American Anthony Kang, chasing his second victory in a row, hit five birdies in his first eight holes to share the second-round lead with Ireland's Damien McGrane at the Johnnie Walker Classic in Perth on Friday. Kang, who won the Malaysian Open on Sunday, shot a second successive five-under-par 67 for 134. A birdie at the last gave McGrane a 68 for a matching 10-under total at The Vines. Spain's Ignacio Garrido, Hiroyuki Fujita of Japan and South Korean-born New Zealand teenager Danny Lee, the US amateur champion, were tied for third on 135. Nine players, including world number 11 Anthony Kim of the US and overnight leader Robert-Jan Derksen of Netherlands, were one stroke further adrift. Colombia's Camilo Villegas, the only player in the tournament ranked in the world's top 10, missed the cut by two strokes after rounds of 72 and 71. Australian Greg Norman, 54, also made an early exit on 146. The 36-year-old Kang was distraught after carding a 74 in last week's first round but has since reeled off five consecutive rounds in the 60s. “After the first round (in Malaysia) I went back to the hotel room and cried like a little girl so maybe that helped,” Kang told reporters. “I was disappointed and just kept telling myself ‘just stay in it, you never know what's going to happen in the future.' It's been a nice five rounds so far.” European Ryder Cup captain Colin Montgomerie was three shots off the pace on 137, two ahead of fellow Briton Lee Westwood who had a nine at the par-five third. Briton Graeme Storm and South African David Frost were also on 137 after matching 64s, the best of the day. Storm carded back-to-back eagle threes at the ninth and 10th. Holder Mickelson takes control at Riviera Phil Mickelson shrugged off a poor start to the 2009 PGA Tour by charging into a one-shot lead in the Northern Trust Open first round on Thursday. The American left-hander, taking advantage of ideal scoring conditions with a superb putting display, launched his title defense with a flawless eight-under-par 63. Hitting his approach shots with precision on a glorious day of bright sunshine and no wind at Riviera Country Club, Mickelson piled up four birdies on each nine to take control. American Scott McCarron, without a victory on the PGA Tour since the 2001 BellSouth Classic, birdied two of the last three holes for a 64. Dustin Johnson, winner of last week's Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, carded a 66 to finish level with fellow Americans Jim Furyk, Dean Wilson and John Merrick, Britain's Luke Donald, Argentina's Andres Romero and South Korean KJ Choi. “It was a good start and I feel like I'm back on the right track,” Mickelson told reporters after totalling only 22 putts. “At least my misses were much better. I felt much better with the putter and my short game was as good as it's been.” Among the other big names, Irish world number three Padraig Harrington and fourth-ranked Fijian Vijay Singh returned 72s while 1999 champion Ernie Els of South Africa opened with a 71. Four players were yet to complete the opening round when play ended for the day in fading light.
