Date: September 28, 2008
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Kim keeps control

Robert Allenby is eight strokes adrift of leader Anthony Kim after the second round of the Tour Championship in Atlanta. Allenby (one-over) finds himself in a tie for eighth position after he shot a four-under-par second round of 66 to take his tally to 141 for the tournament at the halfway point. The other Aussie in the tournament, Stuart Appleby, is on three-over and trails the lead by 10 shots with two rounds to go. However, Sergio Garcia shot the day&aposs best round to leap into second place, two strokes behind Kim (seven-under). Garcia made a sizzling start, picking up five birdies on the front nine on his way to a 65 in pleasant conditions at demanding East Lake. The Spaniard posted a halfway total of 135, five-under-par, while American Kim shot a 69. They will play together in Saturday&aposs third round, but Garcia played down any suggestion he was out for revenge after the Ryder Cup. Kim and Garcia clashed in the first singles match at Valhalla on Sunday, with Kim&aposs emphatic 5&4 victory paving the way for an American victory. “It&aposs a totally different event,” Garcia said. “You&aposre not going to win the tournament tomorrow unless you shoot 52.” Garcia appeared to have a Ryder Cup hangover on Thursday, plunging to four-over after just six holes, but he has been just about flawless since. “Slower than slow,” he said of the start to his first round. “I didn&apost hit a good drive on the fifth, caught a bad break with the trees and went into the bushes and lost the ball.” “After that I managed to get it back and it got me going in the right direction. I made a couple of putts here and there.” “I played solid today, hit some good shots, some good putts and got it going on the front nine with four birdies in five holes.” Kim teed off with a four-shot lead over his nearest rivals after a spectacular first round of 64, but could not match such heroics, mixing five birdies with four bogeys. It is far from a two-horse race, however, with American Phil Mickelson (68) only three strokes from the lead. Mickelson struggled early, posting three bogeys in 10 holes, but his transformation was stunning as he roared home with five birdies in the final seven holes. Colombian Camilo Villegas carded a 66 to move into fourth place, five shots off the pace, with Canadian Mike Weir and Korean KJ Choi another shot back. With only six players in the 30-man field under par, the new greens, which are rock hard and very fast, have proved a handful.