Not a bad way to rebound, Rory McIlroy. The Northern Irishman managed to birdie on the par-5 second hole Friday at Augusta National after taking a second shot behind a tree as the second round of the 2025 Masters got underway . McIlroy, looking to make up ground following two double bogeys on the back nine Thursday, played his ball close to a trunk before sinking a putt on the fourth shot to finish at 1-under par. He made par on the following five holes. McIlroy, seeking his first Masters win and a career grand slam, got off to a fiery start Thursday in the opening round, making birdie four times on the first 14 holes en route to a score of 4-under par. Things came crashing down shortly after when McIlroy, 35, shot a pair of double bogeys on the par-5 15th and the par-4 17th. He finished the day at an even 72 and declined interview requests after the round. Through seven holes Friday, McIlroy was tied for 16th at 1-under while Englishman Justin Rose leads at 8-under through 10. McIlroy’s best finish at the Masters came in 2022 when he placed second to Scottie Scheffler, who is chasing his third green jacket after winning again in 2024. Scheffler, 28, finished Thursday’s opening round with a 4-under 68. He tees off Friday at 1:23 p.m. McIlroy got off to a hot start this season by winning the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am in February. He followed up that victory with his second Players Championship win in March. “I think it’s about time that Rory won [a Masters],” said golf legend and six-time Masters champ Jack Nicklaus, who spent time with McIlroy in Florida last week ahead of the first major of the year. “I sat down with Rory last week and we had lunch, and we were talking, and I said, ‘Rory, I know you prepared for Augusta; tell me how you’re going to play the golf course.’ “We went through it shot for shot. And [when] he got done with the round, and I didn’t open my mouth. (Then) I said, ‘Well, I wouldn’t change a thing. That’s exactly the way I would try to play the golf course.’” McIlroy last won a major championship in 2014 at the PGA Championship. The Masters conclude Sunday.