AUGUSTA, Ga. — The temperature and humidity finally dropped at Augusta National Golf Club on Friday morning, along with the scores in the interrupted opening round of the first Masters ever played in November.
A day after England’s Paul Casey shot 7-under 65, Dustin Johnson and South Africa’s Dylan Frittelli matched him once play resumed Friday.
Johnson, the No. 1-ranked player in the world, stood at 3 under after 10 holes when play was halted because of darkness on Thursday. He birdied No. 12 and three of the last four holes to get to 7 under.
“It is nice. I feel like I’m on a good roll here,” Johnson said. “I’m feeling good with the golf swing. To continue to play [into the second round] is definitely a nice advantage. Obviously, we know how the golf course is playing. We’ve already played nine holes this morning, and just to turn around and go right back out I think is an advantage, and we’re going to finish our round today. Yeah, I definitely think it is an advantage.”
Frittelli, the No. 100 player in the Official World Golf Ranking, had six birdies and an eagle in a round that also was interrupted by darkness.
Frittelli stood at 5 under after 10 holes when play resumed and promptly birdied No. 2. He added another birdie on the par-3 sixth.
Frittelli and Johnson were both scheduled to begin their second rounds at 10:25 a.m. ET on Friday.
Justin Thomas and Sungjae Im were one shot behind at 6 under. Four players, including Webb Simpson, Justin Rose and Xander Schauffele, were two shots back at 5 under.
Defending champion Tiger Woods was three shots behind the leaders at 4 under.
Earlier this week, Augusta National announced that the top 50 scores and ties would make the 36-hole cut. The cut line stood at 1 under after the first 18 holes. It figures to get even lower given the friendlier-than-usual conditions.
Among the big names sitting outside the cut line after 18 holes: Tommy Fleetwood (even), Gary Woodland (even), Zach Johnson (1 over), Bubba Watson (2 over), Jordan Spieth (2 over) and Rory McIlroy (3 over).
Thursday’s inclement weather, which dumped two inches of rain on the course during a three-hour delay, helped produce the lowest cumulative scoring round in Masters history. There were 53 players under par, including 24 in the 60s, which are both records for any round at Augusta National. Also, the 71.41 scoring average over the first 18 holes was the lowest for any first round at the Masters.
