Scott takes charge at Memorial with 62

Golf

DUBLIN, Ohio — Adam Scott was frustrated by hitting good shots and signing for mediocre scores. After a spirited chat with his caddie, both were determined to squeeze everything they could out of the second round at the Memorial.

Scott flirted with perfection Friday at Muirfield Village, missing four putts inside 12 feet and still shooting a 10-under 62.

It gave him a one-shot lead over Rod Pampling, and he hopes it will be enough to shake off the golf gremlins that have been holding him back since his victory in Houston two months ago.

"We just told each other what we thought about what's going on out there, a bit of a heart-to-heart, because we knew I was close to playing really well," Scott said of his talk with Tony Navarro. "Our idea was to come out and be focused, and neither of us make a mistake."

He made one, hitting a heavy 7-iron that tumbled off the front of the green and into the bunker on the par-3 16th, and his 12-foot par putt rippled over the edge. He followed that with a 20-footer on the 17th for his 11th birdie of the round.

Scott was at 12-under 132, one shot ahead of Pampling, who played bogey-free for a 68. Bubba Watson had a chance to tie for the lead until he went long on the 18th for a bogey for a 68, leaving him at a 10-under 134 with another Aussie, Aaron Baddeley (68).

It was another day of good scoring conditions, with stifling heat, mild breezes, fairways with plenty of roll and greens that held approach shots and rolled smoothly.

That wasn't the case for Tiger Woods.

The three-time Memorial champion hit the ball decently enough, but couldn't make anything outside 6 feet until he rolled in a 10-foot birdie on the final hole for a 72, leaving him 10 shots behind.

Champions Tour

Tom Purtzer and Eduardo Romero took advantage of perfect scoring conditions in the Boeing Championship in Destin, Fla., matching the course record with bogey-free 9-under 62s to share the first-round lead.

Jim Thorpe and Jay Haas opened with 64s in the Champions Tour's event, and nine players — including Senior PGA Championship winner Denis Watson — had 65s on the Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort's Raven Golf Club course.

"The golf course is defenseless — no wind," Purtzer said. "There were a lot of birdies out there."

Romero, coming off a second-place finish last week in the Senior PGA in Kiawah Island, narrowly missed a hole-in-one on the 158-yard eighth hole. His ball landed about a foot from the pin.

European PGA Tour

Mads Vibe-Hastrup of Denmark shot a 6-under-par 63, including an eagle on the 16th hole, to take a one-stroke lead halfway through the Wales Open in Newport.

Vibe-Hastrup was at 8-under 130 after two rounds. He was followed by Alastair Forsyth (65) and Steven O'Hara (66), both of Scotland, and Brett Rumford (66) of Australia. Ten players were at 132, including 2005 U.S. Open champion Michael Campbell (66).

Among those missing the cut was Retief Goosen, who shot a 73 for a 143.

Colin Montgomerie put himself in contention with a 64 and is four strokes behind. Montgomerie, who shot 70 on Thursday and bemoaned his putting, was not much happier Friday.

Nationwide Tour

Omar Uresti took charge of the LaSalle Bank Open, using an eagle on the par-5 18th to pull ahead of the field at The Glen Club in Glenville, Ill. Uresti shot 9-under 63 to take a one-shot lead over Chez Reavie, who also posted a 63.