DUBLIN, Ohio, (Reuters) – Three-times champion Tiger  Woods was let down by his approach play at the Memorial  tournament yesterday as fellow Americans Jim Furyk and Jonathan  Byrd moved into a tie for the lead after the second round.

World number one Woods, bidding for his second PGA Tour  victory this year, carded a two-over-par 74 in breezy  conditions at Muirfield Village Golf Club to lie six shots off  the pace.

Byrd fired a flawless 68 in the morning for a seven-under  total of 137 before being caught late in the afternoon by  Furyk, who mixed five birdies with three bogeys for a 70.

Canadian left-hander Mike Weir birdied three of the last  five holes for a 69 to finish at six under, level with American  Mark Wilson (70) in the event hosted by Jack Nicklaus.

Woods, champion here for three consecutive years from 1999,  was frustrated after wasting a good display off the tee with  erratic iron shots and missed putts on lightning-fast greens.

“I drove it great,” the 33-year-old told reporters after a  round featuring five bogeys and three birdies.
“But I hit my ball (for approach shots) on the short side  and you can’t do that out here.

“You’ve got to miss it on the correct side. If you miss it  on the short side, you’re not going to make pars here. Not with  how Jack designs a golf course.”

Although Woods posted his highest score since shooting a  four-over 74 in the second round of the 2007 U.S. Open at  Oakmont, he was pleased overall with the shape of his game.

“Yeah, no doubt,” he said. “I’m driving it well right now  and I only missed two fairways today. One was by an inch and  the other was by two, three yards. I’m encouraged by that.

“I just need to hit my irons a little better and obviously  make the short ones (putts). I missed two or three of those  today,” added Woods, who won his 66th PGA Tour title at the  Arnold Palmer Invitational in March.
Byrd was delighted with his display on one of the toughest  layouts on the circuit.

“Just a clean day out there, no bogeys,” said the  31-year-old, who won the most recent of his three PGA Tour  titles at the 2007 John Deere Classic. “I’m pretty proud of  that on this golf course.

“I played solid all day and did a good job of staying  patient. When I missed greens, I kept getting the ball up and  down. It’s been a good start.”

Japan’s Ryuji Imada birdied three of his last four holes  for a 69 to lie two strokes off the lead with American Matt  Bettencourt.
Britain’s Luke Donald, who set the first-round pace with a  sparkling 64, was a further shot back at four under, among a  group of 10 players including 2004 champion Ernie Els (70).

The cut fell at four-over 148 with several big names  missing out. British Open champion Padraig Harrington (77),  1997 winner Vijay Singh (75) and Australian Adam Scott (81)  were among those failing to advance.