Ben Bates's sixth birdie of the round, an 8-footer on No. 18, capped a 6-under-par 66 today and gave him a one-stroke lead over Danny Briggs halfway through the Reno-Tahoe Open.

Bates was at 9-under 135 after two trips around the 7,500-yard Montreux Golf & Country Club course in the shadow of the Sierra Nevada.

"The main thing is not to get ahead of yourself," said Bates, a non-winner in his third year on the PGA Tour.

Briggs, who has spent six seasons on tour but didn't play there the last two years, also had a 66 today.

Fourteen others were within four strokes of the lead entering the third round -- including John Cook, Bob Tway, Stewart Cink, Woody Austin and David Toms, all at 6-under.

Bates, whose best finish was a tie for eighth at the Buick Challenge last year, was in a similar situation last month leading the Greater Milwaukee Open after two rounds on the strength of an opening-round 62.

"I think at Milwaukee I got ahead of myself. I started thinking about what was going to happen Sunday when I was picking up that big check," he said.

He ended up finishing in a tie for 10th. Since then he's finished tied for 69th, tied for 54th and missed two cuts. After that, he decided a trip to the beach was in order, to Destin, Fla., on the Gulf Coast between Panama City and Pensacola.

"It's the red-neck Riviera, which fits me perfect," said the 38-year-old Bates, of Quincy, Fla., who played on an NCAA Division II championship team at Troy State.

"I took a week off. We rode jet skis and rented a pontoon boat and ate good and drank good," he said. "I feel fresh and excited to be playing."

A number of young rising stars and grinding veterans are making a bid for the win at Reno this week with the world's top players competing at the NEC Invitational in Ohio.

Briggs, one of the grinding veterans, chipped in from 30 feet out of the sage brush for one of his six birdies and rolled in a 40-foot putt to save a critical par.

Briggs has been playing professionally for 13 years in search of a win.

"I can't think about that now," said Briggs, the 154th-ranked player on the money list. "When I looked at the leaderboard at the 15th, I got so nervous and my mouth got all cotton-mouthed."

Jonathan Kaye and Tom Scherrer were at 137.

Cink, who tied for third at the PGA Championship earlier this month, and Toms, who won last week at the Sprint International, made a charge at the leaders, each shooting a 70 today along with Cook and Austin. Tway and Kevin Sutherland shot 69s to join the group at 138.

John Daly shot a 74 and missed the cut, and Paul Azinger withdrew due to back problems after a triple bogey on No. 9.

Briggs, whose best finish this year was a tie for eighth at the Doral-Ryder Open, said he's feeling better after back problems forced him to withdraw from the Greater Milwaukee Open.

"I've been out here for a long time," said Briggs, a father of five who brought one of his twin 8-year-old daughters, Emma, to the media tent for interviews.

"I've been playing golf 13 years counting the Nike Tour and the PGA Tour. I played in Asia. I've played everywhere. At some point in time I think I'm going to win. I just don't know when."

AP