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Round 1 at the 2022 Masters began with treacherous weather and a brief delay, but Thursday as usual still managed to deliver the goods. By the time the first day ended, a loaded leaderboard and round filled with memorable moments filled Augusta National with vigor and hope for what should be an incredible final three days of the tournament.
Round 2 is underway: Join CBS Sports Masters live leaderboard coverage of Friday's action at Augusta National.
Alone atop the leaderboard through 18 holes stands Sungjae Im, who fired a 5-under 67 in the afternoon wave, chasing down the bar set by early leaders Joaquín Niemann and Cameron Smith. Im opened his round with a 32 on the first nine -- replete with birdies in the first three holes -- before a second-nine 35 brought him into the clubhouse with a single-stroke lead entering Friday.
In the hunt is a host of big names. Cameron Smith is one stroke off the lead, former champions Danny Willett and Dustin Johnson are in the hunt, and Niemann joins a group including Scottie Scheffler, Jason Kokrak, Corey Conners and Patrick Cantlay that make up the remainder of the top 10. Of those, Smith was the early benchmark for the field as he made the turn with a lead at 3 under and led the tournament at 4 under briefly before being chased down late in the day.
Tiger Woods, playing in his first PGA Tour competition in 509 days after suffering traumatic injuries from a car crash in early 2021, is the headliner of a group that's four strokes off the lead after a steady 1-under 71 in Round 1. One of more than a half-dozen golfers at 1-under 71 entering Friday, Woods had an impressive showing as he scrambled his way with success all over the course and consistently made big putts to salvage a solid round.
Not all stars shined bright, though, as a number of the sport's top names -- from Bryson DeChambeau to Justin Thomas and Louis Oosthuizen -- stumbled out of the gate in Round 1. It only heightens the pressure entering Round 2 with the weekend cut very much looming large.
Below is a breakdown of the leaderboard as it stands entering Friday's second round.
1. Sungjae Im (-5): Im was the only player in the field Thursday to birdie his first three holes, giving him a start so hot that helped buoy what was otherwise a just-OK day. His round was filled with highs and lows that included five birdies, two bogeys and one eagle to carry him to No. 1 on the leaderboard. Im has not yet won a major in his career, but his best finish in a major came at Augusta National in 2020 when he placed T2.
2. Cameron Smith (-4): The Australian native has had a huge season and picked up where he left off Thursday with an opening-round 68. Sure, he had blow-up spots to open and close his day -- he double-bogeyed No. 1 and No. 18 -- but in between he played the other 16 holes at 8 under with no scores worse than par. He's just the second player on record to record multiple double bogeys in a round at the Masters and still shoot 68 or better.
T3. Joaquin Niemann, Dustin Johnson, Scottie Scheffler, Danny Willett (-3): This group is flush with star power past and present. D.J. and Willett represent former Masters champions, while Niemann and Scheffler represent part of the sport's rising stardom. All four had huge days with Niemann's early-wave push and Johnson's late-wave push among the bigger storylines in Round 1.
T7. Patrick Cantlay, Corey Conners, Jason Kokrak (-2): Coming off consecutive top-10 Masters finishes, Conners played a neat 2-under 70 round with only one bogey -- at the par-4 seventh. Cantlay entered Thursday on a similarly solid recent Masters resume and finished with four birdies as part of a sound round in which he managed to stay out of trouble and remained in the mix.
T10. Tiger Woods and eight others (-1): There was plenty of adventure in \ Woods' 1-under 71 Round 1, but playing in a competitive environment for the first time in 509 days, he looked plenty poised, prepared and healthy enough to give a good fight for the green jacket this weekend. His saving grace was primarily with his putter, as he consistently put himself in compromising positions yet consistently wiggled his way out of said positions with par saves littered throughout the round. Considering the ugly start to Thursday -- Woods said he stunk in warm-ups -- it was an impressive return to action for golf's biggest star. Follow Tiger Woods throughout the Masters.
Rick Gehman, Kyle Porter and Greg DuCharme recap Thursday's action at Augusta National, including a shocking 71 from Tiger Woods. Follow & listen to The First Cut on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
T19. Hideki Matsuyama and 11 others (E): After a neck injury forced him to withdraw from competition a week ago and an apparent wrist injury seemed to bother him in warm-ups, the reigning Masters champion still managed a respectable par. He seemed to get better as the day wore on, too, and after bogeying the first two holes on Amen Corner, he played the final six holes at 2 under.
T31. Rory McIlroy, Collin Morikawa and 10 others (+1): Neither McIlroy nor Morikawa -- with six combined major championships between them -- had huge days to open up their respective Masters weeks. Neither played themselves out of contention, either. That was especially important for McIlroy, who battled through a day where he didn't have it. Morikawa, meanwhile, seemed to find his best stuff late as he finished in a flurry with a 1-under 35 on the second nine.
T43. Jordan Spieth, Jon Rahm, Patrick Reed and 14 others (+2): A laughably loaded cadre of pre-tourney contenders here in this bunch that includes former champions Reed and Spieth. Oh, and former world No. 1 (and pre-Thursday favorite) Rahm. Spieth had tons of lip-outs on the greens that could easily have had him in the red. Rahm stumbled on the second nine after a solid start. Reed did the opposite, opening with a 2-under first nine before turning in two bogeys and two birdies on the second nine.
T70. Bryson DeChambeau, Justin Thomas and five others (+4): Rollercoaster round for one of golf's most polarizing players in DeChambeau, but did you expect anything different? He said earlier in the week he's only about 80% healthy after dealing with injuries of late, and he played like it with bogeys at 4, 10, 15 and 18 as well as a double at 14. As for Thomas, the stars seemed to be aligning for him after strong showings at the Valspar Championship, Genesis Invitational and Phoenix Open. But they just ... did not in Round 1. He had an ugly showing that got even worse on the second nine as he got in at 3 over down the stretch after a 1-over first nine. Still plenty of time to bounce back and play into the weekend, but this group slammed its backs against the wall Thursday and there's a tough road ahead to making the weekend cut.
Watch the 2022 Masters streaming all week with Masters Live as we follow the best golfers in the world throughout Augusta National with Featured Groups, check in at the famed Amen Corner and see leaders round the turn on Holes 15 & 16. Watch live for free on desktop and mobile via CBSSports.com and CBS Sports App. Also available on Paramount+.
Incrementally tougher today. Something to watch as the week progresses with the different conditions. Previous 5 years 13th - 4.58 15th - 4.70 Today 13th - 4.69 15th - 4.82 https://t.co/b9Ov9Nb9xM
Tiger Woods is tied for 10th place. Of course.
Looking for a new pre-shot routine. pic.twitter.com/JunIqHLVtn
Youngest outright 1st round leaders at #TheMasters 2015 Spieth - 21 (won) 2016 Spieth - 22 2004 Rose - 23 2022 Sungjae Im - 24 2018 Spieth - 24 1956 Venturi - 24
This will be the 9th time a player age 24 or younger has led or co-led after the opening round of #TheMasters 2 of the previous 8 went on to win: Seve Ballesteros in 1980 and Jordan Spieth in 2015.
In the mix at the Masters. #theMasters pic.twitter.com/Jt4y5m5sho
In the mix at the Masters. #theMasters pic.twitter.com/Jt4y5m5sho
Dustin Johnson: 3-under today; 47-under at #TheMasters since 2015, best of any player in that span
"To see where I’ve been – to get from there to here was no easy task.” - Tiger Woods #themastershttps://t.co/RGiGNymdxC
Tiger's 71 may or may not look great on paper 50 years from now, but it was remarkable to watch and the latest reminder that never before in sport has any man's will to be so great at one thing been this high.https://t.co/1v06XAja6p
If Sungjae Im leads at the end of the day, he'll be the first player not named Jordan Spieth age 24 or younger to lead a Masters round since Rory in 2011. Spieth did it 8 times from 2014-18.
"It legitimately felt like Sunday at the Masters."@KylePorterCBS on Tiger Woods finishing 1-under in Round 1. pic.twitter.com/olryRBpzuC
Bryson played better with the tennis racket
This is the 2020 Masters. pic.twitter.com/VTCd8bYUTP
An exceptional round for Sungjae Im. He leads the Masters at -5. pic.twitter.com/yokLtym8eZ
The new clubhouse leader. #themasters pic.twitter.com/5qs9F1ujNG
We've got a new leader in the clubhouse after Sungjae Im turns in a 5-under 67 to open up his Masters week. Im opened with three birdies in his first three holes and trailed off a bit from there, but a strong day nonetheless that nearly ended on a high note after lipping out a chip for birdie on 18. He's one up on Dustin Johnson, who is still on the course.
Not sure if these qualify, but Rory has had some success at majors in different-colored sleeves. pic.twitter.com/xtWUPqj899
Not sure if these qualify, but Rory has had some success at majors in different-colored sleeves. pic.twitter.com/YY48C66prL
Jon Rahm heads to 15 at +1 for the day. He has recorded 15 straight rounds of par or better at #TheMasters, 1 shy of the Tournament record, held by Tiger Woods (16, 2007-11).
Hovland is wearing Augusta camo. ? pic.twitter.com/Eq81aN1YrT
Loved this from Tiger both because it's true and because saying it requires a lot of humility. pic.twitter.com/Zxk7gRdAbb
"The group before this took AN ETERNITY to play this hole." - Verne Lundquist, national treasure
Birdie on No. 15 gives Sungjae Im the solo lead. #themasters pic.twitter.com/X56AIk4BsH
Birdie on No. 15 gives Sungjae Im the solo lead. #themasters pic.twitter.com/X56AIk4BsH
Cam Smith's SG:Approach in Round 1 at @TheMasters = +5.4 2.3 strokes better than anybody else in the field (Talor Gooch +3.1)
From 155 yards to nine inches. Viktor Hovland skillfully navigates hole No. 12. #themasters pic.twitter.com/5Y2w3jdzRH
Nearly an ace! Viktor Hovland with a superb shot on No. 12. pic.twitter.com/2Fo9opSuE0
why? pic.twitter.com/0dK46SgEcR
"Shot of a lifetime." Harold Varner III with an incredible shot from the pine straw to set up an eagle. pic.twitter.com/UVXzWEz9XX
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