Watson doubles lead

Tom Watson's round on Saturday was not as spectacular, but just as effective.

One day after recording his first career hole-in-one on the Senior Tour, Watson fired a 6-under-par 66 on Saturday to open a two-shot lead after two rounds of the ACE Group Classic.

Watson is 14-under-par 130 after two rounds and leads Hale Irwin, who moved into second with a 64 on Saturday.

"A two-shot lead isn't anything, especially with a player like Hale," said Watson, who credited diminishing winds with his strong performance. "But it's (still) great being in the lead because you can make a mistake."

Watson birdied six holes without a bogey on Saturday. He settled for a par on No. 16 after using a 6-iron shot from 156 yards out to find the cup for an ace on Friday. His 14-under is a tournament record for 36 holes, breaking the 131 for Al Geiberger in 1966.

Watson is seeking his first career win in Florida. He has played in 75 PGA and six Senior Tour events in the state, but the closest he came was two years ago in Naples, when he fell to Lanny Wadkins in a four-man playoff.

"Winning in Florida? Let's talk about that when the time comes," Watson said.

Lurking in the background is Irwin, who had eight birdies during his bogey-free round on Saturday.

"Tom's playing well. I may need a similar round to what I had today," Irwin said. "I don't think Tom and I have played head-to-head in a while. I opened up my stance a little bit and feel like I'm more in line now."

Dana Quigley fired a 68 on Saturday and is alone in third place at 11-under.

"I look at this as a great challenge," Quigley said. "Nobody expects me to beat Watson and Irwin. I'll try to have some fun with it."

Allen Doyle, who shot 67, and Jim Thorpe, who had a 68, are tied for fourth place at 10-under.

There was another hole-in-one and it went to Bob Murphy, who aced the 202-yard par-3 12th hole. It marked the first time since last year's 3M Championship that multiple aces were made in the same tournament.

Ben Crenshaw, making his Senior Tour debut this week, shot a 67 on Saturday but remains out of contention at 1-under-par 143. He was scheduled to play last week at the Royal Caribbean Classic, but flu symptoms forced the 19-time PGA Tour winner to withdraw.

Defending champion Gil Morgan is six strokes back after shooting a 67 on Saturday.

The event is taking place at TwinEagles Golf Club, which was designed by Jack Nicklaus and his oldest, son, Jack II, and opened in 1999. TwinEagles was the site of the 1999 Office Depot Father-Son Challenge, won by Raymond and Robert Floyd.

The par-72, 7,124-yard layout is the sixth course for the tournament in its 16-year history, all in Naples.

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