A wild day at the Masters ends with best leaderboard ever

Jay Busbee
Updated

AUGUSTA, Ga. — Friday brought us the most stacked leaderboard in Masters history … and that wasn’t even close to the day’s top story.

Tiger Woods nearly got taken out by an overeager security guard. Rory McIlroy fired a shot into a golf cart’s drink compartment. Zach Johnson spanged a practice shot off a tee marker. Jon Rahm took a profane stroll through the pines.

Folks, this was one of the weirder days Augusta National Golf Club’s ever seen. And we’re only halfway done.

Check out everyone within one shot of the seven-under lead: Adam Scott. Francesco Molinari. Jason Day. Brooks Koepka. Louis Oosthuizen. Xander Schauffele. Someone named Justin Harding. Dustin Johnson.

Oh, yeah … and Tiger freaking Woods.

That’s six major winners, 23 combined majors. And it literally is the most stacked leaderboard in major championship history: ESPN Stats and Information noted that there’s never been a time in major championship history when four major winners hold a share of the lead after a round … and we’ve got five.

Rain dominated much of the day, soaking the course early and halting play for a half-hour shortly after 5 p.m. The low scores of Thursday afternoon weren’t around again for the first-night leaders; Bryson DeChambeau fell out of contention with a +3 round, and Koepka rollercoastered his way to a one-under day.

But several players stepped up, most notably Molinari and Day, who each shot five-under to grab a share of the lead. Schauffele turned a one-over Thursday into a six-under Friday. And even Jordan Spieth, left for dead after Thursday’s round, managed to salvage a bit of dignity and finish the day at -1.

Plus, let’s not forget about the weirdness, like the security guard who nearly took out Woods:

Or the time Rory McIlroy’s shot ended up in a golf cart:

Or the time Jon Rahm cold-shanked a ball:

Or the time Zach Johnson toed a tee shot on his practice swing:

Saturday’s going to be fun.

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Jay Busbee is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Contact him at jay.busbee@yahoo.com or find him on Twitter or on Facebook.

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