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Mickelson, who arrived in Miami after back-to-back wins in Phoenix and Pebble Beach, was quickly back in form with four late birdies to join Spain's Jose Maria Olazabal, Briton Brian Davis and American Marco Dawson atop the leaderboard.

Doral's Blue course, better known as the Blue Monster, did not prove very scary in benign conditions as Olazabal, Davis and Dawson carded bogey-free rounds.

Despite hitting only five fairways, Woods also produced an unblemished round to sit one shot back thanks to a hot putter.

Mickelson experienced an inconsistent start with two birdies and a bogey over his first six holes.

The U.S. Masters champion suddenly caught fire on the seventh, however, scorching the final 12 holes with eight birdies.

"It's nice to play well, especially when the field is so strong," Mickelson told reporters. "I know that the field is so strong and you've got guys like Tiger and Vijay (Singh) and Retief (Goosen) and Mike Weir and David Toms, guys who are making a lot of birdies and have the ability to shoot 62 or 63.

"When I'm out there I find myself pushing to go lower than four or five under because I know it just isn't going to cut it with those guys in the field."

While Mickelson's name at the top of the leaderboard has become a common sight, the three men alongside him left some in the galleries searching through programs and newspapers for information.

SPONSOR'S INVITATION

The 1999 U.S. Masters champion, Olazabal has failed to win on the PGA or European Tours for over three years and needed a sponsor's invitation to get into the $5.5 million event.

Davis, who posted his top PGA result with a tie for third at the rain-hit Nissan Open two weeks ago, and Dawson, playing in his first Tour event in 10 months after missing most of last season with a back injury, have yet to make their names.    Continued ...

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