Messages of support continue to flood in for Seve Ballesteros after it was confirmed the Spanish golfing great has a brain tumour.

Messages of support continued to flood in for Seve Ballesteros today after it was confirmed that the Spanish golfing great has a brain tumour.

WHEN he started on the European Seniors Tour back in 1998, Denis O’Sullivan’s chief rivals were people like Tommy Horton, Antonio Garrido, Brian Waites, Malcolm Gregson, Jose-Maria Canizares, Brian Huggett and Maurice Bembridge.

Australia’s Noel Ratcliffe and Argentina’s Luis Carbonetti share the lead heading into the final round of the AIB Irish Seniors Open at The Heritage, Killenard.

CHRISTY O’CONNOR Snr has been accorded honorary life membership of the European Tour.

GARY PLAYER turned 68 at the beginning of the month and also celebrated 50 years as a professional golfer.

JACK NICKLAUS and Tom Watson will relive 1977’s famous “Duel in the Sun” when they tee up in the Mastercard Senior British Open at Turnberry today.

IN spite of his disappointing weekend in the final Benson & Hedges International at The Belfry, Padraig Harrington is back up from 10th to 9th in the world rankings and up to third in the European Tour order of merit.

THE European Tour will unveil a new qualification procedure for the 2004 Ryder Cup early in the New Year after meetings of the tournament committee and the board of directors at Wentworth yesterday examined how to scrap the current outdated system.

Padraig Harrington's partner in the pro-am Dunhill Championship is racehorse owner JP McManus - and, while winning the team event is down the list of priorities for a golfer with Order of Merit title ambitions he says it is helping him in his attitude this week.

ARGENTINA'S Eduardo Romero became the third oldest winner in European tour history at Loch Lomond yesterday and £366,660 richer.

Seve Ballesteros today moved into a shock early lead in the first round of the Madeira Island Open.