ESPN.com - Golf Online - Love on familiar ground at rain-soaked Colonial

Associated Press
Saturday, May 20

FORT WORTH, Texas -- A week after losing a three-way playoff, Davis Love III and Phil Mickelson are right back in contention.

Love had a 4-under-par 66 Friday at the Colonial and shared the second-round lead with David Toms, who finished his rain-delayed 66 Saturday. Both were at 7-under 133 heading into the afternoon's third round.


	Davis Love III is chasing his first win in 26 months.

Stewart Cink had five straight birdies on the rain-softened course today on way to a 6-under 64 that put him alone in third at 6 under 134.

Mickleson, whose 68 Friday included four birdies and two bogeys, was among five players that were two strokes off the second-round lead at 5-under 135.

"Davis and I both felt that we played well last week. And it was very easy to make the transition this week," Mickelson said. "We didn't have to change cities, and the conditions are the same, same fairway grasses, same putting surfaces."

Mickelson, who has won twice this year, and Love, playing in his 48th tournament since his last victory, lost in a playoff to Jesper Parnevik at the Byron Nelson Classic about 25 miles away in Irving last week.

Despite the proximity, the conditions aren't exactly the same. The 7,080-yard Colonial course is soaked after two lengthy rain delays Friday that followed a night of rain.

Play never resumed after the second delay Friday, which came with exactly half of the 106 players still on the course.

The top of the leader board is familiar territory for Love, who has finished second seven times during his winless drought that dates back to the 1998 MCI Classic. Love led the middle two rounds at last weekend's Nelson.

"I feel like I'm very close to playing great," said Love, a 13-time winner on the PGA Tour. "I hope I can settle down this weekend and play good, steady golf."

Love's game was anything but steady on his second nine holes Friday. After a 30-foot putt on the 383-yard 17th hole capped his stretch of three straight birdies, the roller-coaster ride began on Colonial's front side.

On No. 1, a 565-yard par 5, Love drove wide left of the fairway and then laid up into the rough. He hit a pitching wedge to set up a 2-foot bogey putt, starting a stretch of six straight holes without a par.

He had a bogey at No. 2 after his approach bounced over the green, and he mishit his chip shot. Two birdies followed before he double-bogeyed the 470-yard, par-4 5th when his approach shot hit a tree short of the green. His pitch shot found the green 15 feet past the hole, and he three-putted.

"I played steady on the first nine and was all over the place on the second nine," Love said. "I wish I could blame it on the wind or something, but I just didn't go a very good job of being consistent."

After the double-bogey, Love rebounded with a 10-foot birdie putt on the next hole, only to miss the fairway for another bogey at No. 7. He finally had a front-side par before finishing with another birdie.

The rains didn't start until after Love and Mickelson both completed play.

Rocco Mediate, Mike Weir, Greg Kraft and Jim Furyk were tied at 5-under 135 with Mickelson, who has four straight top-20 finishes.

Kraft, who has never won in his nine seasons on the PGA Tour, got to 7 under with a 15-foot birdie putt on the 433-yard 12th hole. Then he had a double-bogey at the 178-yard, par-3 13th after his 7-iron shot hit the bank and rolled back into the water.

"My bad judgment shot of the day," Kraft said. "I had the right club and I hit right at it. That pin was just a sucker pin and I'm a sucker."

Divots

Tommy Armour III, who had an opening-round 80, was 13 strokes better with a 67 on Friday but still will miss the cut.

Only Ben Hogan has ever successfully defended a title at Colonial, and he did it twice, the first two tournaments in 1946-47 and again in 1952-53.

Four champions in the 1990s missed the cut the following year at Colonial: Ben Crenshaw (1991), Tom Purtzer (1992), Fulton Allem (1994) and Tom Lehman (1996).