Lowery on track for second victory at The International

CASTLE ROCK, Colo. -- Steve Lowery, getting positive vibes from his victory here in 1994, carded seven birdies and one bogey to claim the second-round lead Friday in The International.

Lowery, who began the day with 8 points under the modified Stableford scoring system used in this event, overcame windy conditions to score 13 points and boost his total to 21.

Craig Barlow was second with 17 points, Mark Brooks had 15 and British Open champion Ernie Els 14.

First-round leader Steve Pate, who compiled 11 points on Thursday, added none Friday. Also at 11 were Billy Mayfair, Jay Haas and Australian Geoff Ogilvy.

Lee Janzen stood at 10, Jose Maria Olazabal at 9 and Vijay Singh at 7.

The scoring system awards 5 points for eagle, 2 for birdie, zero for par, minus-1 for bogey and minus-3 for double bogey or worse.

Sergio Garcia struggled in his second round, making only two birdies compared to six bogeys and a double bogey. His minus-5 total left him with 2 points and perilously close to missing the 36-hole cut.

Garcia survived, but Phil Mickelson and David Duval did not. Both began the day at minus-2. Mickelson, who won this tournament in 1993 and 1997, had a two-round total of minus-18, and Duval finished at minus-16.

Defending champion Tom Pernice Jr. was another casualty, winding up at minus-11.

The field, cut to the top 70 players and ties for Saturday's third round, will be cut ag

ain to the top 36 players and ties for Sunday's final round.

Winds gusting in the 30-to-40 mph range made play difficult, particularly for those with afternoon tee times. Ogilvy was the only afternoon player among the top eight on the leaderboard.

Tom Lehman, who managed to finish at plus-1 despite playing in the afternoon, said the conditions were "nearly impossible. The wind was blowing so hard I was off-balance all day and I was actually dizzy."

Lowery wasn't nearly as disoriented.

"I shot 6-under today in some difficult conditions," he said. "If I keep playing like this, I've got a good chance to win.

"The course played tough. It was really windy and tough to pull the right club."

More often than not, Lowery made the right choice. He sank five putts of 12 feet or longer in a round that included four birdies in a span of five holes.

"I drove the ball well and was able to take advantage of driving it in the fairway," he said.

Lowery's 21 points matches his total after two rounds in 1994, when he beat Rick Fehr in a playoff. Lowery eagled the par-5 14th and 17th holes in his final round that year.

"It's always good to come back to a golf course you've won on," he said. "I remember that I made eagles on 14 and 17. I eagled 17 (Thursday), so that hole has been pretty good to me."

Because of swirling winds both Thursday and Friday at Castle Pines Golf Club, scores tended to be worse than in previous years.

"I think it's playing as hard as it's ever played," Lowery said. "The wind blew pretty much all day. The greens are firmer and faster than they've been the past few years."

LPGA: Playing her first five holes in 5-under par, Mhairi McKay shot a 65 to take a one-stroke lead over local favorite Rosie Jones through the opening round of the Wendy's Championship for Children.

Starting her afternoon round on the 10th tee, McKay parred the first hole and then had a birdie, birdie, eagle and birdie on the next four holes to grab a share of the lead with Futures Tour veteran Michele Vinieratos.

McKay rolled in a 22-foot birdie putt at No. 11, hit a sand wedge to 10 feet at No. 12 and her 3-wood second shot on the par-5 13th came to rest 10 feet from the hole. After making the eagle putt, she hit a lob wedge to 15 feet on the next hole for a birdie.

She barely missed birdie putts on the next three holes.

Seniors: Hale Irwin had seven birdies over the final 12 holes and shot a 7-under-par 64 to take a one-stroke lead over Gil Morgan after the opening round of the Long Island Classic.

Irwin, who has 34 wins in his eight seasons on the Senior PGA Tour and leads the money list this year, "tweaked" his stance last week and it paid immediate dividends.

Irwin parred the first six holes before making the first, and longest, of his birdie putts, a 12-footer on the par-3 seventh.

Morgan parred the final five holes at the 6,840-yard Meadow Brook Club course.

Scandinavian Masters: England's Warren Bennett got a lucky bounce off a tree late in the round and shot a 1-under-par 70 for a one-stroke lead after two rounds of the Scandinavian Masters.

Bennett was at 6-under 136 on the Kings Course at Kungsangen Golf Club.

Northern Ireland's Graeme McDowell, who opened with a course-record 7-under 64, shot a 73 and slipped into a five-way tie for second place at 137.

Norwegian Masters: Spain's Ana Larraneta shot a 3-under par 69 for a one-shot lead after two rounds of the Norwegian Masters.

Larraneta has a 36-hole total of 137, one stroke ahead of Samantha Head.-- From wire reports