Bet on this tournament & other sports here

DiMarco & McCarron tied at 9 under

Chris DiMarco and Scott McCarron each posted five-under 67s on Saturday to share the lead halfway through the BellSouth Classic at nine-under-par 135. The duo has a one-shot edge over defending champion Phil Mickelson.

Due to Thursday's first round being washed away by rain, officials have decided that the final two rounds will take place on Sunday with players who qualified for the weekend playing 36 holes. The last time the PGA Tour had a 36-hole finish was the B.C. Open in 1999.

Kaname Yokoo and Dennis Paulson are tied for fourth at seven- under while Frank Lickliter, Jerry Kelly, Charles Howell, David Toms and Jeff Brehaut are knotted at minus-six.

DiMarco started on the second nine at the TPC at Sugarloaf and opened with a birdie at 10. He saw two birdie putts lip out at 11 and 12, but got back into red figures with a three-foot birdie putt at number-13.

At the 15th, DiMarco missed a six iron right of the green but saved par with a five-footer. He hit a seven iron off the tee at the par-three 16th, and landed the ball five feet from the stick, where he converted the birdie effort.

DiMarco birdied the par-five 18th after he two-putted from 40 feet for a front-nine 32.

He parred the first four holes of his second nine, but came back with a birdie at number-five when he played a six iron to three feet. DiMarco added a birdie at seven after he wedged his approach inside of five feet.

DiMarco hit a cart path left on nine and then missed a five-foot par save for his only bogey of the day.

Next week, DiMarco will make his first trip to Augusta National for The Masters and he is grateful that officials did not extend the tournament to Monday.

"I hope we finish tomorrow, because I need all three days to get ready for that course," said DiMarco, referring to Augusta National. "I don't know anything about it. I'm trying to not look forward to next week, to concentrate on this week, but it's pretty hard."

McCarron, who won this event in 1997, holed a 15-footer for birdie at five before he posted three birdies in a row to end his front nine.

At 10, McCarron blasted out of a bunker to a foot for a tap-in birdie. He added a birdie at 13 when he ran home a 10-foot putt.

A bogey at 18 cost McCarron the outright lead at minus-10.

"I played pretty good today," said McCarron, who did not qualify for the year's first major championship. "I feel pretty good about my game. I hit a lot of fairways and I hit a lot of greens."

Mickelson, who out-dueled Gary Nicklaus in a playoff last year, opened with a tap-in eagle at number 10 and then posted back to back birdies at 13 and 14. He closed his front with a birdie at 18 for a 31.

The lefthander chipped in for birdie twice on the back nine, from over the green at one and then from short of the putting surface at seven. Mickelson shared the lead but a missed three-footer for par at eight which dropped him into third.

"It was a round where the front nine I played very well and the back nine I just kind of hung on."

Yokoo (69) bogeyed two of his final three holes to fall into a tie for fourth while Paulson birdied five in a row on the back for a 65.

Marco Dawson, the first-round leader, posted an even-par 72 and is four off the lead.

The 36-hole cut fell at even-par 144 with 57 players qualified for weekend play.

Email this page to a friend | Return to top of page