Golf: Els stakes his claim

Ernie Els fired a sensational eagle on the final hole to lie just one shot off the lead at the halfway stage of the Dubai Desert Classic.

Els, seeking back-to-back victories after winning his first USPGA Tour title for more than 18 months on Sunday, carded a second consecutive 68 at Emirates Golf Club for an eight-under-par total.

Korea’s Charlie Wi was the surprise leader after adding a 67 to his opening 68, with Els alone in second and Midlander John Bickerton and Ryder Cup Swede Niclas Fasth another shot back in joint fourth.

Els had been bemoaning a number of missed opportunities on the back nine and was disgusted with his tee shot on the 18th, hooking it into a tree-lined sandy waste area left of the fairway.

The South African had more than 200 yards left to reach the green with a bushy tree partially in the way, but smashed an amazing four-iron shot to within 35 feet of the flag.

‘‘I was lucky with the lie,’’ said the double US Open champion. ‘‘A foot further on it would have been in a lot of footprints but once I saw the lie I knew I had a chance.

‘‘I had 213 yards to the hole and a bushy tree in front of me, but if I could miss that I had a clear view of the green.

‘‘It was just as tough a shot to lay-up so I thought I might has well have a go and it came out perfect. But I did not get any applause and thought it was in the water.

‘‘My caddie Ricci was in a little bit of disbelief but I guess the crowd thought it was just another shot.

‘‘It really made my day. I missed quite a few putts on the back nine and that made up for everything.

‘‘It’s got to be in the top three best shots I’ve ever hit. Shots like that you only have a 30% chance of succeeding.’’

Wi earlier fired a hat-trick of birdies on the front nine and went one better with four in a row coming home to delight his Korean fan club.

‘‘It’s really nice,’’ said the Los Angeles-based 30-year-old, a contemporary of Tiger Woods at college in America.

‘‘When I checked in on Tuesday one of the club members, who is Korean, left a note on his locker which he wanted me to use and his phone number if I ever needed anything.

‘‘I didn’t ring but he kept calling the club to see how I was and came and said ‘hello’ on the range and invited me to dinner.

‘‘He took me and my caddie Mike out to dinner and brought a bunch of Koreans and we’ve been having dinner together every night since.

‘‘I guess they don’t get many visitors from Korea out here so I suppose it’s nice to see someone familiar to them.’’

Bickerton overcame a wrist injury and a disturbed night’s sleep courtesy of two-year-old son George to add a 68 to his opening 69, and could have been joint leader but for dropped shots on the last two holes.

‘‘My wife Julie and George are here with me but he’s got a bit of a chest infection and as soon he goes down to sleep he starts coughing,’’ Bickerton said.

‘‘He was a bit sick with it as well last night so at two o’clock this morning we were wandering around trying to clean up.

‘‘I was a bit ratty this morning on the first tee!’’

Fasth meanwhile suffered an embarrasing moment on the ninth when he split his trousers bending down to pick up his ball.

‘‘I thought it was pretty funny but no-one laughed!’’ said Fasth, second to David Duval in the Open last July.

‘‘I was pretty quick into the lockers to change them, I didn’t fancy playing the back nine like that.’’

Ryder Cup captain Sam Torrance continued to shock himself with his form in his first tournament in five months, the 48-year-old carding a 71 to lie five-under, four off the lead.

Torrance also underwent keyhole surgery on his left knee six weeks ago, after feeling his cartilage go ‘‘just wandering around the house’’ but revealed Olympic gold medallist David Wilkie had helped his recovery.

‘‘I got some good stuff off David, just out of the blue,’’ said Torrance, in his 31st full season on the European tour.

‘‘He sent me tons of stuff to do with arthritic joints and cartilage and I’ve been putting that on and taking pills and I think that’s helped me.

‘‘He read in the paper about my problem and sent it to the house right out of the blue. It was really nice of him.’’

Injuries were fast becoming the main topic of conversation, Ian Woosnam, Torrance’s vice-captain at the Belfry in September, carded a 68 to finish three-under despite suffering from blisters on both feet from the new shoes he wore last week.

The only injury Colin Montgomerie suffered was to his pride, the Scot missing the cut in this event for the first time in over a decade after slumping to a second round 79.

The seven-time European number one made an early exit after carding just one birdie, five bogeys and a triple-bogey seven on his final hole.

His approach to the par-four ninth found the water in front of the green, and after taking a penalty drop, his fourth shot again came perilously close to finding a watery grave as it spun off the putting surface.

A chip and two putts later Montgomerie signed for a seven and inward nine of 41, leaving him six over for the tournament.

The 38-year-old missed the cut in his first two visits to Dubai in 1989 and 1990 the event was not played in 1991 but had not failed to qualify for the final two rounds since, winning the title in 1996.

Overnight joint-leader Thomas Bjorn, the defending champion, was four under after a 73 today while Nick Faldo, who missed the cut in Malaysia last week after three consecutive top-10 finishes, carded a 73 to finish one over, alongside playing partner Darren Clarke.

The Dungannon-man began with a hat-trick of birdies from the first but ran up a double-bogey seven on the par five 18th, his approach almost spinning back into the water and coming to rest on the stone wall surrounding the lake.