Kaymer opens up 6-stroke lead at Open after second jaw-dropping round

PINEHURST, N.C. - Martin Kaymer went where not even Tiger Woods has gone. Or anyone else.

Less than 24 hours after the 29-year-old German opened the 114th U.S. Open with a 5-under-par 65 at Pinehurst No. 2, he did it again yesterday, which history tells us should be impossible. The 2010 PGA champion, whose win at last month's The Players Championship was his first in 3 years, extended his lead from three shots to six halfway through the season's second major.

The only others who ever led by that much after 36 holes were Woods in 2000 and Rory McIlroy 3 years ago.

Kaymer's 130 is one lower than the Open record set by McIlroy at Congressional, which played as a par 71. The only other man thought to to post consecutive 65s in a major was David Toms, in the middle two rounds of the 2001 PGA in Atlanta that he eventually won by one over Phil Mickelson.

The only others at 130 in any major were Nick Faldo at the 1992 British Open (Muirfield) and Brandt Snedeker at the 2012 British (Royal Lytham & St. Annes). Both went 66-64. Faldo won his third (and final) claret jug in 6 years. Snedeker finished third.

If only the recuperating Woods were doing this, ESPN might never have gone to its World Cup coverage.

Kaymer, a former No. 1, who made the winning putt in the 2012 Ryder Cup, was 63rd in the rankings in April.

"There was some, lots, of rain last night that made the course playable," said Kaymer, who had five birdies yesterday and still has only one bogey in the tournament. "That helped. We had perfect greens in the morning, but still you have to hit good shots.

"The record shows that [this] is very rare. And it just happened in my case now. But I didn't expect it."

He's the only guy to ever shoot the low score in each of the first two rounds of this championship.

So what should we expect today?

"I tell you hopefully when I'm sitting here tomorrow afternoon again," Kaymer said.

In six previous Opens, Kaymer's low number was 69, twice.

Nine guys have gone wire-to-wire, including ties. But the only one to do so since 1991 was Retief Goosen 13 years ago at Southern Hills, where he beat Mark Brooks in a forgettable playoff to get the first of his two Open titles.

"It's just very good golf," Kaymer said. "There's not much to say about it. I didn't make any mistakes.

"When you lead a golf tournament, everybody has to figure out himself how he handles those situations. In an ideal world, I think you just want to keep playing. The only thing that can really distract you is your mind. It's very, very difficult to play four rounds of great golf. It's important you set new goals and challenge yourself. Because it's fun to play for the U.S. Open under difficult circumstances."

Regardless of what happens, he knows that in his homeland, he'll only be the second-biggest story behind Germany's opening World Cup soccer match against Portugal. And he's more than OK with that. Hey, he's a fan too.

"I'm glad Germany starts on Monday," Kaymer noted. "Maybe I get a little bit of some - how do you say it? - some things in the newspaper about me. Even though they talk about the preparation, probably every single minute or hour is about how the national team is doing, which is fair enough. Football is our biggest sport, and I can't wait to watch. So it's a little bit of a side sport right now. I think golf, it's not that important, but not much I can do. Hopefully, I can put myself out there. It is what it is."

Brendon Todd, who's making his major debut, is in second by himself, following a second-round 67. He has a win, a fifth and an eighth in his previous three starts.

"I really felt comfortable out there," said Todd, a Pittsburgh native, whose family moved to North Carolina when he was 11. "I'm playing at a place I hold dear to my heart. I really can't worry about what Martin does, until maybe the back nine on Sunday. He's been incredible. We probably might need him to come back a little bit. If I remain calm, I think I'll play well."

Kevin Na (67), who lost in a playoff 2 weeks ago at the Memorial, and Snedeker (68) are one behind Todd. Five are bunched at 138: Dustin Johnson (69), 2011 PGA champ Keegan Bradley (69), who was in Kaymer's threesome, Brooks Koepka (68), Brendon de Jonge (70) and world No. 2 Henrik Stenson.

"I heard [Kaymer] played [the resort's] No. 3 course," Na marveled.

McIlroy (68) is at 139, as are Matt Kuchar (70), who was a popular pick this week, and 20-year-old Jordan Spieth (70), who nearly won the Masters in April. Top-ranked Adam Scott (67), Hideki Matsuyama (71), who just won the Memorial, and Rickie Fowler (70) are among those at 140.

Record six-time runner-up Phil Mickelson, who finished second here in 1999 by one to Payne Stewart and needs this title to complete a career Grand Slam, is at 143 after a 73. He'll have to try again next June at Chambers Bay.

"I feel like I'm playing well enough, except for putting," said the reigning British Open champ, who led most of the way last year at Merion before finishing second by two to Justin Rose. "It's kind of the same story. After I've three-putted three or four times, I kind of lose my focus on the other stuff. It really effects my momentum and energy. It's a frustrating time."

Rose, who was trying to become the first to repeat since Curtis Strange in 1989, carded a 69 for 141.

McIlroy turned his six-shot lead in 2011 into an eight-stroke victory. Any advice?

"You need the mentality that you're not going to protect," he said. "If you get too defensive, it's detrimental. You're not happy with six. You want to get to seven. You want to get to eight. He's just got to keep hitting to spots. If he does that, I don't think anyone's going to catch him."

And away we go.

"You can't really think too much ahead," Kaymer said. "There's a lot of confidence right now, but it doesn't mean I can go too aggressive. I'm only pressuring myself. If I lead by four or five shots [after today], that's great. But I don't want to put more pressure on myself. There's enough pressure playing the U.S. Open and trying to finish as high as possible."

Or even hoist another defining trophy.

Masters champ Bubba Watson (70, 146) missed the cut by one. So did reigning PGA champ Jason Dufner (74, 146) . . . Jim Furyk, the 2003 champ and a near winner three other times, is at 143 after a 70.