It remains crowded at the top of the leaderboard, but Sergio Garcia is now on top, following an excellent second round.
With the Masters less than a week away, the question of best player without a major championship will be thrust back into discussion soon and as he has been for the better part of the last decade, Sergio Garcia will be a popular choice. If he continues to play as well as he has during the first two rounds of the Shell Houston Open, Garcia may not be in that discussion much longer. He shot a 7-under 65 on Friday to move to 12-under for the tournament and into the 36-hole lead.
Following a solid opening round, Garcia was even better on Friday. He finished the day bogey free while recording five birdies and an eagle. His eagle game on the par-5 13th hole, his fourth hole of the round. After a solid drive, Garcia hit arguably the best shot of the round, drilling a 282-yard approach to five feet. He sunk the easy putt to improve to 8-under. Garcia's game has been working well in all facets, something that could bode well heading into the weekend.
"I was able for most part of the day to drive the ball fairly well and my iron play was quite good and short game worked nicely again, so I'm very happy with that," Garcia said, via Reuters.
Garcia is on top through two rounds, but he'll need a solid final 36 holes if he's going to remain there. The leaderboard is loaded with some of the best players in the world. Matt Kuchar is 11-under after shooting a 67 on Friday, just one off the lead. Steve Stricker is tied for seventh at 7-under while Phil Mickelson is tied for ninth at 6-under. Mickelson wasn't able to match his opening round of 68, but played another solid round and doesn't appear to be dealing with any issues related to the muscle he pulled last week.
The tournament didn't go as well for a handful of notable names. Jordan Spieth -- arguably the top young player in the world -- missed the cut after shooting a 3-over 75. Louis Oosthuizen, Jonas Blixt and Ian Poulter are also headed home early. Poulter shot a 77 in the second round to finish at 3-over. On the bright side, he got into Augusta a couple days earlier than expected.
Just flying to Augusta. To say I'm disappointed is a slight understatement, making the odd mistake & it's very costly. Swinging it fine.
— Ian Poulter (@IanJamesPoulter) April 4, 2014
Here is a complete look at the leaderboard through 36 holes.
Place
Player
Score
1st Round
2nd Round
Total
1
Sergio Garcia
-12
67
65
132
2
Matt Kuchar
-11
66
67
133
T3
Matt Jones
-8
68
68
136
T3
Cameron Tringale
-8
68
68
136
T3
Shawn Stefani
-8
67
69
136
T3
Jimmy Walker
-8
71
65
136
T7
Steve Stricker
-7
68
69
137
T7
Ben Curtis
-7
67
70
137
T9
Ryan Palmer
-6
70
68
138
T9
Jason Gore
-6
67
71
138
T9
Jim Renner
-6
66
72
138
T9
Phil Mickelson
-6
68
70
138
T13
J.B. Holmes
-5
66
73
139
T13
Erik Compton
-5
66
73
139
T13
Bill Haas
-5
65
74
139
T13
Brice Garnett
-5
68
71
139
T13
Retief Goosen
-5
68
71
139
T18
Rickie Fowler
-4
70
70
140
T18
Chris Stroud
-4
68
72
140
T18
Justin Hicks
-4
67
73
140
T18
Nicholas Thompson
-4
71
69
140
T18
Martin Flores
-4
68
72
140
T18
Freddie Jacobson
-4
68
72
140
T18
Michael Thompson
-4
67
73
140
T18
Michael Putnam
-4
68
72
140
T18
Camilo Villegas
-4
67
73
140
T27
Andres Romero
-3
72
69
141
T27
Hunter Mahan
-3
69
72
141
T27
Rory McIlroy
-3
70
71
141
T27
Justin Leonard
-3
70
71
141
T27
Davis Love III
-3
68
73
141
T27
Charley Hoffman
-3
65
76
141
T27
Graham Delaet
-3
70
71
141
T27
Sean O'Hair
-3
69
72
141
T27
Jon Curran
-3
69
72
141
T27
Webb Simpson
-3
68
73
141
T27
Brian Gay
-3
71
70
141
T27
Angel Cabrera
-3
68
73
141
T27
Brian Harman
-3
70
71
141
T27
Kevin Kisner
-3
71
70
141
T41
David Toms
-2
71
71
142
T41
Jeff Overton
-2
73
69
142
T41
Jeff Maggert
-2
69
73
142
T41
Luke Donald
-2
71
71
142
T41
Charl Schwartzel
-2
67
75
142
T41
John Huh
-2
71
71
142
T41
Harrison Frazar
-2
71
71
142
T41
Jhonattan Vegas
-2
67
75
142
T41
Lee Westwood
-2
70
72
142
T41
Russell Henley
-2
73
69
142
T41
Chris Kirk
-2
68
74
142
T41
Jonathan Byrd
-2
68
74
142
T41
Stewart Cink
-2
67
75
142
T41
John Merrick
-2
74
68
142
T55
J.J. Henry
-1
72
71
143
T55
Carl Pettersson
-1
69
74
143
T55
Brendon Todd
-1
69
74
143
T55
Roberto Castro
-1
71
72
143
T55
Tommy Gainey
-1
71
72
143
T55
Stephen Ames
-1
72
71
143
T55
Greg Chalmers
-1
69
74
143
T55
Ricky Barnes
-1
70
73
143
T55
Kevin Chappell
-1
71
72
143
T55
Ryo Ishikawa
-1
69
74
143
T55
James Hahn
-1
71
72
143
T55
Keegan Bradley
-1
66
77
143
T55
Henrik Stenson
-1
71
72
143
T55
Kyle Stanley
-1
69
74
143
T55
Robert Garrigus
-1
74
69
143
T70
Tyrone van Aswegen
E
71
73
144
T70
John Rollins
E
68
76
144
T70
Ben Crane
E
70
74
144
T70
Hudson Swafford
E
70
74
144
T70
Brendon de Jonge
E
71
73
144
T70
Ernie Els
E
68
76
144
T70
Bubba Dickerson
E
74
70
144
T70
John Mallinger
E
72
72
144
Cut line
T78
Chad Collins
1
69
76
145
T78
Peter Hanson
1
71
74
145
T78
Sang-Moon Bae
1
72
73
145
T78
Charlie Wi
1
72
73
145
T78
Jordan Spieth
1
70
75
145
T78
Kevin Stadler
1
70
75
145
T78
D.A. Points
1
71
74
145
T78
Ben Martin
1
69
76
145
T78
Jim Herman
1
72
73
145
T78
Scott Langley
1
70
75
145
T78
Aaron Baddeley
1
72
73
145
T78
Joe Ogilvie
1
68
77
145
T78
Louis Oosthuizen
1
72
73
145
T78
Robert Allenby
1
70
75
145
T92
Matteo Manassero
2
69
77
146
T92
Kevin Streelman
2
73
73
146
T92
Paul Casey
2
73
73
146
T92
Jonas Blixt
2
75
71
146
T92
Stuart Appleby
2
73
73
146
T92
Martin Kaymer
2
71
75
146
T92
Y.E. Yang
2
72
74
146
T92
Richard Lee
2
73
73
146
T92
David Hearn
2
75
71
146
T92
David Lingmerth
2
69
77
146
T92
Heath Slocum
2
70
76
146
T92
Jason Kokrak
2
73
73
146
T92
Brendan Steele
2
69
77
146
T92
Josh Teater
2
72
74
146
T92
Lucas Glover
2
75
71
146
T92
Andrew Loupe
2
68
78
146
T92
Daniel Summerhays
2
72
74
146
T109
Peter Uihlein
3
69
78
147
T109
Derek Ernst
3
70
77
147
T109
Trevor Immelman
3
69
78
147
T109
Ian Poulter
3
70
77
147
T109
Mike Weir
3
71
76
147
T109
Ted Potter, Jr.
3
71
76
147
T109
D.H. Lee
3
69
78
147
T109
Andrew Putnam
3
75
72
147
T109
John Peterson
3
72
75
147
T109
Paul Goydos
3
69
78
147
T119
Ted Purdy
4
76
72
148
T119
Brian Stuard
4
72
76
148
T119
Padraig Harrington
4
69
79
148
T119
Scott Stallings
4
75
73
148
T119
Charlie Beljan
4
69
79
148
T124
Charles Howell III
5
72
77
149
T124
Luke Guthrie
5
75
74
149
T124
Morgan Hoffmann
5
73
76
149
T124
Steven Bowditch
5
71
78
149
T128
Johnson Wagner
6
75
75
150
T128
Bryce Molder
6
68
82
150
T128
Darren Clarke
6
75
75
150
T128
Geoff Ogilvy
6
76
74
150
T128
James Driscoll
6
74
76
150
T133
Robert Gates
7
73
78
151
T133
Brian Davis
7
74
77
151
T133
Tim Clark
7
72
79
151
T136
Troy Matteson
8
69
83
152
T136
Branden Grace
8
73
79
152
138
Scott Gardiner
10
74
80
154
T139
Jamie Lovemark
11
74
81
155
T139
Bo Van Pelt
11
75
80
155
141
Brad Lardon
15
78
81
159