Mickelson and Rose in contention

Kang shared the one-shot lead at 11-under 132 with another Asian player, Japan’s Hiroshi Iwata, who shot his second consecutive 66, this one at Pebble Beach Golf Links.

The Australian then converted a superb second to the 16th for an eagle and picked up another shot at 17, storming home in 31 to card a 66 and move within five strokes of the lead on six under.

He made bogey on one of the par 5s, hooking his fairway metal into shrubs. “I hit some shots I didn’t care for today….”

“I thought I was going to shoot a lot lower than I did…” For the day, Johnson birdied all the par 5s and Spieth played them in 1 under.

“Even on days I putt well, I still don’t make as many putts as I made today”, Reavie told reporters.

Phil Mickelson is in the hunt for a fifth Pebble Beach Pro-Am win this week. When Kang completed his round, he was tied for the midpoint lead at 11-under.

According to ESPN.com’s Jason Sobel, Iwata gained fame past year during the PGA Championship, when he tied the record-low score (63) in a major tournament.

Mickelson, Freddie Jacobson (69) and Chez Reavie (70) were one shot to par behind at 10 under, while Justin Rose had a 68 and was at 9 under.

His round also included an eagle, at the par-five sixth, along with six birdies and two bogeys.

You might say 2-under-par isn’t too bad, but not after a 1-under-par round before that.

Kang couldn’t agree more. Some of them he read on his own.

Daniel Im of the United States (68) and Theunis Spangenberg (71) of South Africa were tied for third on 4 under alongside Haydn Porteous, who won the tour’s Joburg Open last month.

THE INTRODUCTION: Ray Romano has become a regular at Pebble Beach in recent years, but he wasn’t real sure who his professional partner was when asked earlier in the week.

“One of my buddies came up and said, ‘Oh, you’re with Ray”. He’s very famous, ‘” Kang said. “He gets like nearly a third more earnings from TV drama show”. “I just couldn’t get it in the hole”, said the Masters and U.S. Open champion.

He said his driver has weight ports that can be adjusted to affect the spin rate and he didn’t think he was getting as much as he wanted last week in Phoenix.

Indeed, it was some 30 feet beyond the cup, and he had to settle for a two-putt par.

The leaderboard feels volatile because no one knows what to expect from Kang or whether Iwata can keep things going. He needed a birdie at the par-3, but instead he settled for par to complete and 11-under 60, a new course record.

Day teed off on No. 10 at Spyglass and had three bogeys and two birdies in his first nine holes.

THE COURSES: Monterey Peninsula is the only course that plays to a par 71, and the Shore Course can be had in the gentle weather that Thursday provided.

THE OTHER STARS: Dustin Johnson and Jordan Spieth were equal off the tee on the par-5 opening hole at Spyglass, which was a surprise.