Four golfers share lead at Fila Open championship

SEOUL (Agencies): American Robert Huxtable, inspired by the success of lifetime friend John Cook on the U.S. PGA Tour last weekend, moved into a share of the lead in the Fila Open at Tae Young Country Club.

A third round six-under-par 66 put Huxtable in front on 11- under-par 205 with Venezuelan Gilbert Morales, and South Koreans Choi Kyung-ju and Kim Wan-tee.

Morales and Choi both carded 68s while Kim returned a 71, in what is the seventh leg on this year's Omega Tour.

Huxtable, 33, credited Cook's triumph in the GTE Bryon Nelson Classic for his brilliant round which saw him cover the back nine in five-under-par 31.

Two weeks ago Huxtable, who had to return to the Omega Tour qualifying school at the start of the year, played three rounds with Cook at Mission Hills Golf Club in California.

"John is close enough of a friend to be honest with me and tell me where he thinks I am going wrong with my game. I actually took him down in the first game we played, but he told me that I was approaching the ball too much from the inside and having to whip my hands over at impact at the last second," said Huxtable, who made the birdie putt of the day after holing a 45 footer on the 15th.

All four of the leaders moved to 11 under the tournament after birdieing the 517-yard par-five last.

The muscular Choi, also named as a powerlifter during his teens, was quick out of the blocks after birdieing three out of the first four holes. He dropped back with a double-bogey on the fifth but the winner of the three titles last year on home soil is strongly favored to record his first win on the Omega Tour today.

In Forth Worth, Texas, Harrison Frazar, a PGA Tour rookie coming off his career-best finish last week, fired a six-under- par 64 Thursday to take a two-shot lead after the first round of the 1998 Mastercard Colonial.

Playing in the first group of the day at the par-70 Colonial Country Club course, Frazar birdied his first three holes and four of his first six to gain the lead he never relinquished.

Four golfers including former Colonial champion Lanny Wadkins and PGA Tour leading money-winner David Duval were tied for second at 66. Also two under were Phil Blackmar and Jim Furyk. A total of nine golfers were tied at 67.

After a four-under 31 on the front nine, Frazar followed with a four-foot birdie on the par-five 12th hole. His only bogey came at the par-four 14th, but he recovered with a 35-foot birdie putt on 15 and a 10-foot birdie putt on the par-four 18th.