Tournament Notebook

SYDNEY (AP) -Adam Scott shot a 5-under 67 to take a two-stroke lead into the final round of the Australian Open on Saturday.

Scott had trailed second-round leader Stuart Appleby by two strokes after completing his second round Saturday morning due to a wind suspension Friday. Scott took over the lead within four holes while Appleby (71) trailed for the rest of the day.

Scott had a 15-under 201 on the oceanside links-style New South Wales Golf Club. Australian Nick O'Hern was third following a 71, seven strokes behind Scott.

Australian James Nitties was fourth after a 70, eight strokes back. American David Oh (69) and Australian Scott Strange (68) were tied for fifth, nine strokes behind Scott.

American John Daly shot 78, moving from a tie for 10th after the second round to a tie for 36th. His second-round 69, completed Saturday morning, enabled him to make the cut - something he hadn't achieved in all three Australian tournaments he played in last year: the Open, PGA and Masters.

Scott has never won a professional tournament in Australia.

``It's there for me with a good round tomorrow,'' Scott said after birdies on his final two holes.

``For an Aussie it's like the next major in a sense. It'd mean a lot to me at any point but it'd be great coming off a pretty ordinary year. If I had the chance to win I'd certainly savor it for a while.''

Scott had back-to-back bogeys on the 15th and 16th holes. They were his first blemishes in a bogey-free 39-hole stretch spanning the first and third rounds.

Scott is anticipating another duel with Appleby in the final round.

``It was great to see us both go out there and play good today,'' he said. ``We're a fair way out in front and it could be us getting the gloves off and having a bit of a ding-dong (battle) tomorrow hopefully.''

While he will be anxious about what Sunday holds, it should not prevent Scott from sleeping.

He had a 4:15 a.m. wake-up call on Saturday so he could finish the final 12 holes of his second round before beginning his third.

``There aren't too many 4:15 calls, not even for a surf,'' he said. ``That's an early one. I should've slept in the clubhouse.''