Herron joins Pampling on top of leaderboard - Bank of America Colonial 2006

His birdie from a greenside bunker on the 14th hole, a 42-foot shot that went into the hole on the fly, put Herron in the lead alone Saturday. He held up his arms and smiled in amazement, then kissed the ball after pulling it from the cup.

"I was thinking that I could make that shot actually, but I didn't think it was going to fly in the hole. I visualized it rolling into the hole," Herron said. "It came flying out of there. Luckily, the hole and the stick caught it."

Despite that incredible shot, Herron then lost the lead after consecutive bogeys.

But after getting some simple advice from his old caddie, Herron hit his approach at No. 18 to within 2 feet. The easy birdie putt capped a round of 2-under 68 that got him to 10 under and tied for the lead with Rod Pampling.

After the bogeys at Nos. 16-17, Scott Steele, the longtime caddie Herron reunited with this week, told him, "Let's birdie the last hole. Forget what happened."

Herron hit his final tee shot into the fairway and a 9-iron approach from 147 yards.

Pampling didn't get off to a good start, missing the fairway and bogeying Colonial's easiest hole, the 563-yard No. 1. That was the first of his three bogeys, but he managed to finish with an even-par round of 70 -- a day after his career-best 63 put him in the lead.

"It's just as satisfying shooting a par round and being tied for the lead," said Pampling, who blasted from a greenside bunker to 4 feet to save par at No. 18. "I know I didn't play great, but I was solid out there mentally. That's what kept me in it."

Pampling already won this season at Bay Hill, where Herron got the last of his three PGA Tour victories in 1999. That was the same year Herron, affectionately known as "Lumpy", was the runner-up at Hogan's Alley.

"I feel like I'm getting old," the 36-year-old Herron said. "I'll just go out and play golf. ... I've just got to stay in the moment. What I'm going to do is pretend like I'm a member and I've got a Sunday round at Colonial, playing with a good friend."

Nathan Green (67), Richard S. Johnson (68) and Peter Lonard (69) were 9 under. First-round leader Stewart Cink (72) was 7 under, among seven other players within three strokes of the lead.

Herron is coming off his best two finishes of the season, a tie for seventh in New Orleans and a tie for 26th last week at the Byron Nelson Championship.

With his game coming into shape, Herron also reunited with Steele, his caddie for seven years before the two split for a while last summer -- though Herron didn't wanted to discuss this week why they were separated.

"It's been good. Comfortable," Herron said Saturday. "I don't feel like I have to impress him or anything. He knows I can play the game."

Herron and his wife are still settling after a move to Minnesota, to be around both of their families, and the birth of twin boys last November.

The twins were hospitalized after their birth, so Herron didn't practice during that time. He "just hopped out on the course" when the PGA Tour season began, and missed five cuts and finished no better than 27th in his other five tournaments before New Orleans last month.

Herron had three birdies the first seven holes Saturday, then at No. 9 hit his approach over the greenside pond onto the back fringe. Taking an awkward stance in a bunker, Herron managed to putt the ball 8 feet past the hole and then saved par.

Right after Herron holed his bunker shot at No. 14, then co-leader Cink missed the fairway with his first two shots at the 448-yard hole. He finally punched it back to the middle then to the green before a two-putt for double bogey. He lost another stroke at No. 15 and was 7 under.

Herron couldn't make another save out of the bunker at the 188-yard 16th, and missed the green with his approach at No. 17.

Playing in the last group with Pampling and starting only one stroke off the lead, Players champion Stephen Ames drove into the trees to the right, punched through the No. 1 fairway into the rough and then his approach was short of the green. He then chunked a shot into a bunker, blasted through the green and finally two-putted from 19 feet for a triple bogey.

"I started off terribly, and that was it," Ames said. "It made the day tougher. It was long and hard."

Ames drove into a fairway bunker for another bogey at No. 3, then was way left with his drive at No. 5, the toughest hole, and had a double bogey. He was 7-over 42 on the front nine and finished with a 77. That matched the worst round of the day and left him tied for 38th.

Jim Furyk, at No. 5 the highest-ranked player in the Colonial field, started with a birdie to get to 8 under. That was as low as he got on way to a 73 that left him 4 under.