Mickelson and Furyk Share 3-Stroke Lead at Pebble Beach

Phil Mickelson had to cope with only the cold and rain. The missing element yesterday was wind, and that helped him sail to a 5-under 67 and a share of the lead with Jim Furyk at the Pebble Beach (Calif.) National Pro-Am.

Mickelson continued to find his stride on the greens, making three straight birdies on the back nine at tame Pebble Beach, then catching Furyk with a simple up-and-down for birdie at the par-5 18th to reach 12-under 132.

Furyk was pleased to see the flags drooping instead of flapping when he arrived at Poppy Hills, especially after seeing a forecast of 15-mph wind and heavy rain. The rain was brief and light, and he birdied all but one of the par 5s on his way to a 65.

That gave the tournament a good 1-2 punch at the top from the two highest-ranked players in the field.

Furyk (No. 2) and Mickelson (No. 6) had a three-shot lead over rookie John Mallinger and Kevin Sutherland, who turned in the best round of the dreary afternoon by firing off 10 birdies for a 63 at Spyglass Hill.

Sutherland thought briefly about the course record of 62 at Spyglass, just long enough to snap-hook his 3-wood into the trees and out of play on the par-5 seventh. He reloaded with a two-stroke penalty, reached the green in two, escaped with a bogey and didn't let one bad hole take away from his round.

"Spyglass is one of my favorite courses in the world," said Sutherland, who has played it countless times dating from his amateur days. "I'd rather play there than Pebble Beach. But a 63 was not the score I was thinking about when I teed off."

Sutherland's only victory was the 2001 Accenture Match Play Championship at La Costa, Calif.

Davis Love III made a quiet climb into contention with a 67 at Pebble Beach, but perhaps the biggest surprise came from 57-year-old Tom Watson, playing this tournament for the last time. Watson shot a 68, leaving him at 6-under 138.

The tournament won't come into view until after today, when everyone completes the three-course rotation.

· CHAMPIONS TOUR: Craig Stadler eagled the par-5 18th hole for a 9-under 63 and a one-stroke lead in the Allianz Championships, while Nick Price shot a 71 in his first Champions Tour round.

Stadler, winless the last two seasons after topping the leader board eight times in his first two years on the 50-and-over tour, had a bogey-free round on The Old Course at Broken Sound in Boca Raton, Fla.

-- From News Services