Els still facing uphill struggle

There was good and bad news for fans and backers of Ernie Els following the second round of the Qatar Masters in Doha.

The good was that Els, in danger of missing the cut on the European tour for the first time since 1999 after an opening 73, moved up from 81st to joint 24th with a 69.

The bad was that he is still seven strokes off the lead. Australian left-hander Richard Green came in late in the day with a 68 and on nine under par is one in front of Swedes Pierre Fulke and Robert Karlsson heading into the last 36 holes.

Els reckons he now needs a “quality weekend” to make it two wins in a row following his success in the Dubai Desert Classic last Sunday.

But at least the South African was back on better terms with Belgian sports psychologist Jos Vanstiphout, with whom he had had heated words on the driving range prior to his first round.

“It was crazy – I guess we can put it down to a misunderstanding,” said Els, the only player in the world’s top 50 taking part in the event and believed to have received around £200,000 for agreeing to play and give a clinic.

“I was not happy. He is supposed to give me encouragement, not what he gave me. It’s supposed to be 10 minutes of good stuff before I play, but that was 12 minutes of the most ridiculous stuff I’ve ever thought of.

“I don’t know what went through his head.”

A much calmer Els was threatening to get on the leaderboard when he covered the first 10 holes of his second round in four under. But the remaining eight were played in one over, a hooked drive into the desert waste on the sixth, his 15th, leading to a bogey.

Green, 52nd in the world with two more weeks to go before the top 50 qualify for next month’s US Masters, came home in 32 to take over at the top from Fulke, who needed two birdies in his last three holes just to add a 70 to his initial 66.

In 1997 Green became the first leftie to win on the circuit since 1975. That was at the Dubai Desert Classic after a play-off with Greg Norman and Ian Woosnam and he is not prepared yet to rule out the possibility of having to fight this one out with Els.

“You can never write Ernie off,” said the Melbourne golfer. “I wouldn’t mind betting he puts together a six under or something like that tomorrow.”

Karlsson sank a bunker shot and chipped in for a joint best-of-the-day 67, but Welshman David Park, looking to at least match that, instead bogeyed two of the last three to slip back to six under and joint fifth with a 70.

Indian Arjun Atwal is in the group one further back after having two clubs stolen from his bag overnight.

“First I saw that my driver wasn’t there and then my caddie told me the putter was missing too,” he said. “I bought a putter of the same make from the pro shop, but the driver I borrowed from Amandeep Johl wasn’t the same and after hooking it a few times I went with my three-wood most of the time.”

After the round there was still no sighting of the two clubs and Atwal practised with Paul Lawrie’s spare driver.

Paul McGinley had a second successive 71 for two under and Ryder Cup captain Woosnam another 72 to remain level par, but defending champion Joakim Haeggman missed the cut by one following a 75.