Comeback kings Seve and Monty hoping to reign in Spain

WITH Seve Ballesteros playing his first stroke play tournament in two years and Colin Montgomerie bidding to improve his number one position in the European Tour, this week’s Madrid Open assumes more interest.

Also in the field is Darren Clarke, who passed up two weeks in the US so he could be at home with his ill wife Heather.

There are four other Irishmen in the field, Gary Murphy, Damien McGrane, Stephen Browne and Philip Walton. Padraig Harrington is contesting the Las Vegas Invitational on the US circuit and Paul McGinley is taking a break from competitive activity, although he will be in Adare Manor tomorrow for a clinic on behalf of Allianz, one of his sponsors.

If Ballesteros had hoped to knock his game into shape on Sunday in the Pro-Am at the Heritage in Co Laois, a course he designed, he was disappointed.

The five-time major champion could do no better than a seven-over par 79, then behind Galwegian David Mortimer, the Newlands professional who has qualified for the second stage of the European Tour qualifying school.

These are not good times for Ballesteros, who received a public dressing down from the European Tour after a bust-up between himself and one of their officials.

Worse still, he has gone through a divorce and had to battle an arthritic back and knee problems to regain his fitness for this comeback, fittingly at the Club de Campo course where, in 1995, he captured the last of his 50 European Tour titles.

It was also in this event, which he has won three times, that the Spaniard last graced the fairways in strokeplay competition.

Seve subsequently played as captain in the 2003 Seve Trophy at El Saler but it has taken two years for the 48-year-old to compete on the European Tour.

Whilst Ballesteros is sure to attract attention, focus will also be on Montgomerie as the Scot steps up his bid to win the order of merit for an eighth time, six years after his last success.

Montgomerie’s victory in the dunhill Links Championship at St Andrews and excellent performance in the AmEx Championship in San Francisco have put him in the driving seat to claim the Harry Vardon Trophy.

This week he has another chance to steal a march on his main rival, US Open champion Michael Campbell, who is absent this week, before the final lap takes place at the Volvo Masters at Valderrama at the end of the month.

The European Challenge Tour is now down to next week’s Grand Final in Italy, with the order of merit led by Sweden’s Frederick Widmark on 92,213 points.

He is assured of his card on the main circuit next year, along with two Irishmen, Michael Hoey, fifth with 82,473, and David Higgins, ninth on 74,855.

Two other Irishmen, Stephen Browne and Colm Moriarty, could also crash the top 20, who win full cards in 2006.

Browne is 24th with 49,916 and Moriarty 40th on 33,371.

Higgins will be seeking more consistency than last week in Tenerife where he atoned for an opening 77 with a 68 in the second round that saw him into the final two rounds. He soared to an 81 on Saturday before shooting a 66 on Sunday!