PGA Tour Rookie Johnson Up by Two

Zach Johnson used a run of four birdies in his final six holes for a six-under-par 66 Friday to take the second-round lead after another windy day in the BellSouth Classic. He had a nine-under 135 total for a two-stroke lead over 2003 winner Ben Crane, Craig Bowden and Tim Petrovic.

Brian Gay and Scott Hend were three strokes back, and PGA champion Shaun Micheel and Padraig Harrington were another shot behind.

Johnson, a rookie on the PGA Tour, started his round on No. 10, and an eagle on the par-five 18th helped him get going. After three pars, he birdied the next three holes, then capped his day with a 21-footer for another birdie on the last hole.

“My putter has been pretty good the past two days,” he said.

A strong, swirling wind made conditions tough again, with only 16 scores in the 60s. Hend tied Johnson for low round of the day, and Peter Lonard had a 67.

“Sometimes it feels like it’s at your back, sometimes it feels like it’s in your face,” Bowden said of the wind. “It’s tough to pick a club and then commit to it, because there’s a few holes out there that you can have a train wreck on.”

Jose Maria Olazabal, who shared the first-round lead with rookie Roger Tambellini, had a rough day. The two-time Masters champion missed seven of his last nine greens.

That dismal run included a double bogey at the fifth and he finished with a 77, quite a difference from his 65 a day earlier.

Tambellini had double bogeys on the first two holes, followed by a bogey, and he quickly dropped through the pack. After a 78, he was tied for 25th.