Tiger Woods completed 23 holes in a day to make a record 24th consecutive cut in the Masters on another windswept day at Augusta National.
Woods had to shield his face from sand whipped from the bunkers on the 18th before tapping in for par to add a second round of 72 to his opening 73, a remarkable effort which prompted a standing ovation from the spectators around the green.
“I’ve been lucky enough to have been able to play this event for all these years,” Woods told ESPN.
“I did miss the cut as an amateur, but as a pro I’ve done well. It’s just an amazing aura that Augusta National has and I’ve been lucky enough coming here since I was 19 years old.”
Woods was one of 27 players unable to complete their first rounds on Thursday following a lengthy weather delay, the 15-time major winner covering his first 13 holes in one under par.
Play resumed at 0750 local time (1250BST) on Friday and Woods bogeyed the 14th following a clumsy chip from short of the green before scrambling for par on the 15th after another misjudged approach.
Woods then left birdie putts on the 16th and 17th short of the hole before dropping a shot on the last after failing to get up and down from a greenside bunker.
That gave the 48-year-old an opening 73 and just 49 minutes to rest, refuel or practise before he got his second round got under way with two pars and a birdie on the third.
Woods bogeyed the par-three fourth after missing the green with his approach and dropped another shot on the fifth after finding a bunker off the tee but made amends in style by chipping in for birdie on the sixth.
A rollercoaster round continued with a bogey on the seventh and a birdie on the par-five eighth, followed by just a third par of the round on the ninth after hitting his approach into the spectators right of the green.
The back nine was a quieter affair with seven pars, one birdie and one bogey all adding up to yet another weekend of action at Augusta.
“It’s been a long day,” Woods said with a smile. “It was a good fight, we did really well out there and I’m still right there in the ball game with a great chance going into the weekend
“This golf course will expose any weaknesses you have, the greens are quick right now and this wind is all over the place. It was a great test.”
Coming into the week, Woods had played fewer than five-and-a-half competitive rounds since undergoing ankle surgery in April last year after withdrawing from the Masters during the third round.
He returned to action in the Hero World Challenge in December and completed all 72 holes, but was forced to withdraw from the Genesis Invitational in February due to illness after six holes of the second round.
Playing alongside Woods, Max Homa added a 71 to his opening 67 to set the clubhouse target on six under par, with Bryson DeChambeau eight under after 13 holes of his round.
Tiger Woods confirmed as part of PGA Championship field
Tiger Woods has been officially named as part of the field for next week's PGA Championship at Valhalla Golf Club.
Woods, who has clinched four of his 15 major titles at the PGA Championship, made a record-breaking 24th consecutive cut at the Masters last month.
A nightmare third round of 82 – his worst ever at Augusta National – meant he finished last of all players to make the cut on 16 over, but he immediately outlined his intention to play the remaining three majors of 2024.
On Tuesday, the 48-year-old was officially confirmed as being part of the field for next week's event in Louisville, joining 15 other past winners including Rory McIlroy and defending champion Brooks Koepka.
Two further spots will be allocated to the winners of this week's Wells Fargo Championship and Myrtle Beach Classic.
While McIlroy won the last PGA Championship to be held at Valhalla in 2014, Woods triumphed on the previous occasion in 2000, the first leg of the 'Tiger Slam' in which he held all four major titles at once.
Last week, Woods was given a special exemption to allow him to feature at June's U.S. Open, for which he failed to qualify after slipping to 801st in the world rankings.
Things trending in the right direction for Koepka ahead of PGA Championship defence
Brooks Koepka believes things are trending in the right direction as he prepares to defend his PGA Championship title next week, having warmed up with a two-shot win at LIV Golf Singapore.
Koepka recorded his first triumph on the LIV circuit this year on Sunday, shooting a three-under final round of 68 to see off competition from Australian duo Marc Leishman and Cameron Smith.
A resurgent Smith shot five under in the third round in Singapore, but Koepka carded four birdies and one bogey to ensure he became the first player to win four titles on the LIV tour.
His return to form comes at an ideal time, as he gears up for a bid to win his fourth PGA Championship title – and sixth major overall – at Valhalla Golf Club next week.
"It's all starting to come around. I've put in a lot of work and I like the way things are trending," the Florida native said.
"I just need to go back next week and make sure everything continues, do the right stuff and go from there."
Kopeka had finished in a share of ninth in LIV's previous event in Adelaide one week earlier, four shots back of winner Brendan Steele.
The 34-year-old continued: "I feel good – I feel a lot better than I did last week.
"It was about rounding the corner for me. I was improving but the results weren't there. It's nice to see some results and the hard work paying off.
"I still have the same expectations every time I go tee it up and that's to win. Those are my expectations, what I want to do. One result doesn't mean anything really in the scheme of things.
"For two weeks, a lot can change. Yeah, it does help, but at the same time, I've seen guys miss cuts and then go win and then win and then not compete the week after. It's all ebbs and flows."
Emily Odwin helps SMU defend AAC Women’s Golf title; becomes first Barbadian golfer to win American Collegiate Conference Championship
Top Bajan female golfer, Emily Odwin, made history when she became the first Barbadian golfer to win an American Collegiate Conference Championship by helping the Southern Methodist University Mustangs win the American Athletic Conference Women's Golf Championship from April 15-17 at the Southern Hills Plantation Club in Brooksville, Florida.
Odwin’s Southern Methodist University (SMU) Mustangs staged a major come back from a tournament-low 12-under 276 to move up two spots.
They then overcome a nine-stroke deficit to secure the title, becoming only the second team to repeat as champions in the process.
Odwin, who is also the first Barbadian female to ever play NCAA Division One golf, had a five-under 211 to lead her team’s charge along with teammates Ellie Szerk and Mackenzie Lee. All three tied for fifth in the individual standings.
Odwin shot a three-under 33 on the back nine to shoot up the standings.
She joined the Mustangs after transferring from the University of Texas and has played for them in seven starts this season in which she had four top ten finishes.
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