McIlroy retains Masters lead; Tiger third

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- By holding his poise and extending his lead, Rory McIlroy thrashed whatever bad memories he might have been carrying from last year's British Open. Now all he has left is to beat some forces that are much tougher than bad memories.

McIlroy did not have a lapse in any way resembling the 80 he shot at St. Andrews last summer after opening with a 63.

At the Masters on Friday, he shot 3-under-par 69 to take a two-shot lead at 10 under. Now his challenge is to hold off those behind, especially the most dominant force in golf for the past 14 years. Tiger Woods turned the second round into a 1997 flashback, evoking the run he made to win his first green jacket when he was 21, McIlroy's age. Woods ignited excitement all over the Augusta National Golf Club by covering the final 11 holes in 7 under par and finishing tied for third, only three behind the young man from Northern Ireland.

"I'll just be concentrating on the golf course. If you start thinking about anyone else here, if you let your mind wander at all, it can cost you a couple of shots," McIlroy said. "I'll be focusing on my targets and focusing on where I want my ball to go on the greens, and that's all I can do.

"I don't really care what anyone else does. I don't need to know," he said. "So it will be great for the tournament if he's up there. But I'm two shots ahead and I'm in a better position."

That talk has been heard before. It is how challengers always spoke before Woods' 17-month victory drought. The next two days promise a delicious question about whether a torch will be passed, or re-claimed.

And there is no guarantee that it will be one of those two who wears the green jacket Sunday. Jason Day, a 23-year-old Australian, is second after shooting 64 Friday -- one shy of the Masters record -- playing in a torrid, all-X-Box Generation threesome with McIlroy and Rickie Fowler (69, tied for seventh at 5 under). Others in the mix are proven tour veteran K.J. Choi (7 under), and former U.S. Open champion Geoff Ogilvy and first-round co-leader Alvaro Quiros (both 6 under).

McIlroy has made only one bogey in 36 holes, from the front bunker on the par-3 12th. He erased the bad taste with a birdie on the par-5 13th. "I do feel comfortable, but the only reason I feel comfortable is because I feel I'm playing well," he said.

If there is any reason for concern, it was that he missed putts on the back nine -- such as the 10-footer for eagle on 13 -- that could have extended is lead.

"I'm two ahead at a major championship," he said. "You can't be disappointed with that."

Day made a statement at the finish. He took a mighty rip at his 145-yard wedge shot and nearly holed it. He made eight birdies Friday in a tournament that supposedly requires much experience. "Obviously, I've played two good rounds to get myself in this position. Obviously, I'm not going to back down because I've got a lack of experience," Day said.

Experience does tend to count at Augusta and Woods has four jackets' worth. On Friday, he was calm when he had to be and animated when he had cause to be.

He did say of the younger set, "It's good to see these guys out here playing with that much enthusiasm and that much zest for the game, and [being] that good."

But his play said that his own day isn't yet done.