Rose still sets Masters pace as McIlroy roars back

Masters second-round leaderboard

-8 J Rose (Eng); -7 B DeChambeau (US); -6 C Conners (Can), R McIlroy (NI); -5 M McCarty (US), S Lowry (Ire), S Scheffler (US), T Hatton (Eng)

Selected others: -3 L Aberg (Swe), C Morikawa (US); -2 T Fleetwood (Eng); Level M Fitzpatrick (Eng), A Rai (Eng); +2 J Rahm (Spa); D Willett (Eng); +6 R MacIntyre (Sco), +10 L Canter (Eng)

Full leaderboard

Justin Rose continued his quest for a maiden Masters triumph at the age of 44 with a solid second round while Rory McIlroy raced back into contention at Augusta National.

Veteran Englishman Rose, whose only previous major title came at the 2013 US Open, carded four birdies and three bogeys in a one-under 71 to sit on eight under at the midway point.

McIlroy shot a superb six-under 66 - the lowest round of the day - to move two behind his European Ryder Cup team-mate and alongside Canada's Corey Conners.

In between them is American superstar Bryson DeChambeau on seven under.

Defending champion Scottie Scheffler took 71 shots in a rollercoaster round, putting him on five under in a group alongside England's Tyrrell Hatton, Ireland's Shane Lowry and American debutant Matt McCarty.

Norway's Viktor Hovland, Denmark's Rasmus Hojgaard and Australia's Jason Day are four under after 36 holes.

"If [winning the Masters] was a secret recipe, you'd know it by now," said Rose.

"The leaderboard is stacking up with world-class players.

"So you're going to have to play great golf, and you're going to have to go out there and want it and go for it and get after it. It's as simple as that."

Rose continues to bloom in major season

Rose has put together a stellar career, in which he has secured 25 professional wins, topped the world rankings, won Olympic gold and spearheaded Ryder Cup success - but fallen agonisingly short at Augusta on several occasions.

Without a tournament victory since February 2023, and a catalogue of missed cuts since, few would have backed Rose to be in such a strong position at the halfway stage.

Finding consistency throughout recent seasons has been difficult.

But, as he did when coming through qualifying to finish second at last year's Open Championship, and in finishing joint sixth at last year's US PGA Championship, Rose has demonstrated again at Augusta National that he retains the hunger and heart to challenge for the biggest prizes.

It is a testament to his quality, experience and nous around one of golf's most testing courses that he goes into the weekend with a fighting chance of victory.

"I think my game is good. I feel like I'm showing much more quality this year in my game than I have done the past couple years," said Rose.

Rose was the overnight leader after a majestic opening 65 during which he threatened to challenge the course record of 63.

Failing to back up strong starts at the iconic venue has been a common theme for the former world number one, however.

Rose's putter was red hot on the opening day, leading the strokes gained on the green category by a substantial margin and enabling him to open up a three-shot lead.

From tee to green he was always not as precise, however, and that continued on Friday as his short game helped keep him ahead of the chasing pack.

"It was a decent day. My wedge kept me in a good spot," he added.

McIlroy bounces back after round one drama

Before this week's tournament, McIlroy discussed his pride at showing "resilience from setbacks" in his career.

This was another example of his ability to bounce back, having spoiled what had been a serene opening round with a pair of late double bogeys on Thursday.

The mistakes on the 15th and 17th holes - which left him seven shots adrift of Rose - felt like a terminal blow to his chances of finally landing the Green Jacket.

Only two men in history have come from that far behind after 18 holes to win - Nick Faldo in 1990 and Tiger Woods in 2005.

Then again, this is McIlroy. A player who rarely does anything conventionally and is a magnet for drama.

Like he has done several times in the past at Augusta, he showed indomitable spirit to play himself back into contention on Friday.

"I had to keep reminding myself that I played really well [in round one] and I wasn't going to let two bad holes dictate the rest of the tournament for me," McIlroy told BBC Sport NI.

"I had a chat with [sports psychologist] Bob Rotella and we talked about patience, letting the score come to you."

McIlroy made a fast start with a birdie on the par-five second, despite needing to chip out from behind a tree with his second shot.

While he was unable to make any further headway on the first nine, the four-time major champion reignited his challenge after the turn.

Back-to-back birdies on 10 and 11 encouraged McIlroy before a stunning eagle on the par-five 13th - having knocked a risk-reward long iron out of the pine straw on to the green - accelerated his recovery.

More creative craft saw him to recover from another wayward drive on 14, hitting another iron out of the pine straw and through hooded branches to escape with a par.

Redemption came at 15 in the form of another birdie before he safely negotiated the final three holes without dropping a shot.

This year, unlike others, his revival is not too late.

"I've done too many times round here where I've tried to chase too early and shot myself in the foot," added McIlroy.

"So it was a really good display of discipline and patience and I feel like that was rewarded."

'Challenging' conditions trouble late starters

After opening with a bogey-free 68, world number one Scheffler looked primed to further build on a solid start in his usual unflappable manner.

Initially that was the case as the 28-year-old American, playing among the later starters in a blustery wind, marshalled the more difficult conditions with a two-under 34 on the first nine.

Then, he became uncharacteristically erratic after the turn.

Three birdies - including a fortunate two on the 12th after his tee shot bounced back into play off the bushes behind the green - were outweighed by four bogeys.

"It was challenging on the back nine, so I took advantage of my opportunities, and hopefully I'll clean up the card a little bit on Saturday," said the two-time champion, who also won in 2022.

LIV Series player Hatton, still searching for his first major victory, knocked in six birdies on a course which he has infamously had a fiery relationship with.

However, they were tempered by four bogeys - including on the 17th where he lipped out an 18-inch par putt.

"Tapping in there and hitting a little mark - all of a sudden you look stupid," said the 33-year-old Englishman.

"When you hit a decent putt from a foot, you expect it to go in."

Masters legend Langer waves farewell

Langer received a standing ovation from the patrons and a warm embrace from Augusta National chairman Fred Ridley as he left the 18th green

Two-time champion Bernhard Langer's Masters farewell did not have a dream ending as he fell agonisingly short of the cut on his 41st and final appearance.

The 67-year-old German, who won in 1985 and 1993, grimaced as a par putt on the 18th slipped past the hole and left him unclear whether he had done enough to make the weekend.

But his three-over total of 147 left him on the wrong side of the cut line - which was two over par.

"Coming up 18 was mixed emotions because I was still inside the cut line, and even when I made bogey, I wasn't sure I'm totally out of there or not," Langer said.

Langer, who has decided to stop playing because he thinks the course is "too long" for him now, received an emotional standing ovation when he walked off for what proved to be the final time.

"I have so many wonderful memories of playing this golf course," he said.

"I fell in love with it immediately when I played my first round here, and was fortunate to win twice, and come back here for many, many years. It's very special."

Follow live text commentary and in-play clips of Saturday's third round on the BBC Sport website and app from 18:30 BST, with radio commentary from19:30 BST on 5 Sports Extra and 21:00 on 5 Live and BBC Sounds.