Tom Pernice Jr. shot a 6-under 66 yesterday in the third round of the Buick Open in Grand Blanc, Mich., putting his name atop a shuffled leader board.

Jesper Parnevik (64), Scott Verplank (69) and Brian Bateman (69) were a shot back entering the final round.

Former Buick Open champions Jim Furyk (71), Kenny Perry (71) and Woody Austin (69) were in a group of five players two strokes behind Pernice.

After playing the first 12 holes even par, Pernice closed strong with an eagle at No. 13 and four consecutive birdies before finishing with a par to finish 6-under 66.

Pernice won his first of two PGA tour events at Warwick Hills in 1999, when he began the final round five shots behind Tom Lehman and beat him and two others by a stroke.

Parnevik made the big move yesterday, going from a tie for 46th into a tie for second with an 8 under. He had the best round -- by two strokes -- as Warwick Hills suddenly got tougher with firm greens and moderate winds.

Verplank, 12th on the money list, won the Byron Nelson two months ago and was in the top 10 in his three previous tournaments -- including a tie for seventh at the U.S. Open.

Bateman, 204th on the money list in his sixth season on the PGA Tour, has played in just nine tournaments this year after finishing just out of the top 125 last year.

While players such as Pernice and Parnevik joined the leaders, Brett Quigley plummeted a day after firing his caddie.

Quigley's 3-over 75 dropped him into a tie for 32nd at 7 under after starting the round tied with Furyk and Perry.

His play might have rubbed off on his playing partner, Furyk, who bogeyed two consecutive holes on the front nine by pulling a 4-footer and lipping out from 9 feet.

Furyk missed a 4-footer at 18 to bogey, finishing at 1 under for the day. His streak of rounds in the 60s at the Buick Open ended at eight, equaling Tiger Woods' tournament record, but he extended his run of sub-par rounds to 36 at Warwick Hills.

Other tournaments

Commerce Bank Championship: Lonnie Nielsen had a stretch of five birdies in seven holes on the back nine and his 7-under 64 gave him a record-tying three-stroke lead over Tom McKnight (66) after two rounds in East Meadow, N.Y. Nielsen, who didn't win in his five years on the PGA Tour or in his five seasons on the Champions Tour, had a 12-under 130 total after 36 holes.

French Open: Soren Hansen of Denmark shot a 5-under 66 to lead by one stroke after the third round in Versailles. Hansen, who had an eagle at the third hole after almost chipping in, is at 7-under 206. Simon Khan (70) was second, followed by Colin Montgomerie (71) and Martin Kaymer (69) two shots behind the leader.