The scintillating form Michael Sims showed last weekend rolled over to the first round of the Chattanooga Classic yesterday.

Peppering the Black Creek Club course with five birdies, he finished with a three-under-par 69, leaving him in a tie for 25th and five shots off the lead.

With his sights set on the end-of-season Nationwide Tour Championship in just two weeks' time, the Bermudian needs to make the cut in this week's tournament in Tennessee.

And another sub-par round in today's second round should ensure that he does exactly that.

Starting on the back nine of the 7,149-yard, par-72 course just outside Chattanooga, Sims made birdie at the par-five 14th, dropped a shot at the par-four 16th and then made another birdie at the par-five 18th.

On the front nine he added three more birdies in the space of five holes to move to four-under before bogeying the par-four eighth, his penultimate hole.

It was his third successive round of three-under par.

Currently standing in 65th place on the Tour moneylist with only the top 60 qualifying for the Tour Championship, Sims is acutely aware that another top-20 performance this weekend in a tournament which is offering a purse of $500,000 with the winner collecting $90,000, could elevate him into that elite group.

Only one regular Nationwide event remains after this weekend ¿ the $625,000 Miccosukee Championship at the Miccosukee Golf and Country Club in Miami.

After that, just the leading 60 travel to the Daniel Island Club in Charleston, South Carolina where a million dollars will be up for grabs.

But more importantly, all 60 will be guaranteed a place on the Tour next season, and the top 25 after that event will move on to the main PGA Tour, playing alongside Tiger Woods and company.

So far the Bermudian has earned $86,264, just $5,000 less than B.J.Staten who presently occupies the 60th spot.

Staten didn't do himself any favours yesterday, firing three bogeys and a double-bogey in an error strewn three-over 75 and is in danger of missing the cut.