Relieved Monty back in swing to make cut

COLIN MONTGOMERIE found his form in the nick of time yesterday to save himself from missing a fourth successive halfway cut.

Europe’s Ryder Cup captain improved eight shots on his first round 76 in the Johnnie Walker Championship. It still left Montgomerie eight shots off the lead, but he was a relieved man. “Four missed cuts would be a new record for me and I don’t want to set those records,” he said. “I hit all 18 greens in regulation, which is always good.

“That’s the way I always used to play, but I’ve not been hitting fairways — they have been a ghost to me. I’ve been striving for extra length maybe. I’ve found myself getting shorter and shorter as the courses get longer and longer, but I should play to my strengths.”