FARMINGTON, Pa. - Stuart Appleby needs this for next week. Chris Smith and Cameron Beckman need it for next year.

Appleby, looking for a victory to create momentum for next week's Presidents Cup matches, took advantage of a course that clearly favored the long hitters Friday to open a one-shot lead over Smith and Beckman after two rounds of the 84 Lumber Classic.

Appleby, the winner of the season-opening Mercedes Championship in Hawaii and one of eight Presidents Cup players in the field, obviously likes the Mystic Rock course's generous fairways and forgiving greens.

His 6-under 66 Friday was his sixth consecutive round in the 60s on the Nemacolin Woodlands Resort course, which has been reworked each of the last two years by designer Pete Dye to make it tougher. The winning scores the last two years were 22 under, by J.L. Lewis in 2003, and 15 under by Vijay Singh a year ago.

Despite Dye's efforts to tighten the meadow-sized fairways by adding more water and his signature pot bunkers, the players are taking a different route at the $4.4 million tournament - up and over all those hazards.

Jason Gore and Brett Wetterich each had wind-aided 396-yard drives on a day that many in the field looked to be staging a long-driving contest, and Smith had two huge drives on par-5s to set up an eagle and a birdie during his 66.

"There's tons of room out there," Smith said. "You've got to hit it hard out there. ... I went out and I was swinging - there are some holes on the course that I tried to hit my driver harder than I hit it all year."

Smith, 161st on the money list and playing for a high finish to keep his PGA Tour card for next year, decided he had nothing to lose by pulling out his driver again and again.

His 367-yard drive on the 598-yard No. 5 allowed him to hit a 1-iron on his second shot, and he hit to 2 feet before dropping an eagle putt. He birdied the 545-yard eighth after an even longer drive, taking advantage of a downslope beyond a bunker to drive it 387 yards, leaving him a 136-yard sand wedge on his approach to the par-5.

Appleby, an Australian who will play for the international team next week, has averaged 320.5 yards off the tee through two rounds, but Smith was even longer Friday with a 341-yard average.

"The fairways are fairly generous here," Appleby said. "Enough players are finding enough pin locations."

Beckman isn't hitting them nearly as long, averaging a relatively puny 286.3 yards, but he has been very accurate. He needs to be, too; like Smith, he is way down the money list at No. 181 and needs to be in the top 125 at season's end to retain his tour card.

The 84 Lumber Classic has helped him do that before. He kept his card two years ago with a fifth-place tie, and he tied for 13th last year.

"This is not the first time I've been in this situation," Beckman said. "I've played good enough to keep my card, so it's kind of nice to be back in position again. I've been progressively playing better, and hopefully I'll play good this weekend."

Many of the bigger names in the field won't be playing out the weekend. Jim Furyk and Fred Couples, both headed to the Presidents Cup, missed the cut. So did John Daly, the unofficial tournament host, a year after he tied for 13th.

Phil Mickelson, 11 off the lead at even-par 144 after a 71, flirted with missing the cut for the first time all year, but made it. Anyone above par missed the cut.