SURPRISE! SNEDEKER STILL LEADS PGA TOUR ROOKIE SHOOTS 70, GOES UP BY 3 AT BUICK.

Byline: JILL PAINTER Staff Writer

SAN DIEGO -- When Brandt Snedeker walked up to the ninth tee at Torrey Pines' South Course on Friday, a shocked fan muttered: ``I thought he was going to explode.''

Snedeker thought reality would set in, too.

The PGA Tour rookie fired a course-record 61 the previous day and was the first-round leader at the Buick Invitational. He was so hyper, he couldn't remember much of his round.

Snedeker didn't succumb to the nasty course, or the pressure of playing in the lead. He shot a 2-under-par 70 and extended his lead to three shots over Charles Howell III and seven over defending champion Tiger Woods. Charlie Wi (Westlake High) followed his 63 with a 72 and is tied for third, four shots back.

Snedeker hit only three fairways but still had a grand day. His greatest pleasure was walking down the fairways, especially on the 18th hole. Fans went crazy for the former Vanderbilt star.

``I thought that's what it feels like to be Tiger Woods, to see those people out there cheering you on,'' Snedeker said. ``And for somebody like me who they don't have a clue in the world who I am, it's an unbelievable feeling.

``It's something I can't explain to y'all. My arm hair was standing up. My neck hair was standing up. -- It's the best experience of my golfing life so far, having those people cheer me like that.''

On the first tee, Snedeker ``blew one off the planet right'' beyond the ropes, then put his second shot in a sand trap. Still, he saved par. He drained a 40-foot putt for birdie on the par-3 third hole and didn't answer with so much as a fist pump.

``That kind of settled me down, got me going in the right direction instead of the wrong direction,'' Snedeker said. ``-- Any time you do that, you run to the next tee box and put (the tee) in the ground before they can say you didn't.''

Tiger Woods fired a 72 on the South, a course he usually tames. He's won the tournament a record four times, including the past two years. Those on the leaderboard haven't forgotten about him.

``We all know his history here,'' Howell said.

No one really knows much about Snedeker's history, but he's a fan favorite anyway.

The 26-year-old from Nashville has wavy blonde hair, a boyish face and sweet smile. A fan joked he must have had his parents drive him to the tournament.

Snedeker wondered why fans have adopted him. He strolled down the 18th fairway to raucous applause and acknowledged spectators on all sides of the hole. Snedeker responded to every fan with the wave of a hand or a smile, or both.

He hopes to give them plenty more to cheer about. But he'll likely have Woods and the regular cast of veterans gunning for the victory, too.

After firing a first-round 74, San Diego native Phil Mickelson used a 66 on the North Course on Friday to make the cut. He's not out of it, either.

After a good night of sleep, Snedeker became an overnight sensation by tying a record Thursday and appearing on ESPN's ``Cold Pizza'' on Friday morning. He also had 30 phone messages from friends and relatives back in Tennessee.

``I feel good,'' Snedeker said. ``If I can get my driver under control, I like my chances. -- I think if you ask Tiger -- any golfer -- it's just that much more aggressive you can play. I certainly could not ask for a better position.''

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CAPTION(S):

3 photos, 2 boxes

Photo:

(1 -- color) Brandt Snedeker continues to surprise, and hold on to his lead, at the Buick Invitational.

Denis Poroy/Associated Press

(2) Westlake High product Charlie Wi, teeing off at the third hole Friday, is tied for third after the second round of the Buick Invitational.

Lenny Ignelzi/Associated Press

(3) UCLA product Parker McLachlin shot a 67 Friday and is tied for eighth.

Chris Park/Associated Press

Box:

(1) BUICK INVITATIONAL

(2) LOCALS IN BUICK INVITATIONAL