Mikes Diary - Round 2 - 2008 Masters

I was very pleased with the round I played today. In fact, I'd say it was one of the best rounds I've played in a while and it was nice to do it at Augusta National. I felt comfortable all day and I gave myself a lot of chances.

The last time I went around here without making a bogey was the last round of 2003 when I won. But I'd even say that this round was better than that one.  In fact, it probably could have been a really low round if a few putts had gone in.

But around Augusta National, even when it seems like you have a lot of eight and 10 footers that you should be making, you have to realize that there are no gimmees. Every putt is a grind. Sometimes you can have a five foot putt that has two and a half feet of break.

So mentally, you have to remember that while the stats may show you having a number of putts from inside 10 feet or inside 15 feet, you can't get down on yourself because this is unlike any other course and the greens are unlike any others anywhere.

Another reason I was so pleased about my second round was because it came in tough conditions. When I teed off, the winds were picking up and while they weren't really strong, they were swirling enough that it made it tough to pick a club. Brennan and I did a good job of pulling clubs and trying to read the winds, which can be really deceiving. A lot of that comes from experience, from having played here enough so you don't get fooled, but it's still not an easy job.

However, what I was really pleased with on Friday was my distance control with my irons. It was easily one of the best rounds of the year for me in that department as just about every shot I hit landed where I was planning.

Overall, I really like the way I'm swinging the club. I know that five shots back, I have a lot of ground to make up but there's still lots of golf left. And Saturday is forecast to have some bad weather which doesn't upset me all that much. This is a tough golf course to begin with and when you add in some of Mother Nature's bad stuff, it can be even more difficult, but I don't mind tough conditions. Sometimes when you get out here it's survival and we could be in for that this weekend.

As always, thanks for reading.

Mike Weir