Tiger Woods and Sergio Garcia could be on a collision course in the Byron Nelson Classic.

In a strong, hot wind that kept scores from getting out of hand, Woods made three straight birdies today to pass the 19-year-old Spaniard, then joined Steve Pate in the lead with a tournament record-tying 12-under 128.

Woods failed to save par from short of the green on No. 18 and had to settle for a 67 on the TPC Four Seasons at Las Colinas. Pate made birdie from behind a hot dog stand on his way to a 5-under 65.

Their 36-hole score was two short of the PGA Tour record and tied the mark in the Nelson Classic set by Woods and Lee Rinker two years ago.

Garcia, who took the lead at 12-under with an eagle on No. 7, couldn't muster another birdie the rest of the way and finished with a 67. He was at 129 with Jeff Gallagher, whose 62 on the TPC was perhaps the best round of the tournament, given the blustery and somewhat drier conditions.

"I had a lot of birdies and bogeys, so it was a little more erratic because of the wind," Woods said. "You can always take advantage of the downwind holes, and I played those terrible. Ironically, I played the holes into the wind perfectly. It was one of those weird deals."

In the midst of all that was an intriguing exchange between Woods and Garcia, the two most dynamic amateurs to turn pro on their respective side of the Atlantic.

Their eyes met as Garcia walked to the 16th tee and Woods was standing on the 10th tee. Woods applauded, and both broke into a big smile.

"He's got a lot of fight in him. I pride myself in that," Woods said. "I never give up on the golf course, and he's the same way."

Separating them is Pate, 37, who admitted he was old enough to be Garcia's father.

"I watched him at the Masters," Pate said. "I know he hits it really hard, and that's about it. And he looks like he's about 14."

Garcia, the British Amateur champion, is a year younger than when Woods turned pro after winning his third straight U.S. Amateur. But he's far from an untested, wide-eyed rookie making his second start as a professional and first on American soil.

The Spaniard known as "El Niño" played in 28 professional events before turning pro after he was low amateur at Augusta National.

He may be studying for his driver's license this week, he may still have another year left before he finishes high school, but Garcia already is proving that he can hold his own against the best.

"It's a pretty good round to be out there when it's tough and maybe have a chance for the weekend," Garcia said.

He already is showing the flair that has made Woods such a huge draw. When he rolled in a 25-foot birdie putt on the third hole, Garcia raised his putter and stared into the gallery as if to say, "How about that?"

On his 18-foot eagle putt on the seventh, Garcia walked over to caddie Jerry Higginbotham as the ball was still a foot from the hole and tapped knuckles.

"He's more prepared at a younger age than I was," Woods said, an ancient 23 compared to Garcia. "Then again, I played more majors. I played at the highest level, where he's played just tour events. There's a difference. I was able to play some of the most severe courses in the world and feel how my game was and how I could improve."

The TPC and Cottonwood Valley haven't exactly been the stiffest of tests. The cut was 1-under 139, second-lowest on tour this year. Among the casualties were Tom Lehman, Phil Mickelson and defending champion John Cook.

U.S. Open champion Lee Janzen had a 64 at Cottonwood Valley and was in a large group at 132 that included Match Play runnerup Andrew Magee. Justin Leonard and Corey Pavin each had 70s and were another stroke back, along with Mark O'Meara.

The highlight of Woods' round was hitting two drivers on the 554-yard 16th hole that played dead into a two-club wind. The second one landed pin-high in the rough, and he chipped up to a foot.

The most unusual birdie was from Pate, who hit his drive on No. 9 left into the trees behind a hot dog stand. He took a drop, hit it to 40 feet and made the birdie.

DIVOTS: His managers say Sergio Garcia is a better person than golfer, and the 19-year-old showed why Friday morning. He walked over to greet Byron Nelson on the first tee and removed his hat while shaking hands. As Nelson talked about the death of Gene Sarazen, Garcia kneeled so that he could look Nelson in the eye instead of looking down. And in the interview room, Garcia keep his Titleist hat on his knee instead of his head ... Kent Jones was 4-under over a three-hole stretch in which he had no regulation putts. He chipped in from 20 feet on No. 4 for birdie, putted from off the fringe for birdie on No. 5 and then holed a wedge from 118 yards for eagle on No. 6. ... The gallery was estimated at 60,000.

AP