Tom Watson has been joined at the top of the US Open leaderboard today by Jim Furyk. Joint overnight leader Brett Quigley had earlier three-putted the first hole of his second round to drop back to second.
Watson, 53, had provided the story of the opening day with a five-under-par 65 which matched his lowest-ever score in the championship.
Quigley had been largely overlooked, but had a chance this morning to steal the headlines when he teed off first with Londoner Brian Davis at 7 a.m. local time.
He was only 25 feet from the flag at the 10th - their first - but the pin placing was nasty and after his first effort slid four feet past he missed the return.
Davis, who led himself after a wondrous eagle-birdie-birdie-birdie start yesterday, resumed on one over, but bogeyed the 12th and was therefore in a fight to survive the halfway cut.
Darren Clarke, level par overnight, was unlucky at the 576-yard first. Two big hits left him just short of the green, but virtually on its last roll the ball fell down a steep bank of thick rough.
He had to settle for par, but playing partner Furyk pitched to 18 inches and birdied.
Quigley shares second place with Justin Leonard and Jay Don Blake.
Padraig Harrington, who shot a one-under par 69 yesterday, gets his second round underway at 7 p.m. while tournament favourite Tiger Woods takes to the Olympia Fields course 30 minutes earlier.