By DOUG FERGUSON AUGUSTA — Justin Rose did just enough keep the lead Friday in the Masters, only he suddenly has a lot of company going into the weekend at Augusta National. Bryson DeChambeau became the only player with consecutive sub-70 rounds and got within one shot, putting him in the final gr oup. Right behind was Rory McIlroy, who tried to erase from his memory that sloppy finish in the first round and roared into contention to put the career Grand Slam back into view. Scottie Scheffler started his title defense with 24 straight holes without a bogey. He then made five bogeys over the last 12 holes to slow his progress. He still was only three shots behind. “The leaderboard is stacking up very favorably for what looks like world-class players right up there,” Rose said after his 1-under 71, which featured birdies on the par 5s on the front nine and on the par 3s on the back nine. “So you’re going to have to play great golf, and you’re going to have to go out there and want it and go for it and get after it,” he said. “It’s as simple as that, really.” Rose took a three-shot lead into the second round and had the advantage of playing early, before the wind became strong enough to make flags snap and create just enough indecision. He hit a 9-iron over Rae’s Creek to 4 feet for birdie on the par-3 12th, and he stuffed his tee shot on the par-3 16th for another birdie. That allowed him to atone for a few mistakes. He was at 8-under 136, the third time he has had the 36-hole lead at the Masters. The buzz came from behind him. DeChambeau picked up an unlikely birdie by holing a bunker shot on the par-3 fourth hole on his way to a 32 on the front nine that kept him on Rose’s heels the rest of the way. He wound up with a 68 for his best start ever in the Masters. “This is what golf is about,” DeChambeau said. “Got a lot of great names up there, and looking forward to an unbelievable test of golf.” And then there was McIlroy, who had two double bogeys over the last four holes Thursday, the latest frustrating chapter for him at the Masters. This time, he managed to forget about it and move on. He went birdie-birdie-par-eagle to start the back nine and was on his way to a bogey-free 66. “I had to remind myself I was playing well,” McIlroy said. “I couldn’t let two bad holes dictate the narrative of the 16 good ones. I also had to remind myself this morning not to push too hard too early.” Corey Conners of Canada quietly put together a 70 and joined McIlroy at 6-under 138. The group three shots back included Scheffler (71), former British Open champion Shane Lowry (68) and Tyrrell Hatton, who got within one shot of Rose until a pair of three-putts. One of them did a U-turn down the hill at the 16th. The other was a sleepy tap-in that lipped out. It shapes up for a wide-open weekend, led by a 44-year-old from England who has gone a dozen years since winning his only major at the 2013 U.S. Open. Rose spoke last year about finding another stretch of magic in his career, and opportunity awaits. That’s also the case for DeChambeau, the U.S. Open champion; for McIlroy, the sentimental favorite of so many at the Augusta National as he tries to get the last leg of the career Grand Slam; for Scheffler who coped with plenty of stress the course gave him Friday. “That’s the company that I expect to keep, and that’s where I have tried to be my whole career,” Rose said. “I’ve been a top-10 player in the world for a decade or more. So yeah, this is nice to be back in that mix.” McIlroy was thrilled, too. There was plenty of temptation to come out firing, but that’s what he did in 2023 when he played Friday afternoon and saw he faced a 10-shot deficit. He tried to charge and wound up charging right out of the parking lot after missing the cut. This time, he played the front nine with one birdie and eight pars. But he came to life quickly, stuffing a three-quarter 8-iron to a foot on No. 10 and a similar play with a 9-iron to about 4 feet on No. 11. Best of all was hitting 4-iron off the pine straw on the par-5 13th that narrowly cleared the tributary of Rae’s Creek and set up a 10-foot eagle. “Things sort of clicked into gear on the back nine,” McIlroy said. The cut was at 2-over 146, marking the end of 67-year-old Bernhard Langer’s Masters career. He needed to make a 10-foot par putt on the last hole, only for it to tickle the right side of the cup. Five-time major champion Brooks Koepka might have had the most shocking departure. He was in good shape, needing a bogey on the 18th. He made a quadruple bogey, starting with a tee shot into the trees and ending with a three-putt from 10 feet. Now the attentions shifts back to the top, where 16 players were separated by five shots going into the final two days. Rose is atop the leaderboard after a round for the 10th time at Augusta, without a green jacket to show for it. He will try to become the second-oldest player at 44 to win the green jacket behind Jack Nicklaus (46) in that mystical 1986 Masters. ...read more read less