Volvo PGA championship golf: Monty going for four-in-a-row

Colin Montgomerie starts his bid for something almost as remarkable as his seven successive Order of Merit titles at Wentworth tomorrow.

If Montgomerie wins the Volvo PGA championship on Monday his name will go on the prestigious trophy for a record fourth year in a row a quartet which will have made him £1million richer.

And if the 37-year-old Scot does achieve it, then it will be appropriate indeed that the man commentating on television will be Peter Alliss.

Aside from being a winner of the title himself in 1957, 1962 and 1965, Alliss’s father Percy is the last player to have won a European tour event four years in succession the German Open from 1926 to 1929.

‘‘He was a club professional over in Germany from 1926 to 1932 I was born over there,’’ says Alliss. ‘‘One of the wins came with all the might of the American Ryder Cup team taking part, people like Walter Hagen.

‘‘Yet I suppose those four victories earned him maybe £500.

‘‘How times have changed. I won 21 tournaments in my career and my total prize money was not quite £30,000. Mind you, in those days you could buy a Rolls-Royce for £3,500!’’

Montgomerie won £200,000 when he pushed Ernie Els, Patrik Sjoland and Gary Orr by a stroke in 1998, then £216,678 when he beat Mark James by five in 1999 and then £250,000 last May when Darren Clarke, Lee Westwood and Andrew Coltart were joint second three strokes back.

This weekend - because of the Bank Holiday it finishes on Monday - the first prize has leapt to £333,330, one of the biggest ever offered in European golf.

‘‘I do hope Colin finds some form,’’ added 70-year-old Alliss. ‘‘I’m not saying it will happen to him, but the longer you go without firing on all cylinders the more likely you are to slip into oblivion. We saw it happen to Tom Watson, Johnny Miller and Seve to name just three.

‘‘For him to have won the PGA championship three times is remarkable. Anything like that is - and it just highlights just how incredible Tiger Woods is.

‘‘You can’t really compare eras, but in the second half of the last century I’d put Colin amongst Europe’s top three.

‘‘People put so much store in the majors nowadays, but there are plenty who have won two of those and done nothing else. Colin can be very proud of all that he has achieved.’’

Alliss’s reference to Montgomerie’s form comes as a result of him missing successive cuts in the Masters and Portuguese Open, then finishing ‘‘only’’ 12th in the Benson and Hedges International Open and 10th at the Deutsche Bank-SAP Open last week.

Having lost his Order of Merit crown to Lee Westwood last season, he is currently 39th this year but such is the huge money up for grabs at Wentworth that he could be top come on Monday night.

Card of the West Course, Wentworth, Surrey, venue for the Volvo PGA championship on May 25-28:

Out 3373 35 In 3677 37

Total 7,050 yards, Par 72

Hole Yards Par

1 471 4

2 155 3

3 452 4

4 501 5

5 191 3

6 356 4

7 399 4

8 398 4

9 450 4

10 186 3

11 398 4

12 510 5

13 441 4

14 179 3

15 481 4

16 380 4

17 571 5

18 531 5