Now It’s Royal St. Nick’s After Faldo’s Smashing 63 : Golf: Record round puts him on top of a starry leader board, with Langer, Norman, Couples and Pavin in hunt.

Nick Faldo is seen as a bore of a man who practices too much, can’t relax, doesn’t chit-chat on the course or later hoist pints with the boys.

One critic says he needs a charisma transplant. Another offers: “I would love Faldo’s success, but I wouldn’t like his life.”

Faldo’s colleagues are quite concerned.

What they would not do to distract him.

Because if Faldo the man is white socks and loafers, Faldo the golfer is a Hawaiian shirt and plaid pants.

How does 63 bore you?

In Friday’s second round of the 122nd British Open, Faldo shifted his game into another gear on a high-speed race up the leader board that led to his running over the course record at Royal St. George’s.

Faldo, three shots off the lead at day’s start, looked back at the pack after his birdie on 18 had eclipsed the 64 Christy O’Connor recorded here in the first round of the 1985 Open.

Faldo’s 63 also ties three others--Mark Hayes, Isao Aoki and Greg Norman--for the lowest round in British Open history.

You could have retired to the Caymans betting that the record for the 106-year-old course would have fallen this week, after all the scare talk about 40-foot bunkers and crosswinds.

But recent rains have kept the greens soft, a gift to Faldo, who made seven birdies in all, the most spectacular a 50-yard chip into the hole with a pitching wedge on the par-five 14th.

Faldo does not savor moments for long, as it might be construed to some as actual human emotion.

He also knows there is much work to be done.

“One day when you’re bouncing babies on your knees, you’ll think about it,” Faldo said.

Everyone else is thinking of ways to slow Faldo, the world’s top-ranked player, defending British Open champion and Robo-man on a mission.

Faldo’s round left him at 132, eight under par, for two rounds, one shot ahead of Germany’s Bernhard Langer and two ahead of Fred Couples, Corey Pavin and Norman.

Fuzzy Zoeller and Larry Mize are four shots behind.

The leader board is a virtual “Who’s Who” of golf. Seven players within six shots of the lead have won 14 major golf championships.

Not included among them, however, is Jack Nicklaus, who missed the cut after shooting a 75.

Among the surprises were Pavin, who shot 66, and Australian Peter Senior, one of four first-round leaders, who hangs at five under, three back, after his 69.

Senior’s showing led to more grumbling about his putter, which measures 46 1/2 inches.

The tabloids report that Senior long suffered from “desperate attacks of the yips” until he started using the broom-handle club five years ago.

Standing over his ball, Senior wedges the putter handle against his chin.

Funny thing. For years nobody cared.

“If you’re finishing 50th every week, they’re not going to say anything,” Senior said.

Norman, playing in the group behind Faldo, stayed hot in pursuit until he dropped a shot with a bogey on 17.

The way Faldo is stroking, Norman can’t drop many more.

“We’d all like to knock him off, no question about it,” Norman said of Faldo. “Obviously, he’s at the top of his game. When you’re the No. 1 player in the world, everyone guns for you.”

Langer, the Masters champion, held the lead most of the day after his 66.

“It’s too early to get real excited,” he said. “But it’s nice to be in a position to be amongst the leaders.”

Several players flirted with the course record Faldo ended up breaking.

John Daly, who was not supposed to contend here, kept the locals gasping over his tremendous drives and fearless play. Daly was six under for the round until he three-putted from six feet for a double bogey at 17 and finished at 66.

Dubbed here as “Wild Thing,” Daly remains the tournament’s main gate attraction. Tabloid characterizations stop just short of his crawling out of Loch Ness clutching a one-iron.

Daly is three under for the tournament, five behind Faldo.

Couples was also on pace to break the record before he missed a makeable birdie putt on 16, then bogeyed 16 and 17 and finished at 66.

Couples still doesn’t quite believe he’s a factor in this tournament, not thinking he can match strokes with Faldo and Langer.

“I don’t know if I wrote off my chances, but I’ve got to be honest with myself about my golf game,” Couples said. “I knew I could play and do well, but head to head, I don’t feel like I’m good enough right now.”

Friday’s 66 did help to dull the memories of last year’s Open, “The Nightmare at Muirfield,” when Couples missed the cut with a second-day 78 and stormed off the course, his game and his life in various states of disrepair. At Muirfield, it was reported that Couple’s wife, Deborah, had been living it up at local nightspots, dancing on a table at one establishment.

Final divorce settlement is pending.

“I was disappointed in a lot of things,” Couples said of Muirfield.

“It was a big tournament. I wasn’t having fun off the course, I knew I was going to miss the cut. Sometimes people don’t know what’s going on. I was in no mood to put up with talking with anybody. It was not a fun week.”