Faldo Takes a Comfortable Lead : British Open: He shoots 64 for a record 130 for 36 holes, three shots ahead of Cook and Brand.

Nick Faldo said he was in a comfort zone Friday during the second round of the 121st British Open at the Muirfield course.

He was so comfortable that he shot a seven-under-par 64 for a 36-hole score of 130, 12 under par, and given his track record, he might run away with the Open.

“I felt so comfortable over everything, no matter what club I had in my hand,” he said. “It was a lovely feeling.”

Faldo has been the dominant player in recent years, based on his record in major events.

He won the British Open here in 1987, the Masters in 1989 and 1990, then the British Open in 1990.

Even though 36-hole results aren’t decisive, Faldo is clearly in control.

He has a three-stroke lead over John Cook and Scotland’s Gordon Brand Jr.

Steve Pate and Raymond Floyd, the co-leaders at 64 after the first round, fell back. Pate shot a one-under-par 70 and is four strokes behind Faldo. Floyd had a 71 and is five shots behind the leader.

After Faldo bogeyed the seventh hole Friday, he was only one under par for his round and six under for the tournament.

He was still six under when he approached the par-five, 504-yard ninth hole.

“On nine, I hit one of the best three-woods of my career,” Faldo said. “I drove the ball just off the fairway, and then I hit a low, drawing thing and it came off like a rocket.”

Faldo estimated that he had 228 yards to the front of the green, and his three-wood shot wound up four feet from the cup. He made his eagle putt.

“That got me going,” he said. “I looked at the board and I was eight (under par) now and Steve Pate was 10 and I kept hitting good shots.”

So good that he birdied four of the next six holes, three coming on putts from 15 to 20 feet.

“I felt so good inside. ‘Let’s just keep rolling on and see what happens,’ ” Faldo said of his mind-set at the time.

Not only did Faldo, who will turn 35 today, charge into the lead, he also set an Open record for 36 holes. His score of 130 broke by two shots the record he shared with Henry Cotton (1934) and Greg Norman (1990).

Faldo said when the tournament began that his game was in good shape, and he has proved it with opening rounds of 66 and 64.

He said he was enjoying the gallery, and they were obviously enjoying him.

“Considering the circumstances, it was a unique feeling,” he said. “Every shot in an Open, or a major, is marked more in history than a normal tournament.”

After a relatively calm day in the opening round, the wind kicked up Friday, making club selection a guessing game at times.

Faldo has been known as a perfectionist, and he said he is trying to lessen those tendencies.

“Striving for the best is what we should all strive for in every walk of life, and I’m committing myself to that,” he said. “Before, I was too hard on myself and could not do it. I learned this winter not to be hard on myself, realizing you’re going to hit some bad shots.”

Faldo also said he has a new putting stroke that he has worked out with his teaching consultant, David Leadbetter.

Asked to define it, Faldo smiled and said, “It’s top secret.”

Pate was 10 under par for the tournament through 12 holes, but he bogeyed the next two holes, then got a birdie at 15, only to bogey the 18th.

Playing in the morning, Cook shot a 67.

Cook, 34, who lives in Rancho Mirage, has won two PGA Tour events this year, the Bob Hope Classic and the Hawaiian Open.

However, he is surprised that he is in contention after missing the cut last week at Williamsburg, Va.

“If last week was any indication that I would be nine under in the Open championship, I would have said you were crazy,” Cook said.

Cook jump-started his round on the par-five fifth hole when his sand wedge shot from 15 yards slid into the cup for an eagle. “It was like a putt,” he said.

Cook said the key to his round was his bunker play. “I got up and down three times out of four bunkers,” he said. “This course gives you options. You can knock the ball down, or hit it (to the green) in the air. I knew this was a day to keep the ball down because of the wind.”

His British Open experience is limited to the 1980 tournament at Muirfield. He shot 75-75 and missed the cut.

Floyd, 49, who is striving to become the fifth player to win all four majors, wasn’t overly disappointed with his round.

“I hit 15 greens and played very well,” he said. “I just didn’t make any putts.”

Even though he is five strokes behind Faldo, Floyd is comfortable with his position.

“I am very pleased to be where I am,” he said. “I’ve given myself a chance to win the championship.”

Floyd said the wind affected his putting Friday.

“I stand so tall (6 feet 1) and use a 38-inch putter, and it always affects me in the wind. I have to widen my stance and stand lower, and that’s not my style.”

Floyd said he might use a shorter, heavier putter today.

British Open Notes

The cut was at 143, one over par, and some prominent Americans didn’t advance. Fred Couples, the Masters champion, got a triple bogey on the par-four 18th hole, shot a 40 on the back nine and finished with a 78 (148). Davis Love III struggled to a 77 (150). Couples and Love are the leading money winners on the PGA Tour. . . . Jack Nicklaus also missed the cut at 148, as did Tom Watson (148) and Curtis Strange (147). . . . Others who didn’t make the cut included Mitch Voges, the U.S. Amateur champion from Simi Valley (150); Seve Ballesteros (145), and Jeff Sluman (144) . . . Corey Pavin had a 74 and barely made the cut at 143, as did PGA champion John Daly. . . . Tom Kite, the U.S. Open champion, shot a 69 and is at 139.