Open Golf Day 2: Marino matches Watson

Steve Marino - unlikely co-leader

  Unheralded American Steve Marino, who only got into the Open when several players, including Phil Mickelson, dropped out and had to fly his dad to Florida with his passport, suddenly found himself with a share of the halfway lead at Turnberry.

Marino’s second straight round in the 60s - adding a 68 to a first round 67 - may have been overshadowed by 59-year-old Tom Watson rolling back the years and rolling in the putts and World No.1 Tiger Woods missing the cut but he was certainly there on merit.

“Obviously, it’s an advantage to have experience," the 29-year-old Marino said. “But it can be an advantage to not have experience," a reference to the fact that he'd had never set foot on a links course before his practice round on Tuesday so had no pre-conceived worries about how to tackle one of the world's toughest golf challenges.

In his second round, Marino pulled off one improbable shot after another. He holed out a sand wedge from 116 yards at the third did the same from a bunker for another birdie at the sixth, holed a 30-footer for birdie at No. 5 dunked a 20-footer for eagle at the 17th.

Mark Calcavecchia - third-placed after 36 holes

With another veteran Mark Calcavecchia also holing outrageous shots to be alone in third place on four under par, the British challenge is led by Ross Fisher from Wentworth on three under, torn between bidding for a major and racing to his wife's bedside for the birth of their first child.

In fact it's no contest for Fisher, who said: "Wherever I am in the tournament - if the call comes, I'm outta here!"

Lee Westwood is on two under after a battling 70 alongside Woods' 74 (he missed the cut by one), while Martin Kymer and Sergio Garcia are among a big group on one under par.