Thomas Björn completed a remarkable recovery at The De Vere Belfry to take the early clubhouse lead in the second round of the Benson and Hedges International Open.
The 30 year old Dane added a 68 to his opening 69 for a seven under par total of 137 to give himself a one shot lead over Sam Torrance and Desvonde Botes who both progressed to join overnight leaders Paul McGinley and Henrik Stenson who started their second rounds later in the day.
Such prominence for Björn seemed unlikely when he covered the opening ten holes of his first round in scrappy figures of two over par. But the winner of this season’s Dubai Desert Classic buckled down and battled back and continued his good work today.
“I haven’t played golf at all or practiced over the last three weeks because I needed a break and a chance to give my neck and back a rest, so the first nine holes of my first round were just a bit rusty, that’s all” he said.
“Once I got over that though it was a lot better and although I’m still hitting a few loose ones, my good shots have been so good that I have been able to score well and make up for the bad ones.”
Björn started his second round at the tenth and reached the turn in 34 before three birdies in four holes from the third moved him briefly to eight under par for the tournament only to see him drop back slightly with a bogey five at the ninth, his last hole of the day.
Although not exactly ready for the pipe and slippers yet, the 30 year old admitted he was beginning to feel his age, hence the reason he had to take care and not overdo the practice and risk further wear and tear on his neck and back.
“I always think of myself as a young player but the other day I was interviewed alongside the other two players who have won the Asprey & Garrard Golfer of the Month Awards this season (Justin Rose and Aaron Baddeley) and they were both 20, so maybe now I’m not so sure,” he said.
“I had a lot of pain in my neck and back after Australia last year but since getting that seen to, I have upped my exercise regime to include about an hour a day stretching and that has helped. I just have to be careful. If I look after myself and prepare properly for golf I will be fine – if I don’t, I won’t.”
Like Björn, Torrance started his round at the tenth hole but saved his best form for his inward half on the front nine, notching three birdies in a row from the second before claiming another birdie at the eighth which compensated for his bogey four at the seventh.
“To be honest I struggled a bit on the front nine but as I said yesterday, I had done a lot of work with my dad on my swing last week and when you do that, you tend to exaggerate what you have done a little bit until what you are doing feels comfortable,” he said.
“So after the turn I thought I would take my hands back a little bit at address and it just clicked and began to work a treat. When the birdies started going in I started to get a little buzz coming down the stretch which was good.”
Although Torrance was pleased with his own performance, he took time out to praise Björn, who looks certain to be a vital cog in his European team which return to The De Vere Belfry for The Ryder Cup Matches in four months time.
“I have always been very impressed with Thomas as a golfer,” said Torrance. “I love his game and I love his attitude. He is hard on himself but he is also aggressive on the course and very competent.
“He is also scared of no-one and that was perfectly illustrated in Dubai when he teed up with Tiger Woods for all four days and went on to beat him.”
Finishing alongside Torrance on six under par 138 was Desvonde Botes after the 27 year old South African carded his second consecutive 69 on the Brabazon Course.
Ironically, things could have been even better for Botes who won the Qualifying School at San Roque last year, but for an uncharacteristic ending to his round where he stumbled to a double bogey six on the 18th.
In the greenside bunker in two, Botes thinned his escape shot over the heads of the gallery from where he had to drop in the designated zone before pitching and two putting for a six to see him drop back from eight under par to six.
“It was unfortunate about the last hole but I would have taken a 69 at the start of play,” he said. “Elsewhere I played very nicely and putted well – I made good birdie putts but also some good putts for par too.
“I’ve had a few back problems in the last few weeks after I played in Qatar and had five weeks off as a result. But it seems to be on the mend and it hasn’t affected me in the last couple of weeks.”
It certainly did not affect Botes in the middle part of his round as he rattled in six birdies in 12 holes from the sixth to the 17th, the highlight being a sublime eight iron approach to the ninth green which finished a mere foot from the pin.
Further down the leaderboard, it proved a better day for Colin Montgomerie who ensured he would make his first cut in three outings with a flawless second round 69 for a two under par total of 142.
“It was a bit better today,” said Montgomerie. “I didn’t have any bogeys but I did miss a six footer on the last for birdie which was very disappointing. But it’s coming back slowly and surely and I’ve just got to be patient. I’m not the most patient guy in the world but I’ve got to become one!”
But there was disappointment for defending champion José Maria Olazábal, who carded a 75 to drop back to two under par for the tournament, and United States Ryder Cup captain Curtis Strange, who posted a 73 for a seven over par total of 151 to comfortably miss the cut.
