In a Flurry of Birdies, Watson and Rose Dismantle Doral DORAL, Fla. - The renovation of Doral's Blue Monster started a year early, the vision and tools wielded by the fanciful golfer Bubba Watson and not the noted architect Gil Hanse, whom the property's new owner, Donald Trump, has entrusted with the project. Watson, a long-hitting, shot-shaping savant, carded a 10-under-par 62 on Friday on a course that was unfamiliar to Justin Rose, which was odd considering they were paired together for the second time in two days at the W.G.C.-Cadillac Championship. Rose posted a 64 while attacking the 7,334-yard layout in a more conventional manner; he aimed away from the water and used his driver judiciously. Watson is the 36-hole leader, at 12 under, one stroke ahead of Rose, whom he will be paired with again Saturday. "Some of the lines he takes off tees can suck you into a false sense of security," Rose said, adding: "He's cutting off dog legs, and for me it's not doable. So I think Mark Wilson was a lovely balance in the group, to be honest with you. Wilson, the third member of the group, carded a two-under 70 that felt a whole lot worse. Afterward, Rose said he told him, "Dude, you must be a bit black and blue." He added: "He probably feels like he's played terribly today, but he played really, really nicely. Hit a lot of quality shots. Wilson's four birdies were footnotes on a day when Watson and Rose combined for 17 birdies and one eagle. The latter was by Watson on the par-5 eighth when he followed a 305-yard drive with a 217-yard three iron to 8 feet and made the putt. "It was some of the best golf I've seen collectively between those two guys," Wilson said. The threesome, which was the second group to tee off at No. 10, played its first nine in front of a dozen fans. After both Watson and Rose made the turn at five-under 31, word quickly spread that the two players were on fire, attracting a crowd of rubberneckers as well as a few camera crews for their second nine. Watson, as he's wont to do, put on a show. 3, a 441-yard par 4, he took out his driver and aimed at the water along the right. His ball carried so far - 321 yards - it cleared the hazard and left him with an ideal angle for his 111-yard approach, which he hit to 11 feet. Watson missed the birdie putt by four inches, but still. "The line he took," Rose said, "it was just something like: Oh, it's dropping. No, he's got a flip wedge in his hand. He laughed. "When he hits tee shots," Rose added, "there's a bit of disbelief and stuff like that. Or he curves one, starts one in the trees and there's oohing and aahing when it goes back into the fairways. No one knows what to expect, and I think it's fascinating to watch. Rose set the pace with three opening birdies on putts totaling 15 feet. Watson, who birdied two of the first three, birdied Nos. 13 and 14, their fourth and fifth holes. Rose birdied Nos. 16 and 17. "We fed off each other," Rose said, adding, "You see your playing partner making birdies, you get the mind-set that the course isn't playing that hard." It looked plenty difficult to Rory McIlroy, the newly minted No. 1, who said he struggled on the greens on his way to a 69 for a 36-hole total of two under. Adam Scott, who held a share of the first-round lead with Jason Dufner, is in third place, at 10 under, after a 68. Dufner posted a 72 and is tied for 10th. Tiger Woods shot a 67 and is tied for 15th, seven strokes back. The only way Watson could have been more shocked with his round is if he had been struck by lightning. In nine previous competitive loops around the Blue Monster, he broke 70 only twice. His average score in two previous tournament appearances here was 72. "This golf course doesn't really suit me," he said. My eye lines make it tough for me. His playing partners, he said, made the course easier. "I made a few putts yesterday and today, just feeding off Rosey, and Mark played good," Watson said. "Watching the other guys," he added, "you're not watching a guy struggle. You're not watching a guy second-guess himself. You're watching three guys that shot under par on the Blue Monster that were just playing good golf. The joke that Mark said was, "I shot two under and nobody cares." It's funny when you think about it. In five starts this year, Watson, a three-time PGA Tour winner, has five top-20 finishes. He said he has been working on his mental approach, but not with an expert. "Nobody will take the time to help me," he quipped. That's a lot of work. No, it's just me, just stuff that I'm doing, consciously doing, thinking about trying to slow down, trying to focus more mentally and trying to slow down on the golf course a little bit. Watson and Rose sped up the leader board Friday. On Saturday, their challenge is to push each other to greater heights.