Bogey man Monty upbeat

WESTOOD there, not knowing what to expect. Colin Montgomerie was in the scorer's hut, signing for a round of 82 that included an outward nine of 45.

With a 36 hole total of 154, 10 over par, he was on his way out of the Smurfit European Open.

So often volatile in these situations, the fear was that World War III was imminent.

Not a bit of it.

Instead, Monty was the soul of propriety and good humour, graciously signing two programmes for a precocious autograph-hunter before devoting his full attention to the apprehensively waiting media.

"I just got blown away out there," he said simply.

"I was making doubles on every second hole over the front nine. But I don't think that was my worst nine holes in competitive golf.

"Remember I shot 87 at St Mellion all those years ago?"

Once upon a famous time, a journalist had the misfortune to ask Monty if the wind had been a factor in a tournament played in a storm and which produced a winning score of something like 20 over par.

"Was the wind a factor? Was the wind a FACTOR?" he raged at the time.

It's become a laughing matter since and so Monty responded in kind when the question, inevitably, was broached on this occasion.

"It was just one of those things. I came here playing well and practised well. Unfortunately, we got the worst end of the draw and Lee [Westwood] did very well to hang on for another 69.

"To do this for another two days would probably have been detrimental to Loch Lomond and the Open. So I'm not disappointed at all. I'll rest up over the weekend and travel up to Loch Lomond full of confidence because I'm still playing quite well."

After par at the 1st, Monty went bogey, bogey, double bogey, bogey, double bogey, bogey, bogey, par to stand nine over after nine holes. He then had a run of par, par, birdie only to spoil it all with another double at number 13.

A second birdie followed at the 15th but Murphy's Law came into play once again at the 18th where he ran up his sixth six of the day.

At least Montgomerie stuck it out to the bitter end.

Englishmen Peter Baker, Stuart Little and John Bickerton yesterday joined the quartet who found an excuse to get out on Thursday, while the Austrian Martin Wiegele was disqualified for "disfiguring" his putter on the 12th green and continuing to play on with a club that had accordingly become illegal.