Ayrshire, Scotland (My Sportsbook) - Much like Tom Watson, Mark Calcavecchia has been trying to turn back the clock this week at the 138th British Open.

Calcavecchia, the 1989 Open champion, posted a one-under 69 to finish two rounds at four-under-par 136.

Calcavecchia stumbled early with dropped shots on two and five to dip to minus-one. He rallied in the middle of his round.

The 49-year-old birdied the par-five seventh for the second straight day and regained his other lost stroke with a birdie on the par-four 10th.

Calcavecchia birdied the 12th, then nearly holed his approach shot at the par- four 14th. He tapped in his birdie putt to gain a share of the lead at minus- five. However, he gave that stroke back with a bogey on the 15th, then parred his final three holes to end one back.

"It was different wind, well from what little wind we had [Thursday] and the one practice round I played on Tuesday," Calcavecchia stated. "I was actually playing pretty good last week.

"I had taken a month off before last week and then the 36-holer I kind of ran out of gas and my back kind of seized up. I hit a lot of good shots last week so I thought I was playing decent coming in here."

Calcavecchia, whose last win was in 2007 at the PODS Championship, has five missed cuts and just two top-10 finishes this season. His best recent finish in a major was a share of 20th at the 2007 Masters. His last top-10 in a major was in 2002, when he ended seventh at the PGA Championship.

He has played 19 Open Championships since winning the title in 1989. His best finish in that span was a tie for 10th in 1997.

'LONG JOHN' HANGING AROUND

John Daly was listening to the wind howl and watching the final groups finish their second rounds Friday, happily awaiting his third-round tee time at the British Open.

With no status on any tour at the moment, "Long John" was in the mix after shooting a 72 on the suddenly daunting Turnberry course.

"Making the cut on a major is one of the best feelings," Daly said on his Twitter feed. "Focused on some great scoring into the weekend."

Daly, the 1995 British Open champion, was among the overlooked stories as the season's third major headed for an unknown finish. He stood at even-par 140, just five shots off the lead shared by surprising front runners Tom Watson and Steve Marino.

Watson, 59, and a host of other old faces -- including Mark Calcavecchia and Miguel Angel Jimenez -- were stealing some of the spotlight after two strange rounds in Ayrshire. People were also talking about Tiger Woods' missed cut.

But there was little attention being paid to Daly, the long-hitting American who kicked around the international circuit for the first six months of the season as he waited out a suspension from the PGA Tour for mostly off-the- course shenanigans.

Maybe it's because no one expected much from Daly this week except, well, Daly himself.

"My time on Turnberry is my sanctuary, my protective environment from the chaos," he wrote on his Twitter feed before the championship started. "Be in the moment & win the British."

Two rounds to go.

* Tom Watson owned a piece of the 36-hole lead for the 41st time on the PGA Tour. The last time he was in this position was the 1998 AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. That last time he went on to win after owning a piece of the 36-hole lead was in 1987.

* There were four players that started this week and were playing in their fourth Open Championship at Turnberry. Of the four -- Tom Watson, Nick Faldo, Greg Norman and Sandy Lyle -- only Watson made the cut.

* If Watson or Mark Calcavecchia were to go on to win this week, either would set the mark for longest stretch between first and last Open titles. J.H. Taylor had a 19-year gap between his first and last British Open wins. For Watson, it would be 34 years between first and last victories, while it would be 20 years for Calcavecchia.

* A win by Watson or Calcavecchia would set the mark for oldest British Open champion. Tom Morris -- 46 years, five months, eight days -- currently owns the mark as the oldest Open champion.

* The par-five 17th played as the easiest hole Friday as it played to an average of 4.39. The 17th is the easiest through two rounds, averaging 4.45 after two rounds.

* The most difficult hole Friday was the par-four fifth, which played to an average of 4.68. The fifth is also the hardest after two rounds, playing to an average of 4.45 after 36 holes.