Desperate Olly plays pain game

While the game seems effortless for world No 1 Rory McIlroy, if he could only inspect the hands of his Spanish Ryder Cup captain he would understand the pain Jose Maria Olazabal is putting himself through as he attempts to end a seven-year winless drought.

Olazabal birdied his last hole in a two-under-par 70 on day one of the BMW Italian Open in Turin.

However, Sweden’s Joel Sjoholm, again decked out in his plus fours, leads the way after an eight-under-par 64, under a ‘preferred lie’ rule, by a stroke from England’s Lee Slattery on the Royal Park course.