ORLANDO, Fla. Tavon Rooks Saints Jersey . - Adam Scott keeps putting his name in the Bay Hill record book, each round moving him closer to another handshake with The King. One day after Scott opened with a record-tying 62 in the Arnold Palmer Invitational, he hit his stride around the turn Friday with five birdies in an eight-hole stretch to leave everyone else far behind. Even with a three-putt bogey on his final hole, Scott still had a 4-under 68 for a seven-shot lead. He was at 14-under 130, matching the 36-hole record at Bay Hill first set by Tom Watson and Andy Bean in 1981. And his seven-shot margin at the halfway point shattered the previous record held by Tiger Woods in 2002 and Paul Azinger in 1988. Scott sounds like hes not the least bit satisfied. "The challenge might be just to start again and try and play a great 36 holes," he said. "Start fresh and try to be the leader after the next 36." That would merit a visit with Arnold Palmer, the tournament host known simply as "The King" in golf circles. Scott has spoken glowingly all week about his first invitation to Bay Hill when he was 20. Walking off the first green, Palmer was in a cart to greet him with a handshake, and Scott was amazed that Palmer knew his name. Now hes the Masters champion, and the 33-year-old Australian is playing like one. J.B. Holmes (69), Chesson Hadley (68) and Francesco Molinari of Italy (70) were tied for second at 7-under. Keegan Bradley had the low score of the blustery second round with a 67, putting him in a group at 138 that included Brandt Snedeker (71) and Jamie Donaldson of Wales (71). "I think Im 10 behind and playing pretty well for two rounds," said Snedeker, who was off by two. "Hes playing pretty phenomenal. Hes going to be a tough guy to catch. A guy that hits it as good as he does and seems to have a complete game like he has, and the way hes playing now, hes not going to come backward. Seems like an awfully special week if you can get close to him." Scott played in the afternoon, when the course began to get firm under two days of full sunshine, and the pace on the greens began to quicken. No one ever got closer than his three-shot lead to start the round, though there were two pivotal moments. He holed a 15-foot par putt on the first hole to calm his nerves, and he hit a gorgeous shot out of the rough from 167 yards and made a 12-foot birdie on the ninth. He went to the back nine 1-under par for his round, and he took off from there. Scott hit a 7-iron to 4 feet on No. 11, got up-and-down for birdie on the par-3 12th, nearly holed a tough chip from behind the 14th green to save par, and then made consecutive birdies with a 30-foot putt on the 15th and a 7-iron to pin-high for a two-putt birdie on the par-5 16th. He only made it look easy. There were three rounds in the 80s, including by U.S. Amateur champion Matthew Fitzpatrick. U.S. Open champion Justin Rose, playing in the same group with Scott, had a 79 and missed the cut for the first time in a regular PGA Tour event since The Players Championship last May. "This course will really start to bare its teeth," Scott said. "Ive got to take in the attitude of starting over again and trying to play a really hard 36 holes. And hopefully, if I can I can keep striking the ball like I am, Ill give myself enough chances for birdie — and hopefully, more birdies than bogeys." At one point, caddie Steve Williams was some 275 yards down the left side of the fairway on the par-5 16th. His boss was barely visible back on the tee, but Williams watched his swing and instantly said, "Perfect." And that it was, 325 yards right down the middle. Scott missed only two fairways and has taken just 52 putts over the first 36 holes. He was in no mood to celebrate just yet. For one thing, he is still recovering from being sick. His energy was better Friday, though he could barely talk above a whisper during a brief interview with Golf Channel before his round. And the Australian knows how a big lead can get away, even on the final day. He had a four-shot lead with four holes remaining in the 2012 British Open when it all went wrong — four straight bogeys — and Ernie Els walked off with the claret jug. Thats a distant memory for Scott, who takes that green jacket from Augusta National with him just about everywhere he goes. "Seven shots over two days is not enough," Scott said. "I dont think you can ever be enough in the lead, to be honest." DIVOTS: Ryo Ishikawa had a 74 and was among those in the group at 5-under. The Japanese star has been working hard on his English. He used the words, "sucker pin," in an interview, and then chatted comfortably with Jimmy Roberts of NBC Sports for about five minutes. ... Southern Amateur champion Zachary Olsen made the cut. ... Sam Saunders, the grandson of Arnold Palmer, had a 71 and was in a tie for 16th. ... Paul Casey made a 7-foot bogey putt on his last hole for a 79 to make the cut on the number at 2-over 146. Saints #25 Jersey . AS Roma said Monday that the 24-year-old Strootman will undergo surgery after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament and possibly damaging the meniscus in his left knee during Sundays 1-0 loss at Napoli. Jairus Byrd Saints Jersey . After trading sets, Halep trailed 2-1 in the decider but broke Stosurs serve twice to win the last five games. Halep repeatedly moved Stosur into the corners and finished off several points with perfect shots down the line.MADRID, Spain -- Cristiano Ronaldo helped Real Madrid reach its third Copa del Rey final in four seasons with a 2-0 win over Atletico Madrid on Tuesday and a 5-0 victory on aggregate. Ronaldo, who was hit on the head by a cigarette lighter at halftime, converted a pair of early penalties at the Vicente Calderon to put the match beyond Atleticos reach. Atletico beat Madrid at its Santiago Bernabeu Stadium to lift the trophy last season, but exits the domestic cup competition with doubts about its surprise Spanish league aspirations. Madrid will face either Barcelona or Real Sociedad in the April 19th final, with Barcelona leading 2-0 going into the second leg at San Sebastian. "Its the least important competition of our season but a final is always something nice for the team," Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said. Already trailing 3-0, Atletico was also missing strikers Diego Costa and David Villa plus goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois and defender Filipe Luis for Tuesdays second leg match. Despite Atletico coach Diego Simeones promises of a rally, the hosts were effectively out of the competition just seven minutes into the game when the inexperienced Javier Manquillo shoved Ronaldo from behind inside the area to set up the opening spot kick. Ronaldo blasted his shot into the left side of net, past the diving Daniel Aranzubia, to end a three-game goal drought. Raul Garcia, who was moved up from midfield to striker because off the absences, saw his shot come off the post just moments before Madrid doubled its advantage. Saints #92 Jersey. "The first leg was very important, of course, and the two penalties also," Madrid goalkeeper Iker Casillas said. "They took some of their bite away." Atletico defender Emiliano Insua slid into Gareth Bale to set up the second penalty after 16 minutes, with Ronaldo beating Aranzubia to the same side but along the ground for his 34th goal of the season. There was little drama beyond that apart from the yellow lighter that struck Ronaldo as he left for the dugout at halftime, which could lead to a fine or sanction for Atletico. "Those two quick goals changed the face of the game," Atletico midfielder Jose Sousa said. Manquillo was taken to hospital after he came down awkwardly on his neck just before halftime. Casillas extended his run to 863 minutes without conceding, a run stretching back to November in the Champions League and Copa del Rey. Madrid has now gone 24 matches unbeaten, but it wont have Ronaldo back in its lineup until its Champions League match at Schalke on Feb. 26. He will miss the next two league games as he completes a three-match ban. A third loss in a week has dented Atleticos season as the surprise La Liga challengers have been undone by injuries and fatigue from a mounting schedule. Madrid beat Barcelona 1-0 in extra-time to win the Copa del Rey in 2011. ' ' '
