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US Masters: Rory McIlroy misses the cut for the first time since 2010

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Many big names won’t be playing this weekend at the Masters. In a brutal first round on drier, firmer conditions than the November Masters last year, many of the most well-known names in golf struggled to turn things around before the end of yesterday’s second round and didn’t make the cut.

Perhaps most notably among these names is Dustin Johnson, who won last year’s Masters event by 5 strokes at a record-breaking 20 under par just six months ago.

But for fan favourite Rory McIlroy, 31, things have been askew long before he accidently hit his own father in the crowd in an errant approach shot on the seventh hole on Thursday.

McIlroy carded and opening round of 76 at Augusta National this and 74 on Friday finishing six over par, missing the cut by three shots.

“He’s starting to doubt himself, confusion in his swing and nobody’s ever played well with a whole lot of thoughts in your head, commented Ryder Cup captain Paul McGinley on Sky Sports.

“There’s a lot of work to be done.

AUGUSTA, GEORGIA – APRIL 09: Rory McIlroy reacts on the 18th green during the second round of the Masters. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

“I think the best thing for Rory is a few weeks in the sunshine on a beach somewhere and clear his head. Sometimes the harder you try at this game the harder it gets, no matter how talented you are.”

McIlroy himself refused to talk to the press after yesterday’s round.

Follow our live Masters scoreboard to keep up to date.

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US Masters: UK Player Update Before Round 3

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Masters: Justin Rose is in first position at the Masters as we head in to round 3. The Englishman scored a round of even par to finish at -7, only one shot ahead of Will Zalatoris and Brian Harman who are tied for second place. Rose leads by 1 shots after posting 4 birdies on his way to a second round of 72. 

Here’s our quick run down of the UK Players at the Masters 2021 as we go in to round three later today: 

Tommy Fleetwood carded a second round to find himself in T21 position and trailing leader Justin Rose by 7 shots. Fleetwood, currently ranked 24 in the world golf ranking, logged 5 birdies in his second round.

Matthew Fitzpatrick  and Scotsman Robert MacIntyre join Fleetwood in position T21

Tyrrell Hatton carded 1 after the second round at position T32. The Englishman recorded a 74 at Augusta National in the second round of the Masters Tournament.

Martin Laird, currently number 100 in the world golf ranking, also found himself in T32 position and trailing leader Justin Rose by 8 shots. Laird, recorded 5 birdies in his second round.

Matt Wallace currently number 48 in the world golf ranking finished in T40 position and is trailing leader Justin Rose by 9 shots. Wallace, currently ranked 48 in the world golf ranking, registered 3 birdies in his second round.

Ian Poulter, who has no major titles to his name, carded 3 over after the second round at position T47. The Englishman played the course at the Augusta National in 73 shots in the second round of the Masters Tournament.

The Masters is being played from April 8th until the 11th of April 2021 at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia (USA). This year a total prize money of $ 11.500.000 will be awarded to the players. The course for the tournament at Augusta National Golf Club plays at Par 72.

Top-5 Leaderboard: Masters Tournament

PosNameTodayTotal
1Justin Rose0-7
T2Will Zalatoris-4-6
T2Brian Harman-3-6
T4Marc Leishman-5-5
T4Jordan Spieth-4-5

Show complete leaderboard of Masters Tournament

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WATCH: Rare interview with Bernhard Langer Masters 2021

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Golf Post was invited to take part in an exclusive interview with Bernhard Langer after yesterday’s first round.

From Lee Elder to shuttle buses, find out what the two-time Masters Champion had to say about his experience at yesterday’s event.

Follow the second round of this year’s Masters with live scoring from Golf Post.

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Masters: Jordan Spieth caught “lucky break” despite triple bogey

Augusta National made a point to remind players who’s boss during the first round of the Masters this year.

For the most part, players were struggling all day to cope with the drier, firmer conditions at Augusta compared to the postponed event in November last year.

Very few players managed to come in under par and only 3 broke 70.

While Justin Rose is firmly in the lead after round 1, Jordan Spieth is among the relatively few players who played under par yesterday.

A round of extremes

The 2015 Champion played a triple bogey on the ninth hole in Augusta during the first round.

Spieth, who won his first PGA Tour title last weekend after almost four years, didn’t let it get him down. He shot a birdie directly after on the 10th, and then came his stroke of “luck” on the par 5 15th where he carded an eagle.

“That was very, very lucky,” the 27-year-old said afterwards, ” probably the luckiest break I’ve ever gotten out here, if not anywhere, because that was at least a three-shot break.”

He hit his third shot up on to the green with a six-iron.

“If it didn’t hit the pin, it wasn’t just going in the water. It might have gotten to the middle of the water”.

Luckily for Spieth, the shot went much better than expected and he finsihed yesterday’s round with a commendable 71, 6 shots off the lead.

Follow along to the Masters 2021 with live scoring updates from Golf Post.

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WATCH: Highlights Round 1 Masters 2021

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The 85th Masters tournament got off to a rocky start for many big-name players. Get your rundown on how things finished up and what we’re expecting from the second round.

Follow the second round with our live scoring.

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Jon Rahm “in a better mental state” for the Masters after birth of son

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Spanish pro and world number three, Jon Rahm and wife Kelly Cahill welcomed their son on Saturday 3rd of April, just days before the first round of the Masters.

Rahm, 26, was prepared to drop everything and leave Augusta immediately should his wife have gone in to labour during the tournament.

He even went so far as to tell fans that they “shouldn’t bet on” him to win this year, assuming that he wouldn’t make it to the final round.

Luckily for those who hoped to see him compete, their son Kepa Cahill Rahm was born just in time for his father to spend a few days with him before leaving for Augusta.

A tough decision

“[Leaving] was the hardest part. Monday thinking about it, I’m like, man, I’m going to have to leave, and that was not easy whatsoever,” Rahm told reporters when asked about leaving his wife behind for the Masters. “For the first few days it was even hard to leave her room if she was doing something with him and I had to go somewhere else.”

He added that knowing his wife and son were both in good health and good spirits made the decision to go a little easier for him.

Paternal instincts kicking in

“I had never changed a diaper in my life, apparently never really held a baby in my life, and as soon as it was my turn, somehow I knew what to do, and those protective instincts, as well, just came in,” he beamed as he told reporters about his first few days of fatherhood.

When asked if he feels his lack of practice leading up to the tournament will negatively impact his performance, he said that he isn’t concerned about it.

“I went through a major life experience. If anything I’m just happier. I’m thankful to be here. If anything, definitely a different mental state, but I would say it’s a better mental state.”

Jon Rahm is set to tee off in the first round of the 2021 Masters at 15.42 BST.

Follow along with our live scoreboard.

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Watch: Masters Pre-tournament Check

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The final pre-tournament check from Golf Post is here ahead of the first round of the 2021 US Masters.

Join us every morning after tournament days (Fri-Mon) for your quick recap of what happened the night before.

Get live scoring updates here

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The Masters: Record Firsts

It’s less than 24 hours until we watch the first group tee off at Augusta for this year’s masters.

With just one day left to wait we’re closing our masters countdown series with the all time Masters firsts. Get ready for some quick-fire trivia.

First Winner.

Horton Smith won the very first Masters tournament (then Augusta Invitational) in 1934. At twenty five he was much younger than today’s average winner’s age of 32. Not wasting any time, Smith doubled his record, so to speak, and became the first person to win the tournament twice in 1936. 

First Ace.

The first Masters hole in one was played by then amateur Ross Sommerville in 1934 on the sixteenth hole. The hole has since become known, among other things, for having yielded by far the highest number of aces in masters history with 21 of 30. 

First Green Jacket.

Sam Snead was the first winner to be presented with a green jacket upon winning the Masters in 1949. In the same year, green jackets were awarded retroactively to the previous 12 winners. Previously the jackets had been worn as more of a practicality so that guests could identify members of the club. 

First Non-American.

Gary Player became the first non-American to win the tournament in 1961. The South African’s win came after 23 years in which no foreigner had won a green jacket. 

First European to win.

Almost another 20 had to go by before a European would win the event. Spaniard Seve Ballesteros’ 1980 win sparked a wave of European wins in that decade.

German golfing legend Bernhard Langer’s 1985 win was quickly followed by Scotsman Sandy Lyle in 1988 before Englishman Nick Faldo won twice in a row in ‘89 and ‘90.

First Person To Defend Title.

Faldo however, was not the first person to defend his title. That honour goes to Jack Nicklaus, who in 1966 won in a playoff and became the first person to win a the Masters twice in a row. 

This article is part of our Countdown to The Masters series. Join us every day between now and April 7 for fun facts and interesting stories about golf and The Masters tournament.

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US Masters: don’t miss these 5 groups in round 1

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The tee times and groupings for round 1 at this year’s Masters are out. Here are the groups to watch on Thursday.

Group 11: 15.06 BST

Two-time champion Bubba Watson is playing alongside Brooks Koepka, the comeback kid, and rising star Viktor Hovland who won last year’s silver cup.

Viktor Hovland was last year’s low amateur and is the only Norwegian to ever qualify for the Masters. (Image: Getty)

Group 13: 15.30 BST

Defending champion Dustin Johnson is playing alongside 20-time Masters player and 2 time runner up Lee Westwood. The two tournament big dogs will be playing with 22-year-old American amateur Tyler Strafaci, no pressure there!

Group 14: 15.42 BST

Xander Schauffele, Jon Rahm. Rory McIlroy. Need we say more?

What better way could Jon Rahm make his new-born son proud than winning his first Masters tournament?

Group 28: 18.36 BST

Cut to a little later in the evening over on our side of the pond. Rogue swinger Bryson DeChambeau is playing with Aussie Adam Scott and Max Homa who won in a close playoff at the genesis invitational in Feburary this year. Will he get that far at the Masters?

Group 30: 19.00 BST

After a seemingly never-ending slump Jordan Spieth, winner of last week’s Valero Texas Open could make one of the best comeback streaks we’ve seen if he wins this year’s Masters. He’ll be playing alongside Cameron Smith and Collin Morikawa in the final group of the day.

Other players to watch:

First time Masters contender Robert MacIntyre of Scotland is teeing off in group 19 at 16.42 BST.

Frenchman Victor Perez, rising star on the European tour is teeing off at 17.12 BST in group 21.

Bookies’ favourite and world number 2 Justin Thomas is teeing off later in the day at 18.48 BST in group 29.

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The $2 Ticket to Augusta

With all the fun in Augusta this week, let’s look at another piece of old-school Masters trivia.

It’s just two days until the tournament officially begins- and that many dollars would gain you entry to the tournament back in the day. 

Yes, entry to the Masters tournament used to cost just 2 USD per round — $2.20 after tax. 

That’s equivalent to just under $40 in today’s money. 

A ticket from the 1934 tournament sold for an incredible $18,055.00 at auction in 2012 (Image: sportscollectorsdaily.com)

Fans today, even those who live just a few hours away, couldn’t cover their travel costs with that.

Anyone lucky enough to get their hands on a ticket in 2021 will have paid $115 per round, with those for the practice rounds on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday having gone for $75.

Bobby Jones had initially refused to officially call the event the Masters for fear it would sound too pretentious. Despite that, the tournament which was then the Augusta Invitational was still known colloquially as the Masters from the beginning. The name change came in 1949.

More from the countdown series: the rarest shot in Masters history

The ticket might have gotten a little pricey over the years- but one thing people love about the tournament is the tasty and almost unbelievably cheap sandwiches they serve to guests during the Masters.

The famous $1.50 Pimento Cheese Sandwich has become something of a legend over the years, with the recipe being shared on food blogs and social media. 

It might be nice to imagine what it would be like to go to the Masters back in 1934 with a $2 ticket but there is plenty of excitement still to come in the next few days. 

Keep up with all the action and live scoring with Golf Post. 

This article is part of our Countdown to The Masters series. Join us every day between now and April 7 for fun facts and interesting stories about golf and The Masters tournament.