GOLF ROUNDUP : STOCKTON CLIMBS INTO LEAD CHARLES 1 BACK AT U.S. SENIOR OPEN.

Byline: Associated Press 

Dave Stockton won 11 times in his years on the PGA Tour, including two major championships.

But he says he's a better player now at age 54 than he ever was three decades ago.

He may have proved it Friday by holing four long birdie putts on the back nine, including a 22-footer on the final hole, to overtake playing partner Bob Charles for a one-stroke lead through two rounds of the U.S. Senior Open at Beachwood, Ohio.

``I think my game is an awful lot better,'' Stockton said. ``I drive the ball further. I have always been a good short-iron player and I still retain that. Putting, I'm one of the best, so I have the basis for it.''

Stockton's uphill birdie putt on the closing hole pushed him into a tie with Charles. A three-stroke lead melted away in the final three holes when Charles missed his 10-foot uphill putt for par.

``It was just a miserable day from the first hole to the last,'' said Charles, who led by three shots after tying the course record with his opening 66. ``I had a dream round yesterday and today was a bit of a nightmare.''

Stockton's 5-under-par 67 after an opening 70 left him at 7-under 137 at the midpoint at Canterbury Golf Club.

``Not a whole lot of adventure on the Stockton scale,'' he said with a grin. ``A pretty relaxing round.''

``It was a pleasure to watch a master craftsman at work on the greens like that. He was quite incredible. He drained everything he looked at,'' Charles said.

Charles countered five birdies with five bogeys for a 72 that left him at 138.

No one else was within four strokes of the lead. Only 11 players are under par.

Next came John Bland, who matched Stockton's 67, and Jay Sigel, both at 3-under 141. At 142 were former U.S. Open champion Tony Jacklin, Bruce Summerhays and Seattle club pro Bill Tindall. Jacklin had a second-round 68, Sigel and Summerhays posted 69s and Tindall, last alternate into the 156-player field, kept his fairy tale alive with a 72.

Hale Irwin, Ray Floyd, Graham Marsh and Chi Chi Rodriguez were the only other players to break par, at 1-under 143.

Defending champion Tom Weiskopf shot his second straight 75 and two-time Senior Open winner Jack Nicklaus played the front in 3-under and the back in 3-over for a 72. They both made the cut of 150, as did Arnold Palmer, who shot a 74 to finish with Nicklaus at 149.

Stricker, Blake lead: Through 13 holes, a frustrated Steve Stricker snapped at Nicki, his wife and caddy. She kept encouraging him, however, and he finished with a flourish to tie Jay Don Blake for the Western Open lead after two rounds at Lemont, Ill.

Stricker had four birdies and an eagle on his final five holes, matching the PGA Tour's season high for consecutive below-par holes, in a 7-under 65 that put him at 134 for the tournament.

Lee Janzen was one stroke back while Justin Leonard reached the midway point two behind the leaders in the Motorola-sponsored $2 million event.

Davis Love III, Joe Ozaki, Jeff Maggert and Jeff Sluman were three back and a six-player group that included John Daly trailed by four.

It was another beautiful day, with winds still light, so scores stayed unusually low. Nevertheless, Greg Norman and Nick Faldo were among those who couldn't make the cut of 1-under 143, the lowest since the event moved to Cog Hill's Dubsdread Course in 1991.

Norman, who finished second in each of his previous three Western appearances, shot a 75 Friday that included an 8 on the par-4 eighth hole and was at 146.

Mallon one shot up: Meg Mallon birdied two of the last three holes and finished with a 6-under-par 65 for a one-stroke lead after the first round of the LPGA Jamie Farr Kroger Classic at Sylvania, Ohio.

Mallon, a two-time winner this year, had seven birdies and one bogey in her round over the 6,319-yard, par-71 Highland Meadows Golf Club in suburban Toledo.

Catrin Nilsmark was alone in second after a bogey-free round, while Renee Heiken, Alecia Dibos and Nanci Bowen were tied for third with 67s.

Joan Pitcock, Julie Piers, Juli Instker and Cindy Figg Currier each shot 68s, while Kris Tschetter, runner-up at the recent U.S. Open, was one of 10 golfers at 69.

Montgomerie fires 69: Colin Montgomerie of Scotland shot a 2-under par 69 to take a one-shot lead midway through the lightning-plagued Irish Open in Dublin, Ireland.

Montgomerie is at 138, one stroke better than Sweden's Peter Hedblom and Spain's Miguel Angel Martin.

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Photo

Photo: Dave Stockton celebrates birdie on 16th hole en rout e to taking one shot lead through two rounds at U.S. Senior Open.

Associated Press