Updated at 20.00
JORDAN SPIETH COMPLETED the greatest 36-hole start in Masters history this evening, firing a six-under par 66 at Augusta National to match the lowest 36-hole start in any major.
The 21-year-old American reached the clubhouse on 14-under 130 after two rounds, his bogey-free Friday putting him four strokes ahead of compatriot Charley Hoffman with four-time major winner Ernie Els of South Africa a distant third, nine strokes adrift.
Spieth, seeking his first major title after a runner-up Masters debut last year, opened with a 64 Thursday to become the youngest first-round leader in Masters history, only one stroke off the record low round in the Masters or any major.
Fourth-ranked Spieth broke the prior Masters 36-hole low of 13-under 131 set by Ray Floyd in 1976 and threatened the low 36-hole total in major history of 130.
Spieth missed a seven-foot birdie putt at the 18th hole and settled for becoming the fourth player to fire 130 at any major over the first two rounds.
The 130 mark was set by England’s Nick Faldo with a 66-64 start to the 1992 British Open at Muirfield, matched by American Brandt Snedeker in the 2002 British Open at Lytham and equaled last year by Martin Kaymer with back-to-back 65s at the US Open at Pinehurst.
The manner in which the flamboyant, fist-pumping Spieth was solving Augusta National looked in many ways like Woods when he won his first major title at the 1997 Masters, surging ahead by a record nine strokes after 54 holes to eventually win by 12.
While 14-time major winner Woods, who has sunk to 111th in the world rankings, was finding modest success in his comeback after a two-month layoff to work on his game, Spieth was dominating as 39-year-old Woods did in younger days.
Woods would remain the youngest Masters champion from 1997 by about five months even if Spieth wins this year.
Spieth has been the hottest player in golf over the past month, winning his second US PGA title in March at the Valspar Championship and finishing second at the Texas Open and Houston Open in the past two weeks.
Before green jacket fittings start, however, Spieth needs to close out the victory, something he could not do last year after leading Sunday on the front nine.
That gives hope to rivals like world number one Rory McIlroy, who was set to begin his round after an opening 71 that suddenly had him 12 shots adrift.
McIlroy seeks his third consecutive major title, which would complete a career Grand Slam. The Ulsterman is on par for the round and one under for the tournament after three holes.
Woods, meanwhile, was three under for the round and two under for the tournament with two holes remaining.
Woods has not won a Masters since 2005, has not won a major since the 2008 US Open and has not won any title since the 2013 WGC at Firestone.
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Originally published at 16.21
Not sure if I would call the booing of the knee disgraceful. As Kevin Doyle said in the studio, they are adults and they are old and mature enough to make a decision for themselves. And it’s not that they were racist in any way, they had their own way of supporting anti racism by pointing at the respect badge on their shirt.
@Eoin Fitzgerald: it took you that long to write that bucket of *****.
There are many ways to respect it, but their booing and disrespect shows them up for what they are. Nazi salutes going on in the background and clearly seen on the tv too
@Eoin Fitzgerald: it wasn’t the Hungarian players booing, it was the fans. They didn’t even point at a badge, many made Nazi salutes. If UEFA have any balls they’d remove Hungary as a host nation.
@TheHospitalPass: what I found interesting was that we didn’t take the v Andorra but last night we did. Wonder what the thinking behind that was.
**didn’t take the knee
@Eoin Fitzgerald: we did take the knee against Andorra. Not getting much right today are we….
@Teddy Bear: go to the RTEsoccer page on twitter and watch Adam Idah’s interview. You will hear that both Tony O’D and and Adam said that they didn’t take the knee v Andorra and they did take it last night.
@Eoin Fitzgerald: those that boo at anyone taking the knee are the reason why they take to their knee.
George Floyd was murdered just over 1 year ago. Before that, athletes taking the knee was rare. Now it is very much part of the pre game drama. But not everywhere. Far from it. It has been adopted in North America and parts of Europe and some places elsewhere. There is a full round of AFC World Cup qualifiers on this week and I’d be surprised if there is any knee taking despite the narrative that this has swept across the globe. My point is, 12 months ago this was almost unheard of. Now we have adpoted it and we’re calling out others for not following what we do. Should the Hungarians or anyone else boo? No. But it is ridiculous to go around passing judgment on others for behaving in a way we wouldn’t for something that didn’t happen 12 months ago.
@2thFairy: they are absolutely right to boo, and that doesn’t mean I’m endorsing any neo-Nazi saluting that was going on in the stands. Promoting a dubious political message in entertainment or sport is always off-putting but taking the knee is controversial in its own right. It was started by Colin Kaepernick in the NFL as a protest against the American national anthem and spread to groups of whites across the US abasing themselves before blacks, in some kind of faux atonement. Be a decent person, treat all people according to their character, but ffs don’t degrade yourself in the process.
@Squarepeg01: you are why they take the knee. Every comment you make supports racism. I applaud any peaceful protest that supports equality and highlights what is wrong in this world. It doesn’t matter if it’s in a park, your own front room or a football pitch. The message is about kindness. Helping people who are treated less favourably than themselves.
@2thFairy: ha! Well your comment is hardly about kindness. You’ve effectively called me an enabler of racism simply by finding the kind of political theatre that warms your cockles distasteful. If you want to help people who are treated less favourably than yourself, go out and help them. Stop applauding and go out and do something. But don’t turn sport into a canvass for your politics and stop pretending you are more virtuous than people you don’t share your particular view of things.
@Squarepeg01: it appears I’ve rattled your cage. I do my bit, albeit a very tiny bit in the greater scheme of things, so don’t be too judgmental of my virtue. I detest racism in all forms and will always speak out against it. Society is very angry at the moment and hatred is on the increase so why anyone would want to start a crusade to actually try and prevent a very short, peaceful visual is beyond comprehension.
@Squarepeg01: applauding bad, booing good? That you think Kaepernick was protesting the national anthem tells us all enough about where you’re coming from without even looking at the “abasing” comment.
@EM: the background is the radical left’s attempt to downplay the ideals of the Declaration of Independence, and instead portray 1619 as the true founding of America when slaves were first brought to the New World and oppressed from then until today. This, in an attempt to spin the history of the West in general and the US in particular as uniquely evil civilisations, when the fact is, in spite of their flaws, they still offer more freedom and opportunity than any civilisations in history. I can only guess what you think Mr Karpernick’s protest was really about.
@2thFairy: ..and by the same token please don’t be so judgemental of mine. I find holier than thou antics like the one you tried on with me to be pretty low tactics that lead straight to the cancel culture that is sucking the life out of so much public debate at the moment. If you have a point to make, make it and move on. And yes, society is angry for many reasons and a lot of them are illegitimate. Black people are not being oppressed, either in Europe or the US where this whole knee-taking movement started.
@Squarepeg01: the issue is that an opposing argument these days is not considered on merit only viewed as affirming or detracting. For a point to be of value in this climate it must bolster an emotional/fashionable/profitable idealogue. If the readers ego is not bolstered the all. Substance is ignored and the usual terms of ist or phobe etc are used as trump cards.
A few overpaid footballers isnt going to stop racism.
@Munster1: actually what happened in South Africa in the 1980s indicates otherwise
@Munster1: who said it would? Hardly means they should just ignore though, does it?
@Brendan Cooney: you should really read a little about who and what actually brought an end to the SA problem. That statement you made is beyond ignorant and pretty disrespectful.
Well done to the Hungarian supporters for calling out this kneeling nonsense by overpaid, over rated virtue signalling prima donnas
@Slafella: nah, they were just being predictably racist.
@Graham Manning: nah, when everybody you disagree with is a racist, it just cheapens the term.
I thought there were positive signs in that performance. I’d of preferred Kenny to start Manning ahead of McClean. James is on his last legs for me and we need to see some nee blood out on the left. Cullen and Knight could be in that midfield for years to come. Molumby needs to progress quicker and he’s be in there as well. We are crying out for an outstanding creative player. Someone with just pure creative talent, not sure he’s out there tho. Troy was a little lost and Idah is out of his depth. Is Keano’s kid old enough to play yet :-)
@Ultimate FM: ‘Crying out’? Well cry no more, you obviously need me to send you a betamax copy of me bossing the top half of the astro for my 5-aside team. I don’t even celebrate my hatricks anymore, I’m all about the assists for me, I celebrate those with the old Sharpy Shuffle or Ravinelli! Regularly record 5 or 6 a game. Granted covid might see me return with a loss of 5 or 6 yards of pace, though I never really relied on my pace. It was more my wand of a right foot and ability to hold and shield the ball with my big hole so if anything lockdown will have aided that, I just hope I can get the socks up over my fat knees! Shoot on your address and I’ll post you a copy!
@This time its personable!: Cry no more…. Sounds like we’ve found our savior ?!
@Ultimate FM: agreed on Idah for sure.. Havent seen anything from him in a Senior green Jersey so far that would ear mark him as future #9.
@Ultimate FM: glad you talked about the match lol
Players don’t get it, the very people they wanna stop racially abusing are loving this, they see ads about racism or players taking the knee and its like fuel to the fire. To these people the world is too PC, they think the odd racial remarks online or a sexist comment about say women’s sport or players is just “banter”, so they continue to push back and rally others. You wanna stop this, hit them where it hurts, their precious teams either at club or international level. Bring in threats of stadium closures for big games, points deductions or expulsion from big tournaments, and the tune will change fast, cos other fans will have to step in them and stop these people.
@Michael Healy: how much football money comes from sweatshop based companies’ merchandise or sponsorship deals? Can a Nike backed player honestly complain about any kind of injustice without appearing hypocritical in the extreme while contributing to the very oppression they are busy complaining about. Forget taking the knee. Drop the sponsor and see what this might do.
@alan: I agree the hypocrisy is strong in football, the whine about the European super league and its money, yet the TV companies have helped divide football football even more financially, they do social media blackouts yet won’t spend even a fraction of the money on stopping online abuse as they do on stopping illegal streams to protect their billion euro investment…People can’t understand football is a business and entertainment industry before sport, so morals and the rest have gone out the window years ago
@Michael Healy: agree totally. Taking the knee brings these contradictions into sharp focus. I’d much rather people argued about this contradictions rather than about whether it is right or wrong to take the knee which, in the context you are talking about, is little more than a distraction from the real underlying problems.
@alan: ✔
Im not racist but this kneeling stuff is cringe annoying making things worse
Bazunu gets the nod over Kelleher. Seriously. I wouldn’t have thought so. Kelleher looks to me to be the real deal. He has to Ireland’s no.1 for the next few years. He is outstanding.
Until Ireland get some soccer players ( a team full of immigrants will do) that have learned how to hold onto the ball against even moderate opposition like Hungary and score the odd goal (a boring draw is not a victory) I find watching Eastenders more entertaining than watching Ireland try to play soccer.
@Richard Mccarthy: I think football in general has alot more boring matches than entertaining ones these days
A country that repeatedly elected Urban is racist as hell??? What a shock.
Thought Knight had a great 2nd half
Bit of a one sided take on the booing. Maybe the Hungarian fans just have less tolerance for B S.