Less than 24 hours after his football team was knocked out of Euro 2004, Dutchman Maarten Lafeber’s year finally began to perk up when he moved smoothly into a three way share of the lead with England’s Paul Broadhurst and Australian Nick O’Hern after the first round of the Smurfit European Open.
The leading trio showed commendable control in difficult, gusty conditions over the new Smurfit Course at The K Club in Co Kildare to take a two stroke lead over five players including US Open Champion Retief Goosen and past winner, Lee Westwood.
Lafeber, the reigning Dutch Open champion, has so far endured a lean year since his remarkable victory in his national Open last season. First his father-in-law died, then he contracted a virus in Dubai which laid him low for over a month and – as if that wasn’t enough, he had to have a wisdom tooth drilled out.
The consequence of that run of bad luck was one top ten finish all year, but on Monday his fortunes changed when he qualified for the Open Championship by surviving a play-off at Sunningdale.
After his five under par 67 at The K Club, Lafeber said wryly: “It’s been a good week for me. I hit most of the greens in regulation, which you need to do around this golf course. I stayed calm and kept playing well.”
The 29 year old added; “I had a good talk with my coach and my caddie and they told me just to accept the bad shots and not to push too hard. I know my normal game is good enough for The European Tour and that is what I said to myself at Sunningdale as well.”
Broadhurst, a Ryder Cup player in 1993, returned to England from missing the cut in the Open de France last Friday and spent an unpleasant weekend practising in the rain at home, seeking the elusive ‘something’ which might turn around his fortunes.
“I spent a couple of hours in the pouring rain then played nine holes on Sunday and started to drive it a bit better. I need something to take to Sunningdale or there was no point in going.”
Not only did he start driving it better, he went out and qualified for the Open Championship as joint winner of the 36 hole event at Sunningdale. Imbued by renewed confidence at The K Club, Broadhurst played beautifully in the first competitive round over the Arnold Palmer designed course which now carries the name of the owner and principal sponsor this week.
“I thought that anything par or better would be a real good effort. I only hit one bad shot and it was a case of hanging on coming on in that right to left wind. My game has been up and down the last four or five weeks but hopefully it’s coming back. Confidence is the thing, really.”
O’Hern, joint second in last week’s Open de France as Broadhurst was swinging in the rain, maintained his outstanding form, signing for a 67 which contained not a single error – the only player not to card a bogey all day.
“I never looked like dropping a shot” he said. “I missed only one fairway and one green and gave myself a lot of chances. Mentally I am very patient at the moment but it’s easier to do that when you are playing well. I much prefer tougher conditions. I work my way round a golf course and I love it especially when the wind blows because you have to manufacture a lot of shots.”
Westwood, round in 69 despite two bogeys, enjoyed the challenge of a tough golf course in tough conditions. He pointed out: “I think it’s great that they (the Tour) are making the courses header. To reward the accurate player you have to penalise the inaccurate player.”
Goosen, like Westwood, was back in action for the first time since edging out Phil Mickelson in the US Open at Shinnecock Hills, and admitted he felt “a bit brain dead” early in his round. However three birdies in the last six holes helped him find his focus after the monumental achievement of winning in New York.
Ireland’s three musketeers, Darren Clarke, Padraig Harrington and Paul McGinley, suffered contrasting fortunes. Clarke carded a four over par 76 while Harrington and McGinley eased their way nicely into contention with matching scores of 70, two under par.
Ryder Cup player, Thomas Björn of Denmark, retired after six holes and felt moved to make a statement relating to the state of his game. Björn, four over par at the time, said: “I am out of sorts at the moment and feel uncomfortable on the golf course. I am going home to sort out my game as there are some enormously important events on the horizon.”
David Garland, Director of Tour Operations for The European Tour, commented: “Having spoken to Thomas on the golf course, we are sympathetic towards his retirement from the tournament and look forward to his return to competition in the near future.”
