Peoples surges into 3M Championship lead

Blaine, MN – David Peoples fired a 10-under 62 on Saturday to soar into the lead after two rounds of the 3M Championship.

Peoples, who is searching for his first Champions Tour title, completed 36 holes at 14-under-par 130. He missed the course record by a single stroke and missed the tournament's 36-hole scoring mark by two.

Eduardo Romero carded a 7-under 65 in round two to move into second place at 11-under-par 133. Senior Players Champion Joe Daley posted his second straight 67 and is alone in third at minus-10 at the TPC Twin Cities.

Olin Browne (67) and Joel Edwards (69) are tied for fourth at 9-under 135.

Peter Senior, one of four first-round co-leaders, managed a 1-under 71. He was joined in sixth place by 2009 winner Bernhard Langer (69), 2004 champ Tom Kite (67) and four others.

Peoples, who hasn't won a PGA Tour-sanctioned event since 1992, parred his first two holes before catching fire. He 2-putted for birdie on the par-5 third and followed with birdies on four and five.

The 52-year-old birdied the sixth, another par-5, from 10 feet out and came right back with birdies on Nos. 7 and 8. A par at the ninth stopped his run of six consecutive birdies, which matched the best string on tour this year, and in tournament history.

Peoples, who got into the field this week when Russ Cochran withdrew, drained a 15-footer for birdie on the 10th to get to 11-under. That gave him a share of the lead, but he didn't remain there long. He dropped in a 10-foot birdie putt on the 12th and came right back with a birdie on 13 from 6-feet out.

Now two clear of the field, Peoples parred four in a row from the 14th. At the last, he 2-putted for birdie from about 80 feet out to end three clear of the field.

"You don't expect to shoot a round like that. I just started out not trying to make mistakes," Peoples admitted. "That was a dream round. It came out of nowhere."

Romero poured in three straight birdies from the first to jump to minus-7. He parred seven of the next eight holes, to go with a birdie on the par-3 eighth.

The Argentine again made three birdies in a row from the 12th to jump to 11- under. He found sand on the 16th and that led to a bogey. Romero recovered that stroke with a 2-foot birdie putt at 18.

"I'm playing fantastic. I found something last week at the Senior British and I'm hitting the ball well," Romero explained. "I'm back to the long putter too and I've got confidence now."

NOTES: If Peoples goes on to win, he would join 2010 winner David Frost as the second player in the last three years to win his first Champions Tour title at this event...Coming into this week, Peoples has gone 303 starts on the PGA Tour and 50 appearances on the Champions Tour since his last victory.