Allenby shoots into lead at Pennsylvania Classic

LIGONIER, Pa. -- Robert Allenby made 10 birdies in the 24 holes he played Saturday in the Pennsylvania Classic. His swing was so pure that he said it was simply a matter of seeing the shot and hitting it.

He did just that until he couldn't see any longer.

When he trudged off Laurel Valley in darkness with three holes left in his third round, Allenby had a two-stroke lead over Rocco Mediate.

"I feel confident with my swing, so I'm able to just fire at the flags," Allenby said. "When you feel that confident, you might as well go for it."

The 30-year-old Aussie made four birdies in the morning to finish off the second round with a 65 and a one-stroke lead, then added six more in the afternoon to finish at 14-under par through 15 holes.

He and 10 other players will return at 9 a.m. today to finish the third round.

Mediate was only happy to still be in the hunt.

"You don't want a guy to get eight strokes in front of you," said Mediate, who grew up 20 miles from Laurel Valley and joined the club in 1995.

After Allenby tapped in from 4 inches for birdie on No. 3, Mediate watched him hit 9-iron to about 2 feet on the next hole. He turned and smiled at Allenby, and lifted his hands in mock exasperation.

"I just tried to stay on Robert's shirt tails," Mediate said. "It's fun to watch. If a guy makes eight birdies, you can't do anything about that. I've just got to make eight birdies, too. I've just got to keep hanging in there."

He certainly did his part.

Mediate also was 5 under for the third round. Each had six birdies for the round, each were on the favorable side of a two-shot swing. Mediate figured he would need to finish at 20-under par to have a chance to win.

And it might not come down to those two players.

Kevin Sutherland had a course-record 64, an amazing revival considering he was 6-over par after his first 14 holes on Thursday.

"After the first day, I wasn't really seeing any light at the end of the tunnel," Sutherland said. "I'm just making everything I look at right now. For some reason, I just started playing a whole lot better. I can't explain it."

Sutherland was the clubhouse leader, finishing at 205 about an hour before it was too dark for Allenby, Mediate and the others to continue.

Another stroke back at 10-under 206 was Jay Haas (66) and Cameron Beckman, who made 10 birdies but had to settle for a 65 because of a triple bogey on the par-3 14th.

Nick Price and Steve Elkington also were 10-under par with two holes to play.

Asahi Ryokuken International

NORTH AUGUSTA, S.C. -- Kris Tschetter shot a 66 to lead by two strokes Saturday at the rain-shortened Asahi Ryokuken International Championship, with all players finally back on the same second-round leaderboard.

Tschetter was among 72 golfers who finished their opening round Thursday, took Friday off and returned for the second round. The LPGA cut the 72-hole tournament to 54 because of bad weather.

"I think the people that are in my situation that got this flip, it was a definite advantage," Tschetter said.

Those forced to finish round one and play a second-round Friday worried they would get left behind by players ready to batter smooth greens and milder conditions.

Annika Sorenstam, who was off Saturday, is six shots behind at 4 under. She was one of the players most opposed to a shortened event. The $1.2 million tournament is in its first year.

SAS Championship

CARY, N.C. -- Senior PGA Tour rookies Bruce Lietzke, Bobby Wadkins and Jay Overton capitalized on ideal conditions Saturday and shared the lead after two rounds of the SAS Championship.

Lietzke, Wadkins and Overton were each at 9-under-par 135, one stroke better than first-round leader Larry Nelson, whose round included a 10.

Lietzke, competing in his sixth senior event, had seven birdies and one bogey in his round for a 66.

-- From wire reports