Rose fires 63 to take four-shot advantage at Buick

Justin Rose kept his driver in the bag for most of his round Friday, and it turned out to be a wise choice.

The 25-year-old Englishman shot a 7-under 63 to take a four-stroke lead after two rounds of the Buick Championship in Cromwell, Conn.

Bogey-free through 36 holes, Rose played himself into contention for his first PGA Tour win, moving to 12-under 128, his lowest two-round total of the year.

Former British Open champ and first-round co-leader Ben Curtis (68) and Kevin Sutherland (67) are tied for second at 8 under. Dean Wilson (66) and Chris Smith (67) are five strokes off the lead.

Rose, who has won four times in international play, has not finished better than third on the PGA Tour. He'll be paired with Curtis, with whom he shared the second-round lead in last year's Memorial.

Champions Tour

Gil Morgan used an eagle, six birdies and an adventurous par on the last hole Friday to take a two-stroke lead after two rounds of The Tradition in Aloha, Ore.

Morgan finished with an 8-under 64 for a two-round total of 11-under 133 in the final major of the year on the Champions Tour.

Tom Jenkins was two shots back at 9-under 135 after a 69. Mark McNulty had a 65 and was tied at 8 under with Loren Roberts (69).

LPGA Tour

Soo-Yun Kang overcame a triple-bogey to shoot her second consecutive 6-under-par 66 and forge a tie for the lead with defending champion Catriona Matthew in the Wendy's Championship for Children in Dublin, Ohio.

For the second day in a row, the field took advantage of soft greens to put up record low scores. The cut of 3-under 141 matched the lowest in LPGA history. Fourteen players broke par through 36 holes but won't play on the weekend.

Kang, who got first tour victory last week at the Safeway, and Matthew, who also put up a second 66, were at 132, a shot ahead of Karrie Webb, who had a 66 of her own.

Annika Sorenstam, finding her stride after a two-week layoff without golf, was four strokes back after a 67.

European PGA Tour

European Ryder Cup player Luke Donald birdied the final hole for a second-round 65 to tie Brett Rumford for a share of the lead in the BMW International Open in Nord-Eichenried, Germany.

Angel Cabrera of Argentina and Englishman Simon Khan were a stroke back at 11-under 133.