While one teen was charging up the leaderboard, another began to slip on the back nine. A third was playing catchup in an attempt to make the cut.

Anthony Kim and Rory McIlroy walk up to No. 16. McIlroy finished with a 1-over par 145, just barely making the cut, while fellow teens Danny Lee and Ryo Ishikawa came up short. Lee finished at 11 over and Ishikawa finished at 6 over in their Masters debuts. (Rainier Ehrhardt/Staff)

When it was all said and done, Rory McIlroy, 19, was the only one to make the cut after Friday's second round of the Masters Tournament.

However, he didn't make it in easily.

McIlroy was on the brink of disqualification after his second-round 73 when he showed his frustration on the 18th hole by kicking up the sand in the greenside bunker. The rules prohibit a player from testing the condition of a hazard before playing a stroke. McIlroy returned to the club at 8:40 p.m. to explain his actions to the committee. The final ruling was that, no, there was not a violation.

After McIlroy birdied the 15th hole, he was in a good position to extend his time at Augusta National Golf Club with a 4-under total. But things took a turn for the worse when he four-putted on No. 16 for a double bogey. On the final hole, McIlroy triple bogeyed before bypassing the media.

"I don't feel like talking right now," he said on his way to the clubhouse.

He finished with a 1-over par 145, just barely making the cut on a day where he climbed up the leaderboard with an eagle on No. 13 and was briefly tied for sixth place.

Danny Lee, 18, finished at 11 over and Ryo Ishikawa, 17, finished at 6 over in their brief Masters debuts.

Lee admitted Tuesday that he had a stomachache in front of a room full of media and his unsettling feeling didn't subside for the second day of competition. The 2008 U.S. Amateur winner unraveled with a record-setting quintuple bogey on the 10th hole. He six-putted and never recovered.

"It was really hard to get back to where I was -- the normal Danny Lee," he said. "It was really tough. That six-putt, I just couldn't get it off my mind. It really hurt my game."

Lee double bogeyed Nos. 12 and 14 to finish with an 81 on Friday, missing the cut by 10 strokes.

"I wasn't playing bad," he said. "On the greens, it's really difficult for me. It's lightning fast out there. I think I've got to learn how to putt on fast greens."

The youngest of the competitors, Ishikawa, was poised to fight for a spot when he birdied No. 15. However, he double bogeyed two consecutive holes (16 and 17) to seal his fate.

"If I can just play a par game, I thought I might have a chance. The tee shot on 16, I thought it was a good shot, but the position of the pin was too difficult for me," Ishikawa said. "I think I wasn't good enough to get that."

The teens plan to build on the experiences they had in Augusta in hopes of returning.

"I'm really looking forward to turning pro (next week), but now hopefully my putt will get better after this week," said Lee, who was paired with Trevor Immelman and Adam Scott.