Golf: Seve in early trouble

Seve Ballesteros was soon in trouble on the second day of the Seve Trophy.

But he managed to recover at a wet and windy Druids Glen in Wicklow.

Seven years without a win and only five halfway cuts made in each of the last two seasons have sent Ballesteros to 1,240th in the rankings.

And it was easy to see why when he hooked off the first tee of his fourballs match with Jose Maria Olazabal against Padraig Harrington and Paul McGinley.

Ballesteros instantly called for referee Andy McFee when he got to the ball, however, and was given a free lift away from staked trees.

It meant he had to drop on a path, but he took a three-wood from there and, although he did not know at first where that had flown, it went just over the flag to the back of the green.

Olazabal chipped dead to secure a half and after three holes they were still level.

Colin Montgomerie's Great Britain and Ireland side were 5-3 up overnight, but it was Continental Europe who held the early edge.

Montgomerie himself was partnering Ian Woosnam and they fell one down from Mathias Gronberg, playing with fellow Swede Robert Karlsson, birdied the fourth.

Raphael Jacquelin and Miguel Angel Jimenez were one up after two on Lee Westwood and Darren Clarke, Frenchman Jacquelin having holed from 15 feet for an opening birdie, and Paul Lawrie had to hole from 10 feet at the fourth to bring himself and Paul Casey back level with Thomas Bjorn and Niclas Fasth.

Ballesteros and Olazabal went ahead at the fourth when the Irish duo's ploy back-fired.

McGinley tried to secure a half before Harrington went for the win, but the former missed and the latter then three-putted.

The other three matches were all square, Montgomerie and Westwood winning the long fifth and Clarke and Westwood the third.