Streaking English

Even with one eye on a big cricket match, Lee Westwood is tied for third after two rounds at Baltusrol. Greg Owen is right behind him, and playing with abandon since he needs a big finish to make the NEC Invitational next week.

SPRINGFIELD, N.J. (PA) -- Lee Westwood kept runaway leader Phil Mickelson in his sights on Friday at the PGA Championship, posting his second successive 68 at hot, steamy Baltusrol.

That moved the Englishman, trying to become Europe's first winner of a major in six years, into a share of third place at 4-under 136, four shots behind Mickelson.

Westwood's day got
even better when he was told that Australia was in trouble in the Third Test, a big England vs. Australia cricket match.

"The hour I spend on the practice range will be painful for any Aussies around. It would be nice if they were all there," joked Westwood, who has rented a satellite dish at his New Jersey base to try to follow the action in between rounds.

And for the first time in his career, Westwood has been seeking help on the mental side.

"I just felt like I wasn't thinking as clearly as I could," he said. "My last-round scoring average has been very poor this year and I didn't feel like I was playing any worse.

"I thought I would give it a try. It's not really a golf psychologist, more a sort of lifestyle psychologist, I suppose," he explained. "He's made me think a little bit clearer. Just to be myself on the golf course more than anything, I think."

Meanwhile, fellow Englishman Greg Owen reignited his hopes of challenging for the title with a closing 22-foot eagle putt for a 69 and 3-under total. He started the day seventh and finished it sixth.

This is Owen's first major in two years. He could have been in the British Open last month, but was controversially overlooked for a place because he had earlier withdrawn from a qualifying event, leaving him angry that the entry form made no mention of that rule.

To remain a European Tour member, Owen -- who is playing a lot on the PGA Tour this year -- has to commit to 11 events. But the PGA Championship counts as only his fifth so far. The British Open would have made it six.

"If you are not in the world championships, which I am not at the moment, it's tough to play both tours," he said, "and if I don't get into the one next week then I am going to resign."

Owen, ranked 168th in the world at the start of the year, now stands 68th. But he needs to be in the top 50 next Monday to make it into the field for the WGC-NEC Invitational in Ohio. And for that, he probably needs a top-five finish this weekend.

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