The Atlanta Hawks secured a spot in the NBA play-offs and the Southeast Division title with a 124-102 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday.

The Hawks, who only needed to win one of their remaining two games to guarantee a top-six finish in the Eastern Conference, blew away the already qualified Cavaliers in the third quarter, scoring 35 points to extend their 61-48 half-time lead to 96-65.

Guard CJ McCollum scored a game-high 29 points for the Hawks, who clinched their first divisional crown since 2021 and avoided having to come through the play-in tournament, for teams finishing seventh to tenth in each conference, for the first time in five seasons.

Veteran LeBron James became the fourth player in NBA history to record 12,000 career assists as he helped the Los Angeles Lakers secure home-court advantage in the first round of the play-offs with a 101-73 win against the Phoenix Suns.

James made 12 assists in addition to 28 points and six rebounds as the Lakers recorded their 15th win in 19 games to guarantee a top-four finish in the Western Conference.

Former Utah Jazz point guard John Stockton is the NBA’s career assist leader, with 15,806, with Chris Paul (12,552) and Jason Kidd (12,091) also ahead of James (12,010).

Elsewhere, the Boston Celtics clinched the second seed in the Eastern Conference with an emphatic 144-118 win over the New Orleans Pelicans.

The 18-time NBA champions scored a record-equalling 29 three-pointers, forward Sam Hauser leading the way with eight, as they wrapped up the Atlantic Division title.

That result means the New York Knicks, who beat the Celtics in their previous match, will have to settle for being third seeds despite beating the Toronto Raptors 112-95.

The Raptors slipped down to sixth place following the defeat, with an identical record (45-36) to seventh-placed Orlando Magic with one match to play in the regular season. The Magic beat the Chicago Bulls 127-103 to extend their winning streak to five matches.

Victor Wembanyama, returning from a one-game injury absence, starred for Western Conference second seeds San Antonio Spurs in their 139-120 win over the Dallas Mavericks. The 22-year-old Most Valuable Player contender made 40 points, 13 rebounds and five assists.

The Denver Nuggets remain in the hunt for third place in the Western Conference after beating reigning champions and top seeds Oklahoma City Thunder 127-107.

Phillip Stokes hopes the Listed Adelaide race proves ideal for his durable galloper Arran Bay.

Saturday’s Listed City Of Adelaide Handicap (1529m) at Morphettville takes precedence over Caulfield’s Listed Anniversary Vase (1600m).

Carrying 61kg as topweight in Adelaide compared to 57.5kg at Caulfield, Stokes still prefers the home track option.

The approaching eight-year-old captured the Listed C S Hayes Memorial Cup (1600m) at Morphettville on March 9 and was fourth on a yielding track at Flemington March 28.

Contributing to the Morphettville choice is Adelaide-born jockey Lachlan Neindorf, available locally on Saturday.

“We just feel the City Of Adelaide Handicap over the 1500 metres, it suits him better,” Stokes said.

“Lachie is going over also and couldn’t ride him at Caulfield, so it works out well.

“While I think the mile is OK and earlier in his career he won over further, I think the 1500 metres to the mile is his go now being a bit older.

“I feel going over there it will be a softer option for him to try and get another win.

“He tried hard at Flemington the other day and the drier ground suits him better that soft now being an older horse.”

Arran Bay kicked off in Adelaide, winning two of his first four, then moved to Melbourne, clinching the Flemington Silver Bowl Final during his three-year-old campaign.

Mainly Melbourne-based since, he returned for last Carnival, runner-up in April handicap and in the Group 3 Cummings Stakes (1600m) in May.

The Cummings Stakes occurs May 9 this year.

Arran Bay’s record stands at 43 starts, 10 triumphs, 13 placings, with prizemoney surpassing $1 million.

Visit top racing betting markets ahead of the City Of Adelaide Handicap.

Liverpool are now closing in on an agreement to secure the services of a world-class star.

An era is drawing to a close at Anfield.

The expected departure of Mo Salah this summer alongside Andy Robertson very much feels like the final chapter of one of the greatest periods in the club’s history.

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Salah has been the face of Liverpool’s modern golden years. Robertson was the charming backbone of the dressing room.

Together they formed the symbol of what Liverpool represented. These were players who were never supposed to be superstars. Players with humble backgrounds who were able to conquer the world and achieve success beyond their wildest imaginations.

Their departure will leave merely just a few players left from the team that won the Champions League in 2019.

It follows a major exodus last summer, when several key players moved on including the likes of Darwin Nunez, Luis Diaz, Trent Alexander-Arnold and others. That was the beginning of the process of transition.

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And it’s set to continue this summer.

Sadly, football moves quickly, and even the most successful cycles must come to an end. Liverpool cannot mourn the end of an era, they have to start a new one.

Michael Edwards and Richard Hughes will be looking to rebuild the team and create a new team at the club but that will also require some continuity.

While some players will inevitably move on, it’s just as important that Liverpool hold on to the right ones.

Keeping players in their prime who bring stability and continuity has never mattered more. That’s why tying down Ibrahima Konate, whose contract is due to expire this summer, should be right at the top of the club’s priority list.

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Konate isn’t just a promising talent anymore, he’s a proven, established figure both at Liverpool and on the European stage.

The Frenchman is widely regarded as one of the top centre-backs in the game right now. He’s a key part of the France setup and very much in the picture as they push to win another World Cup. There’s no doubt about it, he’s a world-class player now.

After several years at Liverpool, he knows exactly what’s required, the pressure, the expectations, and the intensity needed to compete at the highest level. With experienced players starting to leave, that kind of understanding becomes even more valuable.

The 2026 Masters heads for the weekend with a star-studded leaderboard battling for the green jacket at the 90th edition of golf’s most prestigious tournament. Reigning champion Rory McIlroy created separation from the field as he followed his first-round 67 with a second-round 65, taking a historic 12 lead for the tournament. Patrick Reed and Sam Burns are tied for second at 6 under, with nine other golfers at either 5 under or 4 under waiting to make a move if McIlroy falters over the weekend. 

The 2026 Masters odds heading into the weekend list McIlroy as the -280 favorite (risk $280 to win $100). That leaves a big list of Masters longshots on the board with Tommy Fleetwood and Reed at +1800, Justin Rose at +2000 and Burns at +2200. Before locking in any 2026 Masters picks heading into the weekend, be sure to see the 2026 Masters predictions and projected leaderboard from the proven computer model at SportsLine.

SportsLine’s proprietary model, built by DFS pro Mike McClure, simulated every PGA Tour event 10,000 times and reveals golf betting picks that have a history of being extremely profitable. 

This same model has also nailed a whopping 16 majors entering the weekend, including the 2025 Masters — its fourth Masters in a row — as well as last year’s PGA Championship and Open Championship. Anyone who has followed its sports betting picks could have seen huge returns on betting sites. 

Now that the first two rounds of the 2026 Masters are in the books, the model simulated the weekend 10,000 times, and the results were surprising. Head to SportsLine now to see the projected leaderboard. 

Top 2026 Masters predictions 

One surprise the model is calling for at the 2026 Masters: Burns, who enters Saturday tied for second, stumbles down the stretch and barely cracks the top 10. The 29-year-old American surged into an early tie for the lead following Round 1 after shooting a 67 on Thursday. He cooled off with a second-round 71 on Friday. That’s enough to keep him tied for second with Reed, but now, he sits six shots off the lead.

Instead of Burns making a weekend run, the model is projecting that he’ll largely fall out of contention. He has a poor historical track record at Augusta, missing two cuts in his four appearances and never finishing higher than T29. The model doesn’t like his +2200 odds to win outright, and also advises fading him in top-five bets. See who else to fade at SportsLine.

Another surprise: Scottie Scheffler, a two-time Masters champion who is T24 and at even par, surges over the weekend and makes it back into the top 10. It was a forgettable Friday as Scheffler shot a 74, his second-worst round ever at Augusta National. 

His track record, however, can’t be ignored, as he’s won two of the past four Masters and has finished in the top 10 for four straight years. Scheffler provides some value as a +6000 longshot to come back and stun with an outright victory, but he’s also a strong play at +100 to finish in the top 10.  See who else to back at SportsLine.

How to make 2026 Masters picks

The model is targeting a massive triple-digit longshot who surges up the leaderboard this weekend and get back into contention. Anyone who backs this golfer could hit it big. You can only see the model’s Masters picks here.

So, who will win the Masters 2026, and which longshot will stun the golfing world? Check out the 2026 Masters odds below and then visit SportsLine to see the projected 2026 Masters leaderboard, all from the model that’s nailed 16 golf majors, including four straight Masters.

2026 Masters odds, contenders

Get full 2026 Masters picks, best bets and predictions here. 
(odds via FanDuel and subject to change)  

Rory McIlroy -280
Tommy Fleetwood +1800
Patrick Reed +1800
Justin Rose +2000
Sam Burns +2200
Cameron Young +2700
Shane Lowry +3300
Brooks Koepka +5000
Jason Day +5500
Scottie Scheffler +6000
Tyrrell Hatton +6500
Xander Schauffele +6500
Hideki Matsuyama +10000
Chris Gotterup +10000
Wyndham Clark +10000
Ben Griffin +12500
Haotong Li +10000
Matt Fitzpatrick +12500
Jake Knapp +12500
Kristoffer Reitan +12500
Ludvig Åberg +17500
Collin Morikawa +22500
Max Homa +50000
Russell Henley +50000
Sam Stevens +100000
Sungjae Im +100000
Adam Scott +100000
Michael Brennan +100000
Sepp Straka +100000
Harris English +100000
Nick Taylor +100000
Keegan Bradley +100000
Aaron Rai +100000
Dustin Johnson +100000
Patrick Cantlay +100000
Jacob Bridgeman +100000
Marco Penge +100000
Matt McCarty +100000
Jordan Spieth +100000
Brian Campbell +100000
Justin Thomas +100000
Jon Rahm +100000
Ryan Gerard +100000
Gary Woodland +100000
Viktor Hovland +100000

AUGUSTA, Ga. — After a bogey on the 10th hole Friday, Rory McIlroy’s momentum had fully halted. As he strode to the 12th tee in the second round of his green jacket defense at the 2026 Masters, the Northern Irishman was tied with Patrick Reed for the lead at 6 under, erasing the advantage he took early in his second round. 

In years past, McIlroy may have felt pressed, like the tournament was slipping from his grasp once again. Memories of his 2011 collapse regularly haunted him as he made his way around the second nine at Augusta National Golf Club; however, these hallowed grounds no longer represent the depths of his misery. 

Instead, Augusta, Georgia, has become the home of McIlroy’s greatest triumph, the place where he shed more than a decade of pain in one of the most cathartic victories in golf history. Augusta National is the place that finally, mercifully loves him back. 

Buoyed by the green jacket sitting in his locker, a relaxed McIlroy stuck to his mantra of “keep swinging” and fired a dart at No. 12 to set up the first birdie of what would become a historic run to close out his second round. 

He made six birdies in his final seven holes, including four in a row, to shoot a 7-under 65 and build a six-shot advantage heading into the weekend at 12 under — the largest 36-hole lead in the 90-year history of the Masters and the best two-round start by a defending champion.

“I’ve always felt like this golf course can let you get on runs if you allow it,” McIlroy said. “I talked last year about how I really won the tournament in a 14-hole stretch, the second nine on Friday and the first five holes on Saturday. I knew I had some chances coming in when I was standing on the 12th tee, but I didn’t think I’d birdie six of the last seven [today].

“It just shows what you can do around here. Even if you might hit it in the trees on 13, on 15 … and on 17 — 17 was obviously a bonus with the chip-in. But my wedge play today was really good. My short game the first two days has been amazing.”

What made McIlroy’s second-round run so remarkable is how different it felt from the way he dominated golf courses early in his career. His driver has been more of a liability than a weapon this week, but that’s of no matter to the defending champion, who calmly put himself back into position and trusts his wedges and short game to give him continued scoring opportunities. 

McIlroy has long dominated the par 5s at Augusta National; he continued that trend this week with seven birdies in his eight attempts. However, he’s accomplished that feat without hitting a single fairway, only reaching one of those greens in two. 

“Becoming a wily old veteran,” McIlroy explained when asked how he’s managed to score without his driver cooperating. “I remember, even going back to the final round in 2011, hitting it in that bunker off the tee at the 2nd hole and, like, not panicking but thinking, ‘oh, this isn’t good. I can’t go for this in two. How am I …’ And I walk up there today, and it’s like, ‘No, I lay it up to a good number, and I’ll have a good chance to make a birdie.” 

As well as the career grand slam winner played par 5s, it was his pair of birdies on the final two par 4s that sent the biggest shockwaves around Augusta National. 

A year ago, McIlroy made some miraculous escape from the trees by going up high through a window mere mortals would never even see. Faced with a similar challenge at the 17th on Friday, he opted to play more conventionally down low, kicking it out short and right of the green, 29 yards away from the hole. There, he put his short game prowess on full display, sending the largest roar of the week cascading through the Georgia pines as his chip found its way to the bottom of the cup. 

McIlroy called that a bonus, but it felt like a little nod from the course — a reminder that McIlroy had finally made Augusta National his home away from home. 

That’s a new feeling for McIlroy, who spent one trip after another trying everything he could to master the puzzle Augusta National presents. He tried coming early, arriving late, being open about how much he wanted it, ignoring the noise — nothing worked.

Finally, after exorcising all of those demons 12 months ago, McIlroy feels welcome among the pine straw and azaleas.

Experience is everything at the Masters, but McIlroy took that to an extreme by making sure he not only relied on his play over the last 17 years and got plenty of reps on this year’s version of Augusta National. His comfort on the greens this week has been particularly notable, as he’s rolled it better and more confidently than anyone else no matter where he’s pulled out the putter.

It is not a matter of coincidence.

“Just spending time here,” said McIlroy, crediting his improved stroke to teeing it up at Augusta National at least six or seven times since The Players Championship. “… I’ve been on this golf course so much the last three weeks, and that’s been a combination of practice and chipping and putting around greens, and then just playing one ball and shooting scores and ending up in weird places that you maybe never find yourself and just trying to figure it out.” 

McIlroy never would’ve made that many trips to Augusta National before becoming a champion, but he’s made the club a second home over the last month. 

It’s easier to win a second Masters with a green jacket already in one’s locker, McIlroy claimed after Round 1. History has proven that to be accurate, considering how the game’s elite have been to hang subsequent green jackets after claiming their first.

It took McIlroy longer than anyone expected to put all the pieces to the Augusta National puzzle together, but as Phil Mickelson proved after his breakthrough in 2004, all it takes is one to heal decades of scar tissue. Mickelson won three Masters in his 30s, and McIlroy appears poised to go on a similar tear himself. 

As difficult as the Masters is a physical examination of your golfing ability, it’s probably an even bigger test of your mental strength. For years, McIlroy wasn’t up to that challenge, but as he proved again on Friday, he’s now more than capable of handling what Augusta National throws at him. 

“I think it was getting to the point where I would allow myself to play the course the way that I knew that I could,” McIlroy said. “So it was getting past myself. It was staying aggressive. Like my little mantra to myself today was, ‘Keep swinging, keep swinging hard at it even if you’re not hitting fairways. Just keep swinging.’ … My mindset hasn’t [always] been ‘keep swinging.’ It’s been guided, tentative. I think the experience I’ve accrued over the years, and obviously with what happened last year, it makes it a bit easier out there to keep swinging.” 

History tells us this weekend should be a mere formality for McIlroy. All five players since 1934 to hold a six-shot lead or better at the Masters have gone on to win. 

However, it has rarely been that simple for McIlroy, whose challenge on the weekend will be maintaining that aggressive mindset against the natural impulse to protect the lead. He said he has to keep his foot on the gas, noting the last time he tried to protect a big lead at Augusta National in 2011, it went poorly. 

The next 36 holes will be the latest battle between McIlroy, himself and Augusta National. The crucial difference is that, a year ago, he finally won that internal battle, and in doing so, he seems to have pulled the golf course to his side. 

Chris Waller plans to field more than a quarter of the competitors in the Sydney Cup, and assistant Charlie Duckworth highlights a common strength in their team.

“With all of our runners in this, there isn’t much of a query over the distance,” Duckworth said.

Out of 15 Sydney Cup entries, seven are untested beyond shorter trips to 3200m, yet Waller’s all possess relevant staying credentials.

River Of Stars was fourth in the previous Melbourne Cup (3200m), Valiant King has twice entered the iconic Australian staying test, Soul Of Spain won at 3319m in Ireland, and Hutchence succeeded in his lone two-mile run overseas.

River Of Stars ($7.50) rates as the outfit’s best shot, confronting a significant weight of 56.5kg.

Mares have won just five times since 1989, with Makybe Diva among them at 55.5kg in 2004 – bridging her debut and next Melbourne Cup conquests.

Duckworth admits the weight hurdle for River Of Stars but is certain her talent and grit will shine through.

“She’s the class horse in the race, which is why she’s got top weight,” he said.

“She’s got a lovely draw (barrier six) to try to offset that weight, and two miles isn’t an issue with her, she is a proper staying mare.”

Valiant King achieved third in the Caulfield Cup and, winless in three this prep, his camp is thrilled for Saturday’s chance after missing 12 months prior.

“He was awesome in the spring,” Duckworth said.

“He’s yet to hit that height this prep, but we’re hoping Saturday will be when he does.

“He was scratched from the race last year, so we’ve got some unfinished business with him.”

The Championships’ second day brings high stakes for Waller, with 14 across four Group 1s including star mares Autumn Glow and Aeliana targeting the Queen Elizabeth Stakes (2000m).

Aeliana follows victories in the Ranvet Stakes and Tancred Stakes, earning Duckworth’s acclaim despite Autumn Glow’s headline chase for 12 straight.

“She has been faultless,” he said.

“She’s such a terrific horse, and she stays very well.”

With Aeliana confirmed to 2400m, Autumn Glow’s Randwick middle-distance debut draws scrutiny.

James McDonald and Waller recently defended her stamina prospects, bracing for pace pressures from competitors seeking flaws.

“The query is how quick they do end up going in this 2000 metre race,” Duckworth said.

“Everyone in the race will, I imagine, want to make it a stamina test as that’s likely to be the only chink in the favourite’s armour.”

Lindermann from the Waller yard is the likely pacemaker, with Dubai Honour, Caviar Heights for Haggas, and Sir Delius able to take up the running.

Visit leading racing betting markets to wager on the Sydney Cup action.

Oleksandr Usyk has proven himself to be a level above his heavyweight rivals in recent years, but there is one man, whom he may soon face, that is being labelled as his ‘kryptonite’ ahead of a possible world title challenge.

Many have tried to discover a chink in the armour of the Ukrainian mastermind, but his undefeated record has remained in tact, with both the cruiserweight and heavyweight elite unable to overcome the style of the loveable champion.

Although, whilst he is unbeaten in the pro game, many believe that the way to defeat Usyk is by targeting his body. This is largely because he was dropped by a Artur Beterbiev body shot during the London 2012 Olympic quarter-final, but also because of Daniel Dubois’ fabled and controversial ‘low blow’ in their first fight.

As a result, some fans suspect that WBC Interim champion and mandatory challenger Agit Kabayel, known for his destructive body work, could be the heavyweight division’s best chance of legitimately dethroning 39-year-old Usyk before his retirement.

Speaking to iFL TV, Kabayel’s manager Spencer Brown declared his belief that the German possesses the style to hand Usyk a first career defeat and threatened that there will be ‘problems’ if the Ukrainian refuses to fight Kabayel after his May clash with Rico Verhoeven.

“It is frustrating, we still feel that Agit is going to be world champion by the end of this year.

“Me personally, I think that, if he fights Usyk, that is Usyk’s kryptonite. I keep saying it to people, he works the body beautifully, he is game as a pebble, he stays on top of you, he is a pressure fighter and I don’t think that Usyk will like that. That is my personal opinion.

“Agit Kabayel is one of the most dangerous men in the division. They can’t hold up much longer on us, they just can’t. Once he fights this first fight against Rico, win, lose or draw, he has either got to fight us or he has got to relinquish that title. Otherwise, there is going to be problems.”

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Usyk-Verhoeven takes place on Saturday, May 23, but Kabayel was recently left out of Usyk’s three-man hit list, despite the pair being mandated for a world title bout, so it will be intriguing to see how the situation develops post-Verhoeven.

AUGUSTA, Ga. — Friday evening at the Masters is different from any other day on the property. The setting sun casts long shadows, stale beer reverberates through the corridors and cigar smoke hints at which direction the wind may be blowing. The crusty and crispy descriptions of the golf course seem to intensify as finality hits for half the field. A week that started with hopes and dreams of possibly slipping on a green jacket is met with dejected looks, slumped shoulders and thoughts of what went wrong.

As patrons make their way through the exits, roars offer the possibility of movement unseen. When one bellowed from down below that reached the main leaderboard near the entrance, those heading the opposite direction knew Rory McIlroy was moving in one of his own.

The defending champion, the career grand slam winner, the five-time major holder has opened up a historic gap between himself and the rest of the field. Six strokes up with 36 holes under his belt and with 36 holes to go. The finality that some of his contemporaries were met with on Friday may have been felt by more than those who are just heading home early.

McIlroy’s six-shot advantage entering the weekend marks the largest in tournament history. His second nine as the sun was dipping below the Georgia pines on Friday was flat-out ridiculous. Even without the super power of his driver not cooperating — McIlroy ranks second-to-last in the field in terms of driving accuracy this week — he strutted as if there was a cape around his neck.

But it was not the power and flying abilities that made him appear to be a superhero. Rather, it was his craftiness, his finesse, his knowledge of Augusta National. McIlroy is experienced enough to know that, once you accelerate, you should keep your foot on the gas and not ease up.

“Don’t protect it,” McIlroy said. “Go out and play freely, keep swinging. That was a big part of the lesson from the 2011 Masters to the 2011 U.S. Open was don’t get protective. Go out there and keep playing, keep trying to make birdies, stay as trusting and as committed as possible.”

McIlroy mentioned, when looking back at his 2025 Masters victory, that there was one moment where he felt like he did not play aggressively on Sunday — the par-5 13th. He dumped his third in Rae’s Creek, carded a double bogey, followed it with a bogey on the 14th and let numerous players back in the mix. 

That’s what can happen around Augusta National when one eases up, no matter their position. It could be the man in first or the one who is just happy to get 36 more holes on the golf course after sneaking through the cutline. No one knows that better than McIlroy, who will surely apply the lessons of his last Masters and hope a more stress-free coronation is in his future on Sunday, even if the path to get there won’t be without some rocks in the road.

“I just want to go out and play two good rounds again,” McIlroy said. “Obviously, this golf course has certain characteristics that guys can get on runs, guys can make eagles, you hear roars all over the golf course. 

“I think the next two days for me is really about focusing on myself. It’s hard to avoid those big leaderboards out there, but like I know that I’ve got a lead. So I don’t need to keep checking it all the time. So for me, just really focusing on myself and staying in my own little world out there is the best thing.”

History in sight and in the rearview

With a historic margin in hand, McIlroy now has monumental implications in sight. He could become the fourth player to successfully defend his Masters title while tying one of those previous three (Nick Faldo) for most major championships won by a European. There is a bevy of items that he could check off, but those will need to wait until Sunday evening should the opportunity arise.

That history looks forward, but it is the history McIlroy has already made that informs what may have occurred Friday. The way in which McIlroy summited to the top of the leaderboard in 2025 feels awfully similar outside of the big mistakes (i.e. the double bogeys Jack Nicklaus told him to stop making). It is hard to forget that McIlroy carded a record four double bogeys en route to his victory last year, a win he credited to a 14-hole stretch between Friday and Saturday.

Those seven holes on this Friday consisted of six birdies. Those seven holes on Saturday? Well, we will have to wait and see.

“I talked last year about how I really won the tournament in a 14-hole stretch, the second nine on Friday and the first five holes on Saturday,” McIlroy said. “Yeah, I knew I had some chances coming in when I was standing on the 12th tee, but I didn’t think I’d birdie 6 of the last 7. 

“It just shows what you can do around here. … Even though I haven’t played tournament golf, I feel like being up here a lot and playing, I’ve prepared as well for this Masters as any other that I’ve played. I think all that work around the greens over the last three weeks has certainly paid off over the last two days.”

Captain America

Sam Burns played a spectacular round to keep his Masters chances alive after it appeared to be getting away from him, and he will be the one to play alongside McIlroy on Moving Day, but you can’t look at this first page of this leaderboard and not think about Patrick Reed.

Captain America, the 2018 Masters champion, the man who has been globetrotting on the DP World Tour, would have been in that final pairing alongside McIlroy if not for a bogey on his final hole. Duelling 69s have the right-hander at 6 under and within earshot of a man with whom he has plenty of history.

The past includes not just that Sunday singles match in the 2016 Ryder Cup, but so much more. There was the date in the final round at the 2018 Masters where Reed got the better of McIlroy. More recently, there was a subpoena served to the Northern Irishman around the holidays in 2023 and a flick of a tee towards him on the driving range in Dubai.

Last year, McIlroy’s adversary was Bryson DeChambeau. If Reed plays his cards right on Saturday and can bite a chunk out of Rory’s lead heading into Sunday, he will relish the opportunity to deny the man the chance at going back-to-back, and his game is sharp enough and witty enough to do so if the stars align.

“After winning in ’18, at that point, I definitely felt like I had always wanted to put it on a second time,” Reed said. “I think the biggest thing really is you always dream as a golfer to go out and try to win the green jacket. As players and as professional golfers, you always have to believe in yourself that you can. 

“Until you do, you always have that just little voice of doubt in the back of your mind. Now I was able to close out in ’18 and give myself some good opportunities since then. Hopefully, we can go ahead and get my second one.”

A Masters rarity

Only three times in the last 30 years has someone hit all 18 greens in regulation at Augusta National, the most recent coming on Friday. Tyrrell Hatton, a man who has had a mixed relationship with this golf course, was perfect with his irons and set up 18 different looks for birdie.

The Englishman converted seven of them, and although a three-putt bogey on the last may have soured his dinner plans, his performance was a masterclass in angles — and oddly enough in the context of Hatton — temperament. 

“I feel like the course this morning, the greens … were softer than where they were at the end of yesterday’s round,” Hatton said. “I imagine the guys this afternoon or playing all afternoon, it’s only going to get firmer and faster to a point of, I guess, what we experienced yesterday. 

“So I guess I made the most of the greens being a little bit softer this morning. Yes, I gave myself lots of opportunities. I would have liked to have seen more putts go in. I don’t feel like I actually holed that many putts, certainly outside sort of 7-8 feet.”

A Scheffler rarity

For only the third time in his 26 rounds at Augusta National, Scottie Scheffler signed for a score higher than 72. Posting an over-par performance is a rarity any week for Scheffler and even more so on these grounds, where he has been just about flawless in his seven trips. The result was a 2-over 74, which positions Scheffler at the same place where he began the week: even par. 

So, where did it go wrong for Scheffler on Friday? The easy answer is his inability to take care of scoring chances. Scheffler played the par 5s in 1 over, but the score only tells so much of the story. He was greenside in a perfect position on No. 2 and hit one of his worst pitches of the week. A similar story unfolded on the short par-4 3rd. 

On the second nine, Scheffler split the fairways on both Nos. 13 and 15. On both holes, he found the water with his second shots, leading to a pair of bogeys. The fix will be easy for Scheffler over the weekend, but it appears to be too little too late.

“I would like to hole a few more putts,” Scheffler said. “I felt like it was rolling nice today, but … balls just weren’t dropping. Maybe my reads were a little bit off. I felt like I was starting online, could have been sped on a couple of putts, but overall today, I felt like I definitely played better than my score. It was frustrating to get it back to even, have a couple of par 5s in front of me, and then not do many things I felt wrong and wasn’t able to convert, really basically, anything coming down the stretch.”

Ryder Cup Europe

As Justin Rose and McIlroy were duking it out down the stretch and ultimately in a playoff in 2025, Shane Lowry and Tommy Fleetwood sat in the clubhouse eating and drinking with their families and took in the action on television. They watched as two of their closest friends in golf pitted themselves against one another.

Now, they join the fight. 

Lowry, Fleetwood and Rose all sit at 5 under and a touchdown and extra point behind their fellow European. Fleetwood put two eagles on his card, while Lowry went around Augusta National without a dropped shot on Friday. Rose, meanwhile, continued his professional, steady play around these parts and reached 5 under after birdies on Nos. 9-11. With a couple of par 3s playing easy and two reachable par 5s, Rose settled on that number in a stretch we may look back on as the one that defined this tournament.

A quick switch

Brooks Koepka has experienced a topsy-turvy type of tournament, which is hard to do when playing alongside Rose and Jordan Spieth. The five-time major champion stands at 3 under after carding 11 birdies and eight bogeys across his first 36 holes. He drove the ball poorly on Thursday, but he noted that a quick switch in his driver setting was to blame.

“I just drove it better,” Koepka said. “Some of my settings on the driver switched if A1 to B1. No one noticed it. Switching back to A1, which is what we usually had it and just driving it better.”

How can that happen, let alone in a major championship? Well, it did. Koepka looked better after turning the driver back to the original settings, but it proved even a five-time major champion like him, who employs a simple point and shoot attitude towards golf (that’s a compliment, by the way), can overlook something.

Tyson Fury has come out of retirement to face Russian boxer Arslanbek Makhmudov in a heavyweight clash in London on April 11. The fight will stream live on Netflix, which fans can get for free with Sky’s £15 Essential TV bundle or £24 Ultimate TV bundle, the latter of which also includes HBO Max and Disney+.