Bjorn free of K-Club demons

Thomas Bjorn’s return to the Smurfit European Open at the K Club – the event which turned into a nightmare last year – has gone like a dream so far.

Twelve months ago, the 34-year-old Dane walked off after six holes, fled Dublin in a real state and went home to fight the “demons” which had turned him into a quivering wreck on the course.

Now, after a second round 69, he stands five under par at halfway and shares top spot with Welshman Jamie Donaldson.

Out of the tournament this time – after missing the cut, not walking out – are Padraig Harrington and his Ryder Cup team-mates Paul McGinley, Paul Casey and Ian Poulter.

Poulter improved 13 strokes on his opening 81, but it still was not quite enough, while the other three all finished down on nine over par.

For Harrington, a winner in America again last Sunday, that represented his worst 36-hole total in Europe since 1996.

He blamed mental fatigue and he hopes to have his focus back for the Open at St Andrews in two weeks’ time.

Bjorn is looking forward to that too, having finished second behind Tiger Woods on his first visit to the Home of Golf in 2000, but he is concentrating on this weekend first.

The £2.3million event has switched back this season to the one on which Ireland’s first-ever Ryder Cup will be staged next September.

These are also the holes on which Bjorn won a £100,000 diamond for his wife Pernilla four years ago, so he did at least have a happy memory to feed off on checking back into the same hotel room.

“I tried to forget that that course is on the other side of the river,” he said. “I’ve put it behind me and thank God you don’t see it too many times when you’re out there.

“There are a lot of guys that go through stuff like that. You can try to stand on the driving range and battle your way through or you can go home and get a bit of perspective on things.

“I chose the second one and I think that was the best thing I ever did. The one thing I take from the experience is that most good players will bounce back from situations like that.”

He could think of no better example of that than new US Open champion Michael Campbell, on whom Bjorn would not have put a penny to become a major winner this season when they were partners in Australia in February.

“I’ve always looked at Michael and I as very similar type of guys. All of a sudden we will go and perform very, very well.

“I honestly thought he had a big problem. Didn’t look like he had many problems two weeks ago.

“I think his win was great for everybody in golf except for Tiger Woods. Everybody who hasn’t won a major championship will see that as encouragement.”

Bjorn, of course, led the 2003 Open by three with four to play, but played them in four over par to lose by one to Ben Curtis.

His seven-birdie, four-bogey round today was a real mixed bag, but he was delighted by the way he stuck at it when things were not going well.

With first round leader Trevor Immelman managing only a 76 and defending champion Retief Goosen 74, Donaldson was another to take advantage.

The 29-year-old Macclesfield-based player, out for six months last year because of serious back trouble, has just had to have another three weeks off after it flared up again, but has had only one bogey in 36 holes so far.

Darren Clarke had not played competitively for a month because of his wife’s health, but a 71 for four under put him joint third with English pair Jonathan Lomas and Graeme Storm, Bjorn’s compatriot Anders Hansen and Australian Brett Rumford.

Campbell is seven behind along with American Ryder Cup captain Tom Lehman, Lee Westwood eight back after a quadruple bogey seven on the short 12th and Colin Montgomerie squeezed into the final two rounds on four over.

There was a hole-in-one for the second day running. But whereas Simon Wakefield won a car for his at the eighth Stephen Dod’s ace at the third brought a bottle of champagne and a weekend for two.