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Daily Mirror
Sport
Daniel Moxon

Bubba Watson recreates Masters heroics with insane escape and four other things missed

The Masters continued at Augusta on Friday, and day two of the tournament had plenty of exciting and entertaining action on offer.

As had been the case during the opening round, Tiger Woods was one of the main focuses as the American plays his first tournament since a horror car crash 14 months ago. He had a very tidy day on Thursday, opening with a one-under-par 71 to put himself among the front-runners.

After a rocky start to his afternoon on Friday, Woods steadied the ship and came home in two-over for the day, making the cut with a score of one-over. Elsewhere, new world number one Scottie Scheffler rose to the top of the standings on eight-under with a superb round, while the likes of Charl Schwartzel and Shane Lowry also produced eye-catching scores.

Further down the order, Bryson DeChambeau was among the most high-profile casualties of the cut as he struggled with the difficult conditions in Georgia. Away from the headlines, though, Mirror Sport has picked out some of the other moments that you might have missed.

Bubba's brilliance keeps Masters icon in play

You can never rule out a two-time winner at Augusta, and Bubba Watson rolled back the years with his final approach on Friday. He needed to produce something special, as he found himself deep in the woods on the 18th hole.

171 yards away from the hole and with no apparent route through the pines, most players would have cut their losses and played it safe back out onto the fairway for a less obstructed shot onto the green. But Watson is not most players, as he proved when he slapped his ball between the trees and dropped it less than two feet from the hole.

It was reminiscent of the shot he produced on the way to the 2012 title as he beat Louis Oosthuizen in a playoff. And it helped to keep him just about in proceedings as he finished the day at +2 overall – a decent position to be in after a day of difficult conditions.

Swafford loses his (club) head

Golf professionals play with some incredibly high-tech equipment these days, but day two at Augusta had some proof that there will always be defects. Hudson Swafford learned that the hard way, as he lost the head from one of his long irons on hole 13.

Eagle-eyed viewers spotted two objects fly away as he swung on the fairway – as the head of his club went flying as well as his ball. The American was left looking stunned as the lump of metal tumbled down the fairway while he was left with nothing more than a stick in his hands.

Remarkably, it didn't seem to have too much of an effect on his shot, as his ball travelled around 200 yards and made it over Rae's Creek to reach the green. The ball skipped over the flat surface and into the rough at the back, but Swafford still managed to rescue par and continue his fine round, three under for the day.

Hudson Swafford was left nonplussed after the head of his long iron fell off (Sky Sports Golf)

Garcia feels Augusta wrath

Every hole is a tough one at Augusta, but the 11th was proving to be particularly nasty on Friday. Collin Morikawa punching the air after sinking a bogey putt on Friday tells you everything you need to know about the 520-yard par four, which has been lengthened for this year's competition.

Sergio Garcia is one of the more experienced players in the field, but even he was not immune to the difficulties presented by the awkward layout and frankly cruel pin position, right at the front of the green. The 2017 champion started 'Amen Corner' with a triple-bogey as he slipped into the black on day two.

After a solid opening round which saw him return to the clubhouse level par, that seven-shotter left him in danger of missing the cut. But Garcia drew on all that experience to steady the ship and navigate the tricky conditions to finish the day safe at +2, helped handsomely by back-to-back birdies to finish the round.

Sergio Garcia found the drink as he suffered a triple-bogey at hole 11 (REUTERS)

Spieth's perfect putt

Jordan Spieth hasn't had it all his own way on the greens so far in this tournament, and has been guilty of a few poor misses. In particular, those between five and 10 feet which would usually be meat and drink have been causing him problems.

But that didn't stop him from nailing a beauty at the fifth on Friday. A long way off the leaders at +2, the American had a chance for birdie if he could do anything with a long one up and over a ridge which made it a tricky one to judge.

It didn't look likely considering how he had otherwise struggled with the putter in hand, but this time he found the perfect line and weight to roll it in through the side door and give himself a huge confidence boost with 13 holes still to play. However, it didn't manage to spur him on as he suffered a triple bogey and double on the back nine to leave him six-over for the tournament.

Woodland finds solace in excellent eagle

Gary Woodland is playing his 10th Masters this weekend, but in that time has has never managed to trouble the leaders too much. His best finish at Augusta was the T24 he managed in 2011.

The 2019 US Open champion has had another tournament to forget having failed to make the cut, meaning he will play no further part this weekend. Amid his plethora of bogies on day two, however, was a corker of a hole on the 10th.

Woodland produced his best Joaquin Niemann impression to make eagle by flighting a beautiful approach which bounced kindly on the fringe of the green and rolled gently into the hole. Becoming the first player since 2008 to finish the 10th in two shots, it was a shining moment in a forgettable round.

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