The Enquirer and wire reports

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. - Taking the second-round lead at the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am was a thrill for Jim Furyk. But it didn't compare to playing with boyhood idol Lynn Swann.

Furyk birdied his final three holes for a 6-under-par 66 Friday, moving one stroke atop the leaderboard while teaming with the former Pittsburgh Steelers receiver.

First-round leader Kevin Sutherland was among five players one stroke back, with Davis Love III and five-time Pebble Beach champion Mark O'Meara two strokes off the pace.

An impressive round at Poppy Hills was nothing for Furyk compared to his trip behind the Steel Curtain this weekend. Furyk grew up in Pennsylvania as a huge Steelers fan, and he still holds season tickets in Pittsburgh.

Many pros are quietly annoyed by the pro-am format and the resulting six-hour rounds at Pebble Beach, but Furyk arranged his pairing with Swann several months ago. He resisted the urge to reminisce about Super Bowl triumphs with the Hall of Famer, however.

"I wanted to be his partner if he was going to play," said Furyk, who was at 7-under 137 after two rounds. "I figure on my days off, I don't want to talk about golf, so I haven't quizzed him too much. I could probably bore him to death for hours."

Scores are fairly high through the first two rounds, thanks largely to the gorgeous weather that has confounded most pros' usual approach to the Monterey Peninsula's three normally soggy courses.

An intermittent wind kicked up Friday, particularly for the golfers playing Spyglass Hill, but the firm, dry fairways and greens forced big adjustments for every competitor.

"It's just been different," said Furyk, who matched Tim Clark for the best round of the day. "I've never seen the golf courses this way in a lot of years playing here.

"I never realized how much slope there is on some of these greens. I've played here a lot when the greens were very wet, and they're usually slow. Not this year."

Tiger Woods isn't scheduled to return from knee surgery until next week when he plays at the Buick Invitational in San Diego, but there's no shortage of competition at the pro-am. Paul Stankowski, Tim Herron, Rod Pampling and Tom Lehman joined Sutherland at 6 under.

Robert Gamez, who led at the turn Friday, had four bogeys and a double-bogey on the back nine at Pebble Beach to plummet seven strokes off the pace.

Furyk's closest competitors aren't big names, with 11 combined victories among the five.

CHAMPIONS TOUR

Bobby Wadkins overcame back spasms over the final six holes to take a two-shot lead in the opening round of the Royal Caribbean Classic at Key Biscayne, Fla. He had two bogeys and eight birdies in the first full-field event on the Champions Tour, formerly the Senior PGA Tour.

ANZ CHAMPIONSHIP

Australia's Brendan Jones scored 14 under the modified Stableford forma, for a share of the second-round lead in Sydney, Australia. Jones had 22 points overall to match countrymen Nathan Green, Nick O'Hern and Terry Price for the top spot at the New South Wales Golf Club.

U.S. WOMEN'S OPEN

Two-time champion and LPGA Hall of Fame member Betsy King has accepted a special exemption for the 2003 Open Championship, which will be played from July 3-6 at Pumpkin Ridge in North Plains, Ore.

DIVOTS

John Daly withdrew from the Feb. 20-23 Malaysian Open at Kuala Lumpur to spend more time with his family.

Phil Mickelson caused a buzz this week by saying in a magazine article that Woods has "inferior'' clubs and is the only player "good enough to overcome the equipment he's stuck with."

"I heard it was said in fun and jest, but until I talk to him, I really don't know," Woods said. "Quite frankly, questioning my equipment is foolish. I'm not going to play with anything that is going to hold me back. My career will be judged on how much I've won."