Westwood finding fountain of youth at The Players

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Lee Westwood isn’t interested in comparing himself with the player who rose to No. 1 in the world a decade ago. All he knows is he’s playing some of his best golf, and he gets another chance to see if it can hold up against the best field.

Westwood had all the shots Friday in a bogey-free round at The Players Championship, with two birdies at the start and a nifty pitch to a troublesome pin on the par-5 ninth to close with a another birdie and a 6-under 66.

That gave him a one-shot lead over Matt Fitzpatrick (68) going into the

Lee Westwood Matthew Fitzpatrick Chris Kirk

Sergio Garcia

Denny Mccarthy Brian Harman Bryson Dechambeau Charley Hoffman Doug Ghim

Sungjae Im 69-66 — 135 68-68 — 136 72-65 — 137 65-72 — 137 69-69 — 138 67-71 — 138 69-69 — 138 70-68 — 138 71-67 — 138 72-66 — 138

weekend on the Stadium Course at the TPC Sawgrass, with U.S. Open champion Bryson Dechambeau not too far behind.

Westwood, who turns 48 next month, played well enough to win the Arnold Palmer Invitational last week at Bay Hill except that Dechambeau was one shot better in a fascinating duel of generations on a course that favors power.

Sawgrass favors no particular style, and it produced an eclectic mix of contenders at the halfway point.

“I think to compete in any of these tournaments against the best players in the world, you can’t have any weaknesses in your game,” Westwood said. “I wouldn’t be able to say I’m doing this better or that better. There’s not a shot out there I’m afraid of. There’s not a shot out there I’ll walk up to and think, ‘I haven’t got this one.’

“I’m comfortable out there with everything.”

He was at 9-under 135 and will be part of the All-england final pairing Saturday.

Sergio Garcia was another shot back after a 72. Dechambeau was in the group three shots behind after a 69.

Sungjae Im tied the tournament record with six straight birdies, a streak that ended when he missed the green to the left on the par-3 third, and even then he nearly chipped in. He had to settle for a 66 and was three shots behind.

Dustin Johnson wasted a good start and shot 70, leaving him eight shots behind.

When the second round was suspended by darkness, 16 players were within five shots of the lead.