Augusta: Bryson DeChambeau, who offered Indian golf followers an thrilling begin to the 12 months together with his go to to the nation, and Rory McIlroy, who is about to make his first go to there in October, used very completely different routes to arrange an action-packed weekend on the 89th Masters Match.
Rory McIlroy traces up a putt on the 18th gap through the second spherical of the 2025 Masters Match. (Getty Pictures through AFP)
DeChambeau shot a four-under-par 68 to get to inside one shot of the 36-hole chief Justin Rose (8-under), whereas McIlroy made up for his heart-breaking end on Thursday with a bogey-free Friday outing of six-under par 66 to dramatically transfer to tied third with Canada’s Corey Conners at 6-under.
The paths of the 2 highly regarded golfers had crossed final 12 months as nicely when DeChambeau nicked the US Open trophy from below McIlroy’s nostril with a shocking bunker shot on the ultimate gap. Moments earlier, the Northern Irish world No.2 had missed a brief putt that may have given him an opportunity for a playoff with the LIV Golf star.
DeChambeau began his 2025 with a visit to Gurugram for the Worldwide Sequence India. The US participant completed second on the DLF Golf & Nation Membership and added hundreds to his ever-growing fan membership together with his swashbuckling fashion of golf and a newfound experience in connecting with folks. McIlroy is anticipated to tee off in a brand new DP World Tour occasion to be performed on the Delhi Golf Membership course in October for a yet-to-be-announced match.
As each proceed their quest so as to add the Masters Inexperienced Jacket to their main wins (McIlroy 4, DeChambeau 2), they may not have had a extra completely different journey to the place they reached the leaderboard on the midway stage.
On Thursday, DeChambeau, 29, wasn’t blissful together with his iron play regardless of a 69, after a bogey on the seventeenth gap. McIlroy, after reaching four-under by means of 14, made double bogeys on the fifteenth and seventeenth to drop to even par.
The 2 gamers then reacted in diametrically contrasting style.
DeChambeau spent greater than two hours within the driving vary and was the final man to get off it as he bashed ball after ball to get his irons dialled in.
“It was just my iron play… trying to get my stock draw in there. Felt like I was leaving the face open a little bit. So worked on some sequencing stuff, some face angle stuff, and actually found the golf swing more on the golf course (during the second round),” stated DeChambeau, who, as anticipated, led the sector in driving distance at 331.6 yards (McIlroy was second amongst those that made the reduce, at 317.2 yards).
The double bogey on the fifteenth was a traditional instance of what the Alister MacKenzie-designed course can do to even the most effective names within the sport. When McIlroy made the primary chip from over the inexperienced into the water, he might have performed his fifth shot from the identical spot and possibly benefited immensely by having the data of his earlier shot.
As an alternative, the Northern Irishman admitted to having a brain-fade second. He forgot he might have taken a drop on the identical spot. He walked to the drop zone as a substitute, from the place he had a very completely different angle and topography to determine.
After his 66, McIlroy stated he was decided to not let two dangerous holes develop into the story of his week. In contrast to DeChambeau, he left the golf course as quickly as he might, looking for the consolation of his household.
“Once I left the property last night, I just sort of tried to leave what had happened here,” he stated. “I rushed out to get home to see Poppy (his daughter) before she went to bed.
“I guess that’s something that I didn’t have a few years ago… to be able to get home and take my mind off the golf a little bit. I feel like I just did a good job of resetting.”