Thomas Björn became the leading challenger for a first European victory at Augusta National since 1999.
The 43 year old Dane, three times a runner-up in Major Champions, carded a second round 68 at the Masters Tournament to reach three under at the halfway stage.
With the wind strengthening, Björn was delighted to be safely in the clubhouse, although Bubba Watson had charged five clear out on the course.
"I'm going to hit some balls for 20 minutes and then go home and put my feet up," Björn said after a 68 which featured four birdies in his last five holes.
"It was a good day. I played well all the way through and felt comfortable on the golf course today. I hit two great shots into 13 and walked off with a par and after that decided I needed to be more aggressive.
"I took the shots on at 14 and 16 and they paid off and it was nice to walk up and tap it in for a birdie on 18."
Scotland's Stephen Gallacher was also delighted with his second round, a 72 leaving him one under and guaranteed to make the halfway cut on his Masters debut - something his uncle Bernard, the former Ryder Cup Captain, was unable to do in 1970.
"I'm delighted to still be in red numbers to be honest," Gallacher said. "It was a bit tricky, the wind is a bit up and the greens are firming up.
"It's a very strategic course. I think everybody back home knows how to play it; it's just a case of trying to do it that's the hard part. Generally I would say if I missed a green or anything like that, you have to be happy with bogey."
