Cats and dogs weren't falling from the sky Friday. For Thomas Bjorn, it was birdies.

In his fourth Masters Tournament, the Danish golfer set a tournament record by birdieing the first five holes. The previous record for the start of a round was four, set by Ken Venturi (1956, Round 1) and Paul Harney (1968, Round 4).

After bogeys on Nos. 7, 10 and 11, Bjorn birdied Nos. 12-14 and ended with a 5-under-par 67. Six of Bjorn's birdie putts were less than six feet.

"I needed to get quick out of the blocks, and I did that," said Bjorn, who's currently tied for sixth place at 3-under par. "I hit some great iron shots. ... I am very happy because I brought myself back into the tournament."

Before Bjorn

Before Bjorn's birdie barrage, it was discovered that in the first round two-time Masters champion Tiger Woods became only the fourth golfer to birdie Nos. 3, 4 and 5 consecutively in a tournament round. The others were Rik Massengale (1977, Round 3), Billy Casper (1976, Round 1) and Johnny Miller (1975, Round 3).

Woods watch

Woods ended play Friday at 1-under par through 10 holes of his second round. Woods, who won the Masters in 1997 and 2001, is 3-under par overall and six shots behind clubhouse leader Vijay Singh .

Woods struggled early in his second round. He pushed his second shot wide of the fairway on No. 2, but recovered for par. On the par-4 third hole, Woods knocked his tee ball in the fairway bunker and left his second shot short of the green, but still got up-and-down for par.

The world's No. 1-ranked golfer, Woods made his only birdie of the day on No. 7.

Phil's follies

Phil Mickelson was 2-under on his round and 5-under for the tournament before making three bogeys and a birdie on the last seven holes. The left-hander three-putted for bogey on No. 18 to drop to 3-under par through two rounds.

"I need a good round (today) - as we all do," Mickelson said. "I don't think I've felt comfortable on these greens. The pins are always on tabletops."

Alien invasion

Tom Watson was making a charge toward first place Friday afternoon before running into trouble. The two-time Masters champion made a birdie on No. 8 and moved to 2-under for the event, three shots behind then-leader Davis Love.

But Watson hit an 8-iron shot thin into the water on the par-3 12th hole. After splashing his third shot as well, Watson eventually made a quadruple-bogey 7. He ended his second round with a 76 and stands at 3-over par.

"Have you ever seen the movie Alien?" Watson asked. "That's where the thing comes out of your chest. Well, that's what it feels like on No. 12 when that happens."

Withdrawal

Because of a hand injury, Frank Lickliter withdrew from the Masters prior to the second round. Lickliter shot a 73 in the first round. His withdrawal, in addition to Hal Sutton's Thursday pullout, left Faldo as the lone member of his group.

Augusta National member John Harris, the 1993 U.S. Amateur champ, served as a noncompeting marker.

Deja vu

For the second straight day, Bernhard Langer struggled on the back side. The two-time Masters champion bogeyed No. 14 and double-bogeyed No. 15 both days.

Langer - who is 5-under on the front nine and 6-over on the back nine - was 3-under on his round before No. 14. He closed his round with a 72 and is 1-over par through 36 holes.

Bedeviled

After shooting a respectable opening-round 74, Arizona State sophomore Chez Reavie carded a frustrating 86 Friday and is well below the projected cutline. Reavie shot double bogey or worse on three holes and made par on just two holes on the back nine.

"I didn't feel comfortable for some reason," said Reavie, the reigning U.S. Amateur Public Links champion. "It kind of crumbled in front of me. It seemed like no matter what I did, it just wasn't right."

Guardian angel

Angel Cabrera received a minor miracle Friday when Rae's Creek spit his ball out onto the green. The 32-year-old Argentine hit a 5-iron second shot into the creek guarding the par-5 13th hole, but his ball hit a rock and came out. He two-putted from 15 feet for birdie.

"Some occasions you can hit a good shot onto the green and it'll spin back into the creek," said Cabrera, who shot a 71 and is 5-under-par through two rounds. "In this occasion, I hit a bad shot and it went onto the green."

Perks peaks

After opening the Masters with an 81, Craig Perks fired a second-round 71. Perks, winner of The Players Championship three weeks ago, went eagle-birdie-birdie on Nos. 13-15.

"It was quite strange," Perks said. "I didn't drive it well, but I putted much better today.

"I was completely embarrassed by my play (Thursday). I am proud of the way I hung in there and came back. I showed a lot of courage today."