reacts to a missed putt at No. 12 during the third round of the Masters tournament.
(Charlie Riedel / Associated Press)
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Ryan Moore plays a shot from a greenside bunker at No. 10 during the third round of the Masters.
(Andrew Gombert / EPA)
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Fred Couples olines up a putt on the 16th green during the third round of the Masters.
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Will McGirt watches his bunker shot roll toward the hole on the 17th green during the third round of the Masters.
(Chris Carlson / Associated Press)
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Sergio Garcia pitches a shot onto the 13th green during the third round of the Masters tournament.
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Jason Day on the second tee during the third round of the 2017 Masters tournament.
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Phil Mickelson plays his second shot from a bunker at the 12th hole during the third round of the Masters.
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Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland and Jon Rahm of Spain walk over the Hogan Bridge at No. 12 at Augusta National Golf Club during the second round.
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Jason Day of Australia plays a shot from a greenside bunker at the 16th hole during the second round of the Masters.
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Matt Kuchar and caddie John Wood head toward the second green, where the flagstick is bowed by the wind, during the second round of the Masters.
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Fans get a close-up view of Charley Hoffman hitting an approach shot during the second round of the Masters tournament.
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Spain’s Rafa Cabrera Bello looks at his ball in the pine straw at the 14th hole during the second round of the Masters tournament.
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Si Woo Kim of South Korea plays his third shot at No. 15 during the second round of the Masters tournament at Augusta National Golf Club.
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Fred Couples reacts to his birdie putt on the 13th hole during the second round of the Masters.
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Rickie Fowler plays his tee shot at No. 12 during the second round of the Masters tournament.
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Charley Hoffman hits a drive on the 18th hole during the first round for the Masters golf tournament.
(Chris Carlson / Associated Press)
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Will McGirt hits a drive on the eighth hole during the second round of the Masters golf tournament.
(Matt Slocum / Associated Press)
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Charley Hoffman looks at his approach on the 15th hole during the first round for the Masters golf tournament .
(Charlie Riedel / Associated Press)
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Justin Rose of England plays his second shot on the 17th hole during the second round of the Masters tournament.
(David Cannon / Getty Images)
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Charley Hoffman hits a tee shot on the 15th hole during the first round of the Masters tournament on Thursday at Augusta National Golf Club. Hoffman shot a 65 to take a four-shot lead.
(David J. Phillip / Associated Press)
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Pat Perez reacts after missing a putt at No. 16 during the first round of the Masters golf tournament on Thursday.
(Matt Slocum / AP)
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Augusta National Golf Club Chairman Billy Payne, right, leads a moment of silence for Arnold Palmer at the start of the Masters Tournament on Thursday.
(Curtis Compton / Associated Press)
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Jason Day plays his shot from the third tee during the first round of the 2017 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club.
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Dustin Johnson walks off after announcing his withdrawal during the first round of the 2017 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club.
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Thomas Pieters of Belgium hits a shot through the trees at the 17th hole during the first round of the Masters golf tournament at Augusta National Golf Club.
(David J. Phillip / Associated Press)
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Caddie Jamie Lane lines up a putt on the second green during the first round of the 2017 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club.
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Brendan Steele walks up the second fairway during the first round of the Masters golf tournament on Thursday.
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American Dustin Johnson walks out of the Augusta National clubhouse after withdrawing from the Masters golf tournament because of a back injury before his afternoon tee time Thursday.
(Tannen Maury / EPA)
Fowler foreshadowed the weekend in rather deliberate terms.
“On weekends, I tend to try and walk a little slower, make sure we’re taking our time,” Fowler said. “My tendency is to kind of speed things up and go a little too quickly. So the more that I can slow down thoughts, my walking, and make sure that I kind of think through everything and not get too quick out there, that’s one of my keys.”
Hoffman was bound to come back to earth and he did, but not until he sailed through the first five holes, even picking up a stroke with a birdie on No. 2. Then on the sixth hole the putts he made Thursday started missing.
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“I started off great,” Hoffman said. “ Hit the ball great. Just in the middle of the round, just didn’t hit good chips and wedge shots, and that’s the difference. Didn’t scramble that well. Made a bunch of bogeys, but that happens out here. I’m just happy to be in a position to win.”
Hoffman righted his round on 13 chipping to eight inches and making the birdie on the par five.
Hoffman and Garcia will be playing in the last group Saturday and Pieters and Fowlers will be in the penultimate pairing.
The next 27 holes should shake out the field and it’s possible a name not even under consideration now will find itself near the top.
There are 15 players within five shots of the lead, 31 within seven shots.
It’s the last nine holes, though, that will determine the winner.
John Cherwa is a special contributor to the Los Angeles Times. He started at The Times in 1980 and left in 1995 to be sports editor of the Chicago Tribune and Tribune Co. sports coordinator in 2002. He rejoined The Times in 2009 and left his post as deputy sports editor late in 2017. Currently, his major coverage area is horse racing, where he can be found at big races at Santa Anita, the Triple Crown series and Breeders’ Cup. He also can be found at the Olympics, having just finished the Tokyo and Beijing double, marking his 11th Olympics. Cherwa also contributes general interest stories from Florida.
