Monty hints at old form for Open qualifier

COLIN MONTGOMERIE found some form at long last yesterday to give himself a much-needed boost heading into the British Open qualifier at Sunningdale today.

After a bad start to his final round in the Wales Open at Celtic Manor – the course where he captains Europe in October’s Ryder Cup – Montgomerie played his last 11 holes in five under par.

He still finished way down the field on three over, but it gave the 46-year-old Scot something to build on as he tries to maintain his record of appearing in every Open Championship since his 1990 debut.

There will be 96 players in the 36-hole qualifying event battling for 10 places at St Andrews, the course on which he was runner-up to Tiger Woods five years ago.

“I would love to play in this Ryder Cup year,” he said.

“It is almost a celebration of golf when you tee up there. You want to be part of it, so it is a very important day for me tomorrow.”

Montgomerie was asked again about off-course issues – namely his fight to save his two-year-old second marriage after it came out this week that he had been unfaithful with an old girlfriend.

“I’ve been working on it for the last year, so there is no issue,” he commented, reiterating that it would not affect his captaincy.

Two weeks ago he failed by three shots to qualify for the US Open and the odds were slightly better there with 77 competing for 11 spots.

Montgomerie, without a top-10 finish for two years, came through in a play-off the last time he was at Sunningdale six years ago.

He is joined in the field among others by former cup team-mates Paul McGinley and Darren Clarke and Shane Lowry, the Offaly star who won the Irish Open last year.