Masters 2013 Leaderboard: What to Expect from Top Golfers on Day 2

With one round of the 2013 Masters in the books, it's time for the contenders to start separating themselves from the pretenders. There was no shortage of surprises on the first day of play at Augusta National, but that has become commonplace due to the parity that currently exists in the sport of golf.

Even though the likes of Marc Leishman, Sergio Garcia and David Lynn make for great conversation, it isn't likely that any of them will factor in on Sunday. Most fans are interested in seeing how the world's elite players handle the pressure of chasing a green jacket, and the next big test is remaining in contention in the second round.

Keep reading to find out what you can expect out of Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson and the PGA Tour's biggest stars during the second round of the Masters on Friday.

Tiger Woods

Although Tiger Woods was probably a bit disappointed with his performance late in the first round when he missed a couple of birdie opportunities, he came away no worse for wear with a score of two under par. That put Woods four off the pace after one round, which means that he's well within striking distance. Woods is no stranger to coming from behind in the early rounds of majors, so it can be argued that he's actually in his preferred position.

Woods peaked a bit too early in a couple of majors last year, and he ultimately lost steam by the final round. The key for Tiger in the Masters is to build to a crescendo so he can win his first major since the 2008 U.S. Open. Woods was far from perfect in the first round, but he did a lot of things well and simply needs his putter to heat up in order to ascend to the top of the leaderboard.

Putting has been a thorn in Woods' side over the past few years. He has generally been inconsistent, but he is easily the best player in the world when he's putting well. The putter has generally treated him well in 2013, as evidenced by his three victories already, so there is reason to believe that Woods will improve upon his two-under score in the second round and inch closer to the leaders.

Phil Mickelson

Phil Mickelson has done himself a disservice at times this year by taking himself out of tournaments early due to poor starts, but Lefty did just enough on Thursday to ensure that won't be the case at the Masters. Mickelson shot a one-under 71, which put him five strokes off the pace at the conclusion of the first round. It may seem difficult to make up five strokes, but the leaders are bound to come back to Earth, and Mickelson has the ability to go on a tear.

It's no secret that Mickelson is one of the most talented players the sport has ever seen, but his issue has always been consistency, and that is something every golfer struggles with. The thing about Mickelson, though, is that he's often either great or awful, and there isn't much of a middle ground. Mickelson was actually somewhere between average and good on Thursday, however, and he's still in the hunt.

Predicting which Mickelson will show up for any given round is nearly impossible, but he showed some flashes of greatness on Thursday, so it's more likely that he'll rise up the ranks rather than fall apart. Mickelson gets into trouble when he gets wild off the tee and starts missing his spots, so he'll need to be accurate in that regard if he wants to stay within striking distance.

Rory McIlroy

There were a lot of questions about how McIlroy would perform in the Masters, as his 2013 season has been a rough one. Once McIlroy won the PGA Championship last year, many golf analysts anointed him not only the player of the future but also the player of the present. He went on to accrue two more PGA Tour wins following the final major last season and entered 2013 with a lot of momentum, but he has been unable to build upon it.

McIlroy does have two top-10 finishes in five starts this season, but he failed to finish better than 33rd in his other three events, so 2013 has been a mixed bag for him thus far. It's very possible that the pressure is beginning to weigh on McIlroy, as he joined Tiger at Nike and suddenly had all eyes on him. At the same time, Woods has regained his form and surpassed him as the No. 1 player in the world, so confidence could be an issue for the Northern Irishman right now.

While McIlroy was far from great on Thursday, he shot an even-par 72 and didn't take himself out of contention. He has a lot of work to do and will need to string together some birdies in order to move up the leaderboard, but he definitely has the talent necessary to get the job done. With that said, he doesn't appear to be a major threat to win this tournament.

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