PINEHURST, North Carolina, 18 June 2005 — Spaniard Sergio Garcia birdied two of his last three holes to vault into early contention in the US Open second round yesterday.

While world No. 4 Phil Mickelson plummeted down the leaderboard with a dismal 77, Garcia carded a one-under 69 to share the clubhouse lead on even-par 140 at a cool, overcast Pinehurst.

That left the Spanish Ryder Cup player three strokes behind first-day leaders Olin Browne and Rocco Mediate, who were among the late starters.

US PGA champion Vijay Singh got to two under with four holes to play but stumbled with bogeys on 15 and 16 on his way to a second successive 70.

The three-times major winner, who was troubled by a knee injury on day one, missed a birdie putt from five feet at the last to finish level with Garcia and New Zealand’s Michael Campbell, who returned a 69.

“I hit the ball pretty good but I struggled with the pace of the greens today,” Singh told reporters.

“But I’m in a good position. Even par for this tournament is good and it’s not going to get any easier over the weekend.”

Mickelson, winner of last year’s U.S. Masters, was one of many who struggled to cope with the tough pin positions and tumbled out of contention.

“I putted pretty poorly, especially the short putts,” said the American left-hander.

“I didn’t feel I played that badly but it’s a tough course to come out and turn things around. It’s tough to make birdies.”

Mickelson, who opened with a 69 in bright and breezy conditions, suffered a nightmare start by dropping six shots in his first nine holes.

Teeing off at the 10th, he bogeyed 12, 13, 15, 16, 17, where he three-putted, and 18 to reach the turn in six-over 41.

Although Mickelson rallied with his only birdie of the day at the par-four third, where he holed from 10 feet, he also dropped strokes on five and eight before completing a 36-hole total of 146.

He now has a nervous wait to see if he makes the halfway cut.

Best round of the week came from Sweden’s Peter Hedblom, whose five-birdie 66 left him at three-over 143.

Among the late starters were defending champion Retief Goosen, who carded an opening 68, US Masters champion Tiger Woods (70) and twice winner Ernie Els (71).

Woods, bidding this week to match Ben Hogan as the only player to win the first two majors of the year on two occasions, parred his opening hole and birdied the second.

Briton Heath Storms Clear at St Omer

In Saint-Omer, France, Briton James Heath made the best of a late entry to the 400,000 euros ($485,500) Saint-Omer Open to shoot a 66 in yesterday’s second round, the best score of the week, and take a three-shot lead.

The 22-year-old, playing in his fifth European Tour event of the season, picked up five birdies to shoot the first blemish-free round of the week and move to six-under-par 136.

Swedish rookie Pelle Edberg shot a 69, despite quadruple-bogeying the 16th, to share second place with another Briton, Shaun P Webster (68), a former winner at St-Omer on the lower-ranked Challenge Tour.

Heath, managed by former world number one Nick Faldo and a professional since November, is bidding to win a tour card for 2006 in one fell-swoop with victory and a one-year exemption.

His objective is to eventually play four consistently good rounds, having shared the lead with a 63 in the Wales Open two weeks ago before fading and last week missing the cut after contending strongly in the Dutch Open.

“It would be nice to put the four rounds together,” said Heath. “I know it’s going to happen eventually. It’s not like it’s never going to happen.”

Frenchman Jean Van de Velde, trying to get his career back on track after two years of knee problems, lies six strokes off the lead after a second 71.

Britain’s Lewis Atkinson won a car for a hole in one on the par-three 17th but missed the cut on seven-over-par and went back to house-sitting for Thomas Bjorn at Wentworth, England while the Dane is at Pinehurst for the US Open.