Chronicle Staff

With his ball lying in a precarious position on the 16th green, Sergio Garcia made a mad dash for it.

Last year's Masters low amateur feared his ball might roll down the wrong tier of the sloped green. In a scene reminiscent of his memorable PGA Championship jaunt, Garcia ran up the fairway and onto the green to mark his ball. All that was missing was the scissor kick.

The 20-year-old Spaniard asked veteran Fred Couples for advice as they walked up the 16th fairway as Garcia anxiously eyed his ball.

``I didn't know if it was going to stay,'' Garcia said. ``I looked at Freddie and he said go for it. I think it was worth it because I got it and made the putt for a birdie.''

Couples, known for his bouts with back problems, imitated his young playing partner's escapade by acting as if he was struggling to get up the hill.

Last August, Garcia caused a stir at the PGA Championships when he played his ball from behind a tree. Two shots behind Tiger Woods, Garcia swiped at his ball, closed his eyes then raced up the fairway to see his ball land on the green nearly 200 yards away. That hole was also the 16th.

MCI FIELD: Neither Woods nor second-round leader David Duval made commitments to play next week's MCI Classic in Hilton Head, S.C., according to the 132-player field released Friday. In all, 38 players next week will have played the Masters.

GOOSEN MAKES MOVE: While Duval may have made the shot of the day at No. 15, the only other eagle there came from Retief Goosen.

The Pietersburg, South Africa, native hit within 15 feet on the par-5, sinking the putt for eagle and boosting his score to 2-under par.

``The past month my game has not been good, so I'm glad I have improved,'' said Goosen, who teamed with Ernie Els to help South Africa win the 1998 Dunhill Cup. ``I had trouble with my irons, but today my irons played nicely and came back.''

EAGLES ABOUND: The par-4, 435-yard fifth hole was eagled twice on Friday, marking just the sixth and seventh times in Masters history the feat has been accomplished. Colin Montgomerie used a 7-iron on his second shot to hole out from 140 yards.

Gabriel Hjertstedt of Sweden found the hole from 180 yards out with a 5-iron.

``It's one of those holes when you get a good shot, you just have to get up to the hole,'' Hjertstedt said.

And Augusta native Larry Mize won some crystal when he eagled No. 3, holing a sand wedge from 96 yards.

THREE REBOUND: Northern Ireland's Darren Clarke shot a 1-under par 71 on Friday that included seven birdies - four in a row on the back nine from Nos. 13-16 - and a stretch where he was 5-over in four holes.

Montgomerie shot a 3-under 69 on Friday to mark an impressive recovery from a fretful first-round 76, but the glum Scot wasn't about to perform cartwheels to the clubhouse. Especially not after he duffed a 69-yard sand wedge into the bunker at No. 7.

``Not bad, but should have done better,'' said Montgomerie, playing in his ninth Masters. ``You can always say that coming off this course.''

And Justin Leonard bogeyed twice on the front nine Friday and made the turn with a 1-over 37, but he recovered by making three birdies on the last five holes.

The 27-year-old heads into today's action with a 1-under 143.

``I've had some good finishes here, but I've never really challenged to win on Sunday,'' said Leonard, whose best showing in five previous Masters appearances was a tie for seventh in 1997. ``But I came here with a lot of confidence.''

BITS: Kordell Stewart, quarterback of the Pittsburgh Steelers, was spotted at Augusta National on Friday. Slash, nicknamed for his versatility, was among those following Woods.