Fred Couples proved himself a Masters specialist once again as the 63-year-old became the oldest man to ever make the cut at Augusta.

He sealed his place in the final stages of the major on Saturday morning, completing his second round with a bogey at 18 that gave him a second-round 74 for a one-over-par aggregate.

That was enough for the veteran American, who was champion at the Masters in 1992 and has often been a factor over the weekend in subsequent years.

Forty years since his Masters debut, Couples was relieved to get through to the business end of the tournament, having missed the cut in each of the last four years.

"I played really well the last couple days. I enjoy the place," he said.

Couples played his tee shot on 18 on Friday evening, before play was abandoned when trees began to fall amid stormy Georgia weather.

"I had 230 to the hole. All night long, I thought just make a five," Couples said. "I wasn't even thinking about a four, and I made a five. It's probably the best I could have done unless something crazy happened."

It was cold and wet at Augusta on Saturday, and that was set to make the rest of the day a test of resolve, with third rounds due to get under way.

"Am I going to look thrilled to play 18 holes in this this afternoon?" Couples said. "No, I'm a wimp. I'm an old wimp, but I'm excited to play.

"And I don't wear gloves. So I've got a couple of hours to try to figure out what I'm going to try and do if it stays like this all day long.

"But I am excited to make the cut. That's why I come here. The last four years have been really mediocre golf. Maybe one year I was semi close to making the cut. But that's my objective, and I did it.

"It's not like ha, ha, ha, now I can screw around and play 36 holes for fun. I'm going to try and compete. Play a good pairing with some younger guys and watch them play."

Fellow veterans Larry Mize and Sandy Lyle signed off their Masters careers on Saturday, as the champions of 1987 and 1988 respectively completed their second rounds, missing the cut.

Mize, 64, finished second-last on 15 over par after an 80, while 65-year-old Lyle propped up the leaderboard on 20 over after adding an 83 to his opening 81.

Lyle came out to welcome home Mize at the end of the round.

"That was very special for Sandy to come out and greet me there," Mize said. "Sandy's a good friend, a great champion, and to finish off with him is pretty cool."

Friday at Augusta National Golf Club was the Brooks Koepka show as the four-time major champion raced out to a three-stroke lead heading into the weekend at the Masters.

Koepka, who opened his week with a seven-under 65 to grab a share of the lead through 18 holes, followed it with a five-under 67 as part of the lucky morning wave who were able to get their rounds in before the harsh weather arrived.

After eight birdies and one bogey on Thursday, Koepka put together a bogey-free round with three birdies and an eagle as he continued his momentum from last week's victory at LIV Golf Orlando.

Jon Rahm was not so lucky to avoid the strong winds and rain arriving later in the day, but he handled it as well as anyone. He started his second round with seven consecutive pars, before birdieing the eighth and ninth to move to nine under right before his round was cut short.

The winds were blowing in with such force that multiple large trees were blown down in spectator areas, but luckily there were reported no injuries.

One further back from Rahm in outright third is 23-year-old amateur Sam Bennett, shooting his second 68 in a row as he bounced back from his first bogey of the week on the fourth hole to go four-under through his final 14.

Two-time major champion Collin Morikawa and top-10 talent Viktor Hovland (through 10 holes) are tied for fourth at six under, and while Jordan Spieth and Jason Day are still in the hunt at five under, Day will feel he let a golden opportunity slip.

Through 14 holes, Day was in outright second at nine under, but he finished with a double-bogey on 15, a bogey on 16 and another bogey on 18 to slip into a tie for sixth, seven shots off the pace.

In more strong representation from the LIV Golf players, Phil Mickelson, Patrick Reed and Joaquinn Niemann are all in the tie for 10th at four under.

Shot of the day

Cameron Smith started his second round with three bogeys from his first seven holes, but his last hole before play was cancelled was one to remember.

On the par-five eighth, Smith found the bunker with his tee shot, but instead of laying up he opted for the aggressive route and hit his fairway wood, trickling its way onto the side of the green and feeding back towards the hole to set up an eagle.

A little birdie told me…

Rookie Bennett made it to the end of his round in solo second at eight under, and if Rahm slips up, Bennett could become the first amateur since 1958 to hold solo second heading into the weekend.

In fact, his score is the second-best 36-hole mark by an amateur at Augusta, bettered only by Ken Venturi in 1956 (nine under), and they are the only amateurs to ever reach the weekend here with a figure better than three under.

Brooks Koepka was pleased with his form after carding a round of 67 to end Friday as the clubhouse leader at The Masters, and suggested his confidence is back after his knee surgery.

Koepka is on 12 under par after two rounds, though with play suspended early due to bad weather, second-placed Jon Rahm still has half of his second round to play, and will resume on Saturday three shots back on nine under.

The American suffered from a knee injury that required surgery, and he explained after his round how that had previously impacted his game.

"In 2021 I was just trying to figure out the best areas to walk because this place is quite hilly," Koepka said. "Downhill was a killer because my knee would get in front of my heel and that's where the MPFL [medial patellofemoral ligament rupture] that's stitched is still in there... [it] would just tighten, and everything was quite painful.

"But I don't have to worry about that any more, which has been great. I feel really good. I like the way I'm swinging the golf club, putting it, chipping it, driving it, iron play is solid. It feels really similar.

"I've got a completely different knee, but swing-wise it still feels the same. I'm able to do everything I need to. And the confidence is there. The confidence was lost just because of my knee and that was it."

Koepka has four majors to his name, but still needs to add The Masters and The Open Championship to complete a grand slam, and is aiming to do just that, starting in Augusta this week.

"Yeah, the whole goal is to win the grand slam. I feel like all the greats have won here and they have all won Open Championships as well," he said.

"I guess it's one more box for me to tick to truly feel like I've done what I should have accomplished in this game."

The 32-year-old was left frustrated at last year's Masters, missing the cut after two rounds of 75, and he revealed how badly he took it at the time.

"Last year, I don't even know if I should be saying this, but I'm pretty sure I tried to break the back window of the car with my fist," he said. "I tried to put it through the back window, not once but twice.

"First time it didn't go, so I figured I'd try it again. The window did not break. Apparently [I'm] not strong enough.

"The ride home was pretty silent. But yeah, I guess Mercedes makes a pretty good back window."

Brooks Koepka held a three-shot lead halfway through his second round of The Masters and Rory McIlroy is facing a battle to make the cut.

Koepka was joint-top of the leaderboard along with Jon Rahm and Viktor Hovland after starting with a seven-under 65 at Augusta National on Thursday.

The four-time major champion had the chance to go out on his own on Friday, with Rahm and Hovland starting later in the day, and he was sitting pretty at 10 under through nine holes.

Koepka arrived in Georgia full of confidence following a victory at LIV Golf Orlando and the American has given himself a great opportunity to win a first Masters title.

He birdied the second hole after an excellent third shot from a green-side bunker and eagled the par-five eighth following a majestic approach shot to move into double figures.

Jason Day surged into a share of second place courtesy of gains at the second and third holes, while a couple of early birdies took Collin Morikawa to five under on a day on which tee times were brought forward by half an hour due to the forecast of inclement weather.

Amateur Sam Bennett was six shots back from Koepka along with Sam Burns, Jordan Spieth, Tony Finau and Gary Woodland.

McIlroy's hopes of completing a career Grand Slam this weekend look to be over as he was back on two over through three holes following bogeys at the second and third holes.

Defending champion and world number one Scottie Scheffler dropped back to three under.

Rory McIlroy was frustrated by an "untidy" opening round to the Masters but is hopeful his chances of landing the title for the first time are not over just yet.

The world number two, whose best finish at the tournament was as runner-up last year, is left playing catch up after an even-par 72 on day one at Augusta National.

McIlroy carded five birdies, but he double-bogeyed the seventh and dropped shots at three further holes to leave himself in a tie for 37th.

Despite being seven shots behind overnight leaders Jon Rahm, Brooks Koepka and Viktor Hovland, McIlroy is focused on dragging himself into contention on Friday.

"It felt like a bit of a scramble all day, to be honest," he told Sky Sports when reflecting on his first round.

"I missed a couple of tee shots left and paid the price for that on seven and 17. I was just a little bit untidy in some other areas as well.

"I made enough birdies – it's just about keeping mistakes off the card. I salvaged an even-par round and there's still 54 holes of golf left – a lot of things can happen.

"I didn't feel like I was too far away today. I'm probably two or three shots behind how I'd like to be, but nothing that's insurmountable.

"I've got a quick turnaround overnight, and I'm looking forward to getting back on the course pretty quickly and obviously trying to get myself back in the thick of things.

"Hopefully we get some decent conditions in the morning and I can shoot something in the mid-60s and get myself back in the tournament."

Reigning champion and world number one Scottie Scheffler carded a four-under 68 on Thursday and is three shots off the lead.

Scheffler, who made an eagle on the second hole and dropped just one shot, did not feel any additional pressure entering the opening major of the year as defending champion.

"I didn't think about it really at all today," he said. "The only reason I would think of being the defending champion is because I was playing with [amateur] Sam Bennett.

"Just because I'm defending doesn't mean I start under par. Starting at even, it was just about going out there and getting settled into the round, which I did a good job of.

"I got a lot of looks early, made some nice par putts there on six and seven, but didn't see much go in the rest of the day. But four under is a solid start to the week."

Brooks Koepka feels he is finally back to full health following a serious knee injury that had crippled him over the past two years, claiming a share of the lead after Thursday's opening round at the Masters.

Koepka, a four-time major champion, shot four birdies on his front-nine and four more on his back-nine to go with a solitary bogey in an impressive seven-under 65.

There were warning signs that the 32-year-old may be in for a good week, coming off a victory at LIV Golf Orlando where Koepka became the new tour's first ever two-time winner.

His performance this time was in stark contrast to his efforts at the last two editions of the Masters, where Koepka missed the cut both times, but he told the media after his round that his health made those years complete write-offs.

He shared details of the darkest moments from his recovery, where he could barely get out of bed, and would be in tears while biting down on a towel as his physical therapist tried to bend his knee.

"I just wrote the last two years [at the Masters] off," he said. "I came here three weeks after surgery [in 2021], and last year I wasn't anywhere near it, but I'm healthy now, I've put that behind me, and I'm not too worried about the last two years.

"It's all injury-based. Any athlete, anybody that's going through something where you can't even bend your knee. 

"I'll spare everybody the details of what actually happened – it was pretty gruesome, right – and they told me I could have a surgery that would be pretty much a year and a half [recovery time].

"Then you create bad habits, and there's frustration, and you just feel like you're never going to be healthy.

"I wish I had celebrated the kind of little milestones along the way, instead of thinking I could just power through it… so yeah, it was definitely frustrating, but once you feel good, everything changes."

He said he realised early that he was in for a great day after making a sharp start on a course that was "quite gettable".

"Honestly I think it was just the start," he said. "I got off to a good start – any time you're two under through three it's a good start – so I felt good, and I just kind of piggybacked off that momentum.

"I'm very happy with the way I played. I drove the ball nicely, left it in some good spots, and even missed quite a few putts… it could've been really low, but I'll take it. Seven's pretty good."

Jon Rahm, Brooks Koepka and Viktor Hovland are tied for lead at seven under after Thursday's opening round at the Masters.

It was a shaky start for world number three Rahm as he stumbled to a double-bogey on the first hole, but he birdied the next two to quickly even out his card, before rattling off another five birdies and an eagle the rest of the way.

Koepka, a four-time major champion, is riding high after emerging victorious in last week's LIV Golf Orlando to become the breakaway tour's first ever two-time winner, and he looked terrific with eight birdies and one bogey.

Hovland was the only of the trio to go bogey-free, with the 25-year-old Norwegian now in a great position to make a run at his first major title.

They have a two-stroke lead on the chasing pack, with Australia's former world number one Jason Day shooting a bogey-free, five-under 67, and he is joined in a tie for fourth by Cameron Young.

Tiger Woods carded back-to-back birdies on the 15th and 16th holes to salvage a disappointing two-over 74, leaving him with work to do on Friday if he is to make the cut.

World number one Scottie Scheffler is part of a loaded logjam tied for sixth at four under, which also includes world number seven Xander Schauffele, former Masters champion Adam Scott, WGC Match Play winner Sam Burns, and surprising rookie Sam Bennett.

Three-time major champion Jordan Spieth is at three under with two-time major champion Collin Morikawa, reigning British Open champion Cameron Smith is at two under with reigning PGA Championship victor Justin Thomas, and Phil Mickelson is joined at one under by fellow Masters champions Hideki Matsuyama, Patrick Reed and Dustin Johnson.

Shot of the day

While Bennett's eagle chip-in, or Rahm's long iron setting up a five-foot eagle putt were worthy contenders, neither had the degree of difficulty of Hovland's par save on the 10th hole.

Landing in a horrible spot in the rough behind a bunker, with almost no green to work with, Hovland played a feathery flop into the fringe and allowed it to trickle next to the hole for an unlikely par.

A little birdie told me… 

It was a memorable day for Bennett, as the 23-year-old amateur began his first round at the Masters with a birdie on the first, an eagle on the second and another birdie on the sixth to tie the best front-nine score by an amateur at Augusta (32).

Meanwhile, after his best major finish last season with a T4 at The Open, Hovland tied his best round at a major, and set a new personal best around Augusta with his seven-under 65.

Joining him at the top of the leaderboard, Rahm will be trying to make history as the first player to ever win the Masters after double-bogeying their opening hole.

Tiger Woods was in "constant" pain during a first round of the Masters that left him facing a battle to make the cut.

Woods has won a third of his 15 major titles at Augusta National, but the legendary American may not be in Georgia for the weekend after a disappointing start.

The 47-year-old signed for a two-over 74 after a fifth bogey of the day at the 18th in Georgia, where Viktor Hovland, Jon Rahm and Brooks Koepka capitalised on great conditions to lead at seven under.

Woods defied the odds to resume his career after suffering serious leg injuries in a car accident two years ago.

One of the all-time great revealed he felt "sore" and was troubled throughout his opening round of the first major of 2023 on Thursday.

Reflecting on his round, he said: "Most of the guys are going low today. This was the day to do it.

"Hopefully tomorrow I'll be a little bit better, a little bit sharper, and kind of inch my way through it.

"This is going to be an interesting finish to the tournament with the weather coming in. If I can just kind of hang in there, maybe kind of inch my way back, hopefully it will be positive towards the end."

Cameron Young and Jason Day were two shots behind the leading trio, while defending champion Scottie Scheffler was three under through 14 holes.

Shane Lowry, Xander Schauffele, Adam Scott and amateur Sam Bennett are among a host of players well poised on four under, while Rory McIlroy has work to do at one over through 14.

Jon Rahm birdied the last hole of his first round to join Viktor Hovland in a share of the Masters lead.

Hovland held a three-shot advantage at one stage as he started the first major of the year with a magnificent seven-under 65 on Thursday.

Rahm matched the Norwegian's round to become the co-leader at Augusta National after starting with a double bogey.

The 2021 U.S. Open champion eagled the par-five eighth to go three under and fire a warning to the rest of the field.

Rahm birdied the 13th, 15th and 16th before rolling in a short putt for another gain at 18 following a brilliant approach shot.

Hovland had earlier signed for his lowest Masters round and his joint-best in a major, ending his day without a solitary bogey in great conditions.

Cameron Young and Brooks Koepka are just two shots behind the leading duo, with fellow American Sam Burns also five under through only eight holes.

Jordan Spieth, Shane Lowry, Xander Schauffele, Adam Scott, Joaquin Niemann and Sam Bennett are well poised on four under.

Bennett matched the record for the best front nine by an amateur in the Masters, hitting the turn in 32.

Defending champion Scottie Scheffler was two under approaching the turn, while Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods are one over and two over respectively in Georgia.

Will Zalatoris withdrew from the prestigious event due to injury.

Will Zalatoris has withdrawn from the Masters ahead of his first round with a reported back injury, ruling the 2021 runner-up out at Augusta National.

The 26-year-old had been due to take to the tee with Matt Fitzpatrick and Collin Morikawa on Thursday's opening day in Georgia.

A one-time PGA Tour winner, having claimed his maiden crown at the FedEx St. Jude Championship last August, Zalatoris would have been chasing a first major.

He previously finished second in 2021 at the Masters, and was the runner-up at last year's PGA Championship and US Open.

Viktor Hovland surged into a three-shot lead as Tiger Woods struggled early in his first round of the Masters on Thursday.

Hovland has five top-20 finishes in seven starts this year and the Norwegian hit the ground running at Augusta National.

The 25-year-old made an eagle at the par-five second hole following a mammoth tee shot and held a two-shot advantage at the turn on five under.

Birdies at sixth, eighth and ninth holes put Hovland at the top of the leaderboard, with a long putt at 11 giving him further breathing space.

Jon Rahm moved into second place following a nightmare start to the first major of the year.

Rahm recovered from a double-bogey at the first by making a birdie at the second and an eagle at the eighth moved the Spaniard to three under.

Scott Stallings, the world number 66, signed for a two-under 70, while the veteran Fred Couples was also flying high on two under.

Shane Lowry, Xander Schauffele, Adam Scott, Cameron Young and Brooks Koepka were also three shots off the lead.

Woods was two over at the turn, having dropped shots at the third, fifth and seventh hole before making his first birdie at hole number eight.

Defending champion Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy are among the late starters in Georgia, where the weather is forecast to deteriorate.

LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman was not invited to this year's Masters to ensure the focus remained on the competition, according to the chairman of Augusta National.

Norman has been the CEO of the controversial Saudi-backed golf league since its inception and has been an outspoken critic of the PGA Tour on numerous occasions

The Australian finished runner-up at the tournament on three separate occasions, but Augusta National chief Fred Ridley confirmed that they did not invite him to this year's tournament to avoid distraction from the on-course spectacle. 

"We did not extend an invitation to Mr Norman," Ridley said at a press conference on Wednesday.

"The primary issue is that I want the focus to be on The Masters competition and the great players that are participating – the greatest players in the world.

"Our decision in December ensured we honoured and were consistent with our invitation criteria for players.

"I would also add that in the last 10 years, Greg Norman has only been here twice and I believe one of those was as a commentator for Sirius Radio. It really was to keep the focus on the competition."

Earlier in the week, the Australian confirmed that he would not be on site for the first major of the year, in a move he described as "petty".

"As a major winner I was always invited before, but they only sent me a grounds pass last year and nothing, zilch, this time around," he told The Telegraph.

"I'm disappointed because it's so petty but of course I'll still be watching."

Despite the 68-year-old's absence, players from LIV Golf have still been invited to compete at this year's tournament, including current Open champion Cameron Smith and 2020 Masters champion Dustin Johnson. 

Justin Thomas is prepared for business as usual at The Masters with little interest in the contentious inclusion of LIV Golf International Series players in Augusta.

The world number 10 will be joined by 17 LIV Golf stars at the Augusta National Golf Course, with six of those rebel golfers automatically qualifying via a lifetime exemption after winning the tournament.

Majors are the only tournaments the two sets of golfers can feature in after the PGA Tour banned those who joined the Saudi-backed rebel series for record purses and 54-hole events.

The DP World Tour also acted to punish the breakaway stars, with £100,000 fines and potential suspensions for those playing in LIV events and opting out of the European competition.

A report from The Times on Tuesday claimed the DP World Tour will win its ongoing court case against the 13 LIV golfers appealing those sanctions, but Thomas is focused on his own matters in Georgia.

"I haven't really talked to any of them," Thomas said at a pre-tournament press conference.

"I don't know if it's just been coincidence or I've had the blinders on, but it's just been business. I'm just trying to take care of myself and I'm not worried about what they're doing."

Thomas' best Masters finish came when he battled to fourth in 2020, while the American tied for eighth in his most recent appearance last year.

Ahead of the start of the tournament on Thursday, Thomas is aiming to take a more casual approach in search of his third major title – having won the PGA Championship in 2017 and 2022.

"I can definitely want something too much," he continued. "I've wanted to win this tournament too much in the past.

"I've wanted to be world number one too badly, I've wanted to win golf tournaments too badly – it's a fine line.

"It's a learning process and I'm starting to learn a bit more. I'd love to be world number one and win tournaments, and not have to figure it out the tough way.

"But there is a lot of good that can come out of some negative experiences if you choose to look at it that way."

Thomas will play with Jon Rahm and Cameron Young in his first round, with that three-ball line-up teeing off at 10:42am local time.

Tiger Woods believes it is simply "a matter of time" before Rory McIlroy wins the Masters, backing him to complete a career grand slam in due course.

The Northern Irishman is a four-time major winner, and has claimed all three of golf's other key honours in his career.

But the nearest he has come to success at Augusta National was last year, when he finished second, three strokes off victor Scottie Scheffler.

Woods, a five-time champion in Georgia, thinks it is just a waiting game for McIlroy now, and is confident he will claim the green jacket before long.

"He will [win it]," he said. "It's a matter of time. He has the talent, he has the game, he has all the tools to be able to win here.

"It's a matter of time. A lot of things have to happen to win at this golf course, a lot has to go right. You have to know how to play the course.

"Last year he had a great run and put himself [in] there. Whether it's this year, next year or whatever, he will do it, and he will have a career grand slam."

Woods also weighed in on the anticipated revamp to several key events on the PGA Tour, with plans for no-cut tournaments in response to LIV Golf.

The 15-time major winner feels it has potential, suggesting it will not penalise players for poor performance, but stressed no firm calls had been made yet.

"There [are] still some discussions about some of the designated events and whether we're going to have cuts," he added.

"I'm certainly pushing for my event to have a cut. Maybe the player-hosted events will have cuts. There does need to be a penalty for not playing well.

"Every event shouldn't be a guaranteed 72 holes. We're trying to figure that out, to see where those designated events will be and how many there will be."

Tiger Woods plans to relish every moment when he makes his 25th start at the Masters this week, admitting he is uncertain how many more majors he will be able to play.

Having suffered serious leg injuries in a car crash in 2021, Woods made a stirring return to competitive golf at last year's edition of the Masters.

Five-time champion Woods finished 47th at Augusta National Golf Club last year, making the cut before carding back-to-back 78s across the final two rounds.

While playing his first non-major PGA Tour event since 2020 at February's Genesis Invitational, Woods confirmed he planned to appear at all four majors this year – but the 47-year-old knows that aim is dependent on his fitness.

Asked if the possibility this could be his final major had crossed his mind, Woods told reporters: "Yeah, it has. Last year, I didn't know if I was going to play again at that time. 

"For some reason, everything came together, I pushed a bit and was able to make the cut, which was nice.

"I don't know how many more I have in me, so I just have to be able to appreciate the time I have here and cherish the memories. 

"So much of my life has been here at Augusta National. I'm just so excited to be able to come back here and play."

Woods ended an 11-year major title drought at the 2019 Masters, and while he is not being discussed as a leading contender this time around, he has not given up hope of a repeat performance.  

"Whether I'm a threat, who knows," Woods said. "People probably didn't think I was a threat in 2019 either, but that turned out okay!

"If there's any one golf course I can come back at like I did last year, it's here.

"I think my game is better than it was at this particular time last year. My endurance is better, but it aches a little more than it did last year.

"I just have to be conscious of how much I can push it. I can hit a lot of shots, but the difficulty for me is going to be walking, going forwards. That's how it is.

"It has been tough, and it will always be tough. It will never be the same, I understand that; it's one of the reasons why I can't prepare and play as many tournaments as I would like. That's my future, and I'm okay with that."