Defending champion Retief Goosen shot a 7-under 65 Friday to take a three-stroke lead over Michael Campbell through two rounds of the China Masters.
The two-time U.S. Open winner had seven birdies and an eagle for a two-round total of 129.
``It was an up-and-down round,'' said the South African. ``The first six holes, I played extremely well. I should have been 6-under, but I couldn't make a putt. Then I hit it into the water for the second day running on 16 and that kind of stopped the round for the next five or six holes.''
New Zealand's Campbell, who had five birdies and an eagle for a 68, is tied for second with overnight leader Lu Wen-teh of Taiwan.
Lu had a 69 after shooting a 9-under 63 in the first round.
Scotland's Ross Bain (67), Australia's Marcus Both (65) and England's Yasin Ali (69) were six shots off the lead at 135, a stroke ahead of Scotland's Simon Yates.
Goosen believes he can improve his score even more over the final two rounds.
``I think I can (go lower),'' he said. ``If I play the par 5s better, I have a chance to get to 22-under.''
© The Canadian Press, 2007
