AUGUSTA, Ga. -- World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, Max Homa and LIV Golf's Bryson DeChambeau all hold a share of the lead at the 2024 Masters after the first two rounds at Augusta National Golf Club.
This tournament has featured only 14 scores under par as high winds have befuddled some of the best players in the world across 36 holes. DeChambeau, who held the lead at 7 under heading into Friday, shot a 73 -- 8 strokes worse than his first round -- but was able to stay atop the leaderboard going into Saturday.
"I'm very excited," DeChambeau said. "I get an opportunity to show my skill set, and hopefully it's good enough to do something special this weekend. I feel like the game is in a great spot. Mindset is in a solid place. Caddie is keeping me in check. We're joking out there, having fun in some tough conditions. So I feel like everything is lining up pretty well."
To be able to don a green jacket, DeChambeau will have to fight off 2022 Masters champion Scheffler, who has won twice already this season and was the favorite heading into the week. Scheffler began the second round 1 stroke behind DeChambeau's first-round lead and shot an even-par 72 Friday after dealing with brutal wind conditions during his late round in the afternoon.
"It's just so difficult when you can't tell where the wind is coming from," Scheffler said. "You can only make really an educated guess and try to go from there. Everything out there is extremely difficult when it's this windy so I was definitely pleased to get in there at even par."
Homa, whose best finish at Augusta is a tie for 43rd last year, has appeared comfortable in these conditions, shooting one of the few under-par rounds Friday. He also excelled in tough conditions at last year's Open Championship, where he finished tied for 10th -- his best-ever finish at a major. On Friday, Homa said the wind has pushed him to be patient to maintain pace with Scheffler and DeChambeau.
"I've really done everything quite well on the golf course," Homa said. "But most proud of what's gone on with our course management and just controlling thoughts and expectation and all that. So it's been fun."
"He's got all the talent in the world," Tiger Woods said of Homa, his playing partner during the first two rounds. "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."
The last time three players representing the United States were tied for the 36-hole lead in a major was the 2012 PGA Championship, when Woods, David Toms and Jim Furyk shared the lead.
Denmark's Nicolai Højgaard fell all the way to 3 under and rose all the way to 6 under during his Friday round, but eventually the 2023 Ryder Cup member shot a 1-over 73 and settled at 4 under, good enough for fourth place.
Two-time major winner Collin Morikawa has two top-10 finishes at the Masters in the past two years and has a chance for another after a 2-under round of 70. Aside from Homa, Morikawa is the only other player who has shot two rounds under par.
Australian Cam Davis has played in only one other Masters, during 2022, when he finished tied for 46th. This time around, Davis has quietly shot one round under par and another at even par Friday to put himself only 3 back of the leaders. Sweden's Ludvig Åberg is a first-time participant at Augusta and after a first-round 73, he shot the low round of the day (69) Friday and jumped all the way to 2 under and seventh place heading into the weekend.