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British Open champion Padraig Harrington admitted he didn't have much time to enjoy the stunning Bermuda scenery as he grafted his way to a one-shot lead at the halfway point of the PGA Grand Slam.

Harrington relied on his laser accuracy with the putter to salvage a three-under par 67 on a day where the resplendent Mid Ocean course proved more than equal to any of the world's top golfers.

With stunning vistas at every turn, the sun shimmering on the calm, crystal ocean, the course was a picture postcard - everything Bermuda Tourism could possibly have dreamed of when it forked out in excess of $1million to bring this event from Hawaii to our shores.

But more than that, it lived up to the sporting challenge of testing four major winners to the limit.

Even the raw power of burly Argentinian Angel Cabrera, who drew gasps from the crowd with his monster drives, was kept in check by the undulating fairways and super-fast greens of the old course.

Cabrera, who used the driver on every hole and later claimed his hitting off the tee had been absolutely perfect' finished with a two-under-par 68 and could easily have held the lead had he produced the goods with the putter.

U.S. Open champion Zach Johnson had a day with more ups and downs than the hilly course - starting with four bogies on the first five holes, including a nightmare odyssey on the second hole which saw him chipping on to the green from the front yard of one of the exclusive condos that border the course.

But the Iowan, who simply couldn't read the greens on the front nine, found his groove in the afternoon to claw his way back to one-over-par - still way off the pace, but definitely not out of contention.

Bleary eyed Jim Furyk, who arrived in Bermuda at 1am yesterday morning, after a 22-hour journey from Korea where he played in a tournament at the weekend, admitted he was still wiping the sleep from his eyes on the front nine and had been surprised at the difficulty of the course.

"That was a slap in the face. The pins were very inaccessible, tucked behind bunkers. I didn't realize I was going to have to play this hard today."

Furyk, a late replacement in this tournament for PGA Champion Tiger Woods, managed to keep it steady on the first nine, putting spectacularly to stay at level par.

But his challenge fell away in the second half of the day and he starts today, four shots behind Harrington, level with Zach Johnson.

The battle between the Irishman and the Argentinian at the top of the leaderboard, should it continue in the same vein, is shaping up to be a thrilling contest of contrasting styles.

Harrington, who had his fair share of supporters among the throngs of golf fans that crowded the fairways of the Mid Ocean Club, was content to play safe, short and steady and rely on his putting to see him through.

Cabrera, by contrast, barely put the driver back in the bag all day, going for distance every time - a tactic that is unlikely to change today.

After his round Harrington was not content to bask in the glory of a halfway lead.

"I'm obviously happy to be leading at this stage but I'm wishing it was an 18-hole Grand Slam.

"I didn't play very well but I managed to hole the right putts and make the right decisions at the right times.

"I've got to play a bit better tomorrow because I can't rely on holing every putt," said Harrington, who had birdies at the fifth, sixth, eighth, 11th, 12th and the 16th.

The British Open champ, who found the water on the third but recovered to save par with an amazing putt, said it had been tough going from the off.

"I was struggling with my game, my head was very much down and working. Today I saw a little bit of the nice coastline and the scenery, but it was very much a workmanlike day."

Harrington, who played 16 holes here on Sunday and 18 at the pro-am yesterday, said he had taken plenty of advice from club members and locals to build up a bit of course knowledge ahead of his round.

But he insisted the changeable ocean breeze meant the course was different every time.

In contrast to the self-effacing Harrington, Cabrera was straight-up about his own credentials.

"I don't play this course much," he said, with his caddie acting as an interpreter.

"But today I drove the ball absolutely perfect and that makes it easier."

The highlight for Cabrera was a monster drive on the 14th that saw him find the sand on the edge of the green - fully 360 yards from the tee.

His epic driving also earned him an eagle chance on the last, but he missed from distance and had to settle for a birdie.

It was similar profligacy with the putter that cost Cabrera the lead on day one. He finished with four birdies, but could have had at least a couple more if he'd had anything like Harrington's accuracy on the greens.

"It was a good round. I hit the ball pretty solid. I didn't make as many putts as I should have, but it was a good first round."

Furyk admitted he was a bit fried after his marathon journey from Korea

"I need to play a good round tomorrow," he said.

Johnson, the surprise U.S. Open champion, said it had been an "up and down' or rather down and up' day. "I hit some very poor shots early on. My putter speed was horrific. But to go from four over and to finish at one over there was some positives to take from it. Tomorrow's a new day."[[In-content Ad]]

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