Michael Campbell, the man who almost won an Open, and Paul Lawrie, the man who did, occupied centre stage in the first round of the Smurfit European Open at the sun-drenched K Club near Dublin.
Campbell, who finished third in 1995 after leading the Open after three rounds at St. Andrews, fired a six under par 66 to break free from a log-jam of eight players on 67 and was joined on that mark late in the day by Japan’s Katsuyoshi Tomori.
Among the chasing pack are Lawrie, who captured the Claret Jug at Carnoustie a fortnight ago, Colin Montgomerie, Ian Woosnam and Spain’s Miguel Angel Jiménez, who is poised for a Ryder Cup debut later this year.
It was Campbell’s best start, he noted, since those halcyon days in 1995 when he looked destined to become one of the game’s superstars. Sadly, a bad case of tendonitis proved difficult to shake off and he suffered two seasons in despair before finally conquering the problem.
After his six-birdie, error-free round, Campbell admitted: “The tendonitis really set me back. It was so bad I got to the point where I was going to chuck it in 1997. I was contemplating maybe one day selling golf balls in a pro’s shop somewhere.”
Fortunately, assisted by his supportive family, the New Zealander fought back to the point where he is now showing signs of regaining his old poise and composure. Meanwhile there was no disputing the poise and composure, either, of Tomori, who covered the closing six holes in five under par for his 66.
Last week Tomori was also the joint leader after one round in the TNT Dutch Open. This time he aims to finish higher than the 20th place he managed at Hilversum.
However, it was difficult to keep the main protagonists from the Open out of the limelight once more. Lawrie started back after a week’s break as he had ended his Carnoustie experience – with a 67 – while the player he beat in the play-off, Jean Van de Velde, suffered further aquatic dramas.
The Frenchman deposited his ball in the River Liffey at the eighth hole – his 17th – and took a double bogey six, which restricted his score to a two under par 70. With a typical Gallic shrug, Van de Velde laughed off the incident in which his ball was submerged more deeply than it was in the Barry Burn.
He wasn’t tempted to take off his socks and shoes this time, saying: “I would have needed a scuba diving kit or a submarine. It was too deep.”
Lawrie, though, continued to show his Carnoustie composure, racking up eight birdies in his five under par 67. It was a round which pleased the new Open champion, and drew admiring comments from his fellow Scot Montgomerie.
After a polished 67 of his own, Montgomerie said magnanimously: “Whatever else happens today, this day belongs to Paul Lawrie. I think that score of 67 was a fantastic effort.
“People were anxious to find out what sort of reaction he had and he’s had a very busy week off the golf course and to come here and score 67 around a tournament venue like this is a very, very good effort and all credit to him. It’s a hell of an effort on his part and very well done to him.”
Lawrie conceded he “felt comfortable” all day, despite the pressure on him to perform following his staggering feats in Scotland two weeks ago. He said: “It was nice to get back to work and do what I’m supposed to do. I played lovely, made a few putts. It was a beautiful sunny day. It doesn’t come much better than that.”
