Levet hoping for change of luck

After fearing a freak incident might scupper his Ryder Cup hopes, Scottish Open champion Thomas Levet is back on track for a debut next month.

The 35-year-old, who would be just the second Frenchman to play in the match after Jean Van de Velde, was one of only 16 players to complete his first round in the NEC world championship in Akron last night.

And by doing so with two birdies for a two-under-par 68, Levet joined Davis Love and Jim Furyk in the clubhouse lead.

It might not last long when play resumes today – weather permitting, after six hours were lost to rain yesterday – because Tiger Woods was three under with one to play and after just 10 holes Stewart Cink, yet another member of the American side, stood five under.

But Levet has managed to put the shock of missing the halfway cut by one in last week’s US PGA championship behind him.

“I had a one-stroke penalty on the fourth hole of the second round after my ball moved just as I was about to putt,” he said.

“It was enormous bad luck because my putter was some distance from it when it rolled backwards a fraction, but I had addressed it so I knew what it meant.

“A stupid rule put me out and I had to wait to see how the players behind me in the table did. But only Paul McGinley made a big move and I’ve still got a good lead over them.”

Levet is sixth in the race for the 10 automatic places in Bernhard Langer’s side, with the battle ending at next week’s BMW International Open in Munich.

He could be in the team this Sunday, though, because the first five are decided then off a list of world ranking points earned in the last 12 months.

Levet is seventh on that, but a top-10 finish in Ohio could take him above fifth-placed Lee Westwood.

McGinley, who moved up from 15th to 10th in the race last weekend, resumed today on three over par and down in joint 61st place of the 76-strong field.

That was obviously not what the Dubliner was hoping for, but at least Swede Joakim Haeggman, two places below him in the standings, was doing even worse at six over. That put him next-to-last.

Also in McGinley’s favour is that David Howell, Ian Poulter and Jean-Francois Remesy – respectively eighth, ninth and 11th – failed to qualify for the event.

Woods, seeking his first strokeplay win since last October, reached five under after 15 holes, but just before play was called off for the day he failed to get up and down from just off the next two greens.

Cink was one of America captain Hal Sutton’s two wild card selections on Monday and while he can justify that only at Oakland Hills, to win a world championship – and its $1.2m (€976,000) – would be a great way to celebrate his call-up.

As for Colin Montgomerie and Luke Donald, who need to finish ninth and second not to be left needing one of Bernhard Langer’s wild cards, they both stand level par.

Defending champion Darren Clarke, already sure of his place along with Padraig Harrington, Sergio Garcia, Miguel Angel Jimenez and Westwood, is only two over, while Westwood is one under, but Harrington four over.

England’s Barry Lane and Scotland’s Scott Drummond, making their world championship debuts and not out of the Ryder Cup running yet, are one under and level par.