[Photo: Getty]
Cam Davis upstaged big-name fellow Australians Cam Smith, Adam Scott and Jason Day to lead the Australian contingent after a windy second round at the Masters at Augusta National.
Davis followed his opening three-under-par 69 with a gutsy 72 on day two to stay well in contention at three under par after two rounds. He was three shots back of a three-way tie for the 36-hole lead between Bryson DeChambeau, 2022 Masters winner Scottie Scheffler and Max Homa at six under.
Davis was flying at five under early in his round, two off the lead. But he dropped two shots with a double bogey 6 at the par-4 seventh.
As winds began to increase to gusts of 30-40 km/h, Davis said he would “put his feet up” and watch the afternoon carnage on the leaderboard. DeChambeau shot 73, Scheffler 72 and Homa a tidy 71.
“It’s a good test out there; I feel like pars are good scores,” Davis, a native of Sydney’s Northern Beaches, said. “There are a few opportunities, if you do hit some good tee shots and good approaches into some of the slopes, that can help you out. I had a couple of stumbles but I felt like I battled well and made some nice putts to keep the momentum.”
Former British Open winner Smith, who was tied second at Augusta in 2020 and tied third in 2022, clung to his one under total with a spirited 72.
“I’m pretty proud of the way I hung in there; it was tough,” Smith said. “On the front nine, the greens were receptive but on the back nine they were getting rock hard and fast.”
Smith bogeyed No.1, then birdied No.2 before finishing the rest of the front nine in even par. He stole a birdie at the famous par-3 12th while the wind gusted, then struck bad luck at the par-5 13th. Smith’s second shot layup settled in a divot in the fairway and his pitch shot failed to climb up to the back tier. But Smith also made an inexcusable three-putt bogey on the par 5. He battled the winds late in the evening to come in the clubhouse one under and just five shots behind the lead.
Former world No.1 Day, grouped with five-time champion Tiger Woods, had to return Friday morning to complete his first round and at three over par he dropped a stroke overall with a 73 sinking him to four over.
World No.32 Min Woo Lee shot 74 to settle at four over par, while Adam Scott’s 74 left him at six over par and he made the cut on the number. Six over was the highest cut since 2017.
Amateur Jasper Stubbs missed the cut.
Meanwhile, Tiger Woods shot a hard-fought 72, with four birdies and four bogeys, to remain at one over through 36 holes. In doing so, he easily made the cut to set a record 24 consecutive at the Masters.
