Dottie Pepper was feeling low, and it felt so good.

The fiery Pepper, playing with the fierce determination that helped her go 4-0 in last year's Solheim Cup matches, set one tournament record and tied three with a 9-under-par 63 today for a five-stroke lead at 14-under 130 after the second round of the Oldsmobile Classic.

Rookie Laura Philo was a distant second at 135 after a second-round 67 at Walnut Hills Country Club.

First-round leader Pat Hurst, with an even-par 72, was among six golfers at 136.

"Dottie just lit it up," Hurst said. "It doesn't surprise me. When she gets it going, she's tough to beat."

Five strokes is the biggest lead after two rounds in the eight-year history of the tournament, one better than Beth Daniel's lead in 1994. Pepper's 63 matched the tournament record for 18 holes by four golfers and equaled Daniel's record for best second round. Pepper's 130 also tied the 36-hole record by Daniel.

Yet, as good as it was, Pepper was thinking lower.

"Standing on the second hole (Pepper's 11th of the day), I thought, 'I have to make this one if I have any chance of shooting 59,' " said Pepper, whose best previous round this season was 66 twice while winning the Nabisco Dinah Shore, her second major title.

"I thought I could do it," Pepper said. "If I could pitch the ball at No. 6 (her 15th hole), I could birdie in for 59."

Still, it was a remarkable round. Her secret was hitting it close and trusting her putter.

After watching a birdie putt lip out on the first hole she played, Pepper chipped to within four feet on the next two holes and birdied both. Birdies at Nos. 16 and 18 enabled her to turn at 9-under for the tournament.

"I looked at the leaderboard and said, 'Wow, somebody got it to nine. Oh, wait. That's me!' " Pepper recalled.

She started her final nine with birdies on Nos. 1 and 2, but needed a 10-footer to drop to save par at No. 3. Pepper punched the air with her fist as the ball curled into the cup, then birdied the next two holes.

After a 12-footer to go 13-under at No. 5, Pepper began to act like the leader. She was several yards in front of everyone striding down the fairway in a red-and-white checked shirt, arms swinging, marching to her own drummer.

"I was comfortable going low," Pepper said. "I got that from JoAnne Carner when she was captain of the Solheim Cup team. She used to say, 'When you get 'em 1-down, go for 2-down.' It applies to match play and stroke play."

There was a little mood swing, however, when Pepper's delicate pitch of 42 yards checked up instead of releasing on No. 6. She got down in two for a routine par, but her body language showed she knew she'd missed a golden opportunity on the 460-yard, par-5 hole.

"I left a couple of opportunities standing on the par-5s, where I could have gotten it lower," Pepper said. "I was plenty hot when I let that one get away."

The magic returned with a curling 18-foot birdie on No. 8 to go 14-under -- and she was striding in front of the pack again. Pepper gave it her all on the final hole, but a 30-foot birdie try turned at the last instant and stopped two inches below the hole.

"I got myself in position," Pepper said. "Every time you put a low number on the board, you want to go lower."

DIVOTS: Donna Andrews appears to have recovered from a shoulder injury June 14 when she fell off a horse at home in Pinehurst, N.C. Andrews, playing in her third tournament since returning to the tour, shot 65 for 8-under 136. "I was hitting the irons so nice and solid," she said. ... Andrews also took exception to critics who complain about the low scores posted each year at Walnut Hills. "We're finally playing a course like the men play. Nobody complains when the men shoot low numbers," Andrews said. "It's nice to play a course that rewards good shots." ... Sally Dee complained of being ill and withdrew after 13 holes.

AP