Levet forges ahead

Thomas Levet took over at the top from Soren Hansen in the Spanish Open today - but then went off for treatment on a back problem suffered while commentating on The Masters last month.

“It’s since working with you guys,” the former Ryder Cup player told reporters after adding a 67 to his opening 64 at the PGA Catalunya near Girona.

Levet went to Augusta for French television and explained: “I’m not a sitting person – I’m a standing person.

“I spent hours in a chair and it started getting stiff. There were also two long flights and it’s been bad for three weeks.”

The 40-year-old, runner-up to Ernie Els in the 2002 Open, had resumed one behind Hansen after the Dane’s course record-breaking 63 in the opening round.

Six birdies helped him to the 13-under-par mark at halfway and Hansen – the only member of last year’s Ryder Cup side not to have qualified for next week’s Players Championship in Florida – was alongside him until he finished with a double-bogey six at the 478-yard ninth.

That gave Hansen, whose tournament started with a double bogey, a 70 and 11 under aggregate.

One further back after a 66 was Dubliner Paul Lawrie, who is keen to remind people that he won the title in Seville last year.

“There’s not a picture of me around the place,” commented the 35-year-old.

“I’m disappointed. I thought I would deserve something and it’s a little bit of motivation.

“Somebody said yesterday about me being the ex-Spanish Open champion. I said ’No, I am the current Spanish Open champion’.

“I’ll just try to play well and let the scores make the point.”

That he most certainly did after struggling to a back nine 36, coming home in 30 after four birdies in a row from the first and then more on the seventh and eighth.

“I remembered something my coach told me. It’s just trying to imagine there’s a bottle a couple of inches from the ball.”

Spaniard Alejandro Canizares and German Marcel Siem both stood eight under, while Lawrie’s fellow Dubliner Paul McGinley shot 67 for seven under and Hansen’s fellow Dane Thomas Bjorn matched both that round and total.

It could have been even better for Bjorn, though. His approach to the 411-yard sixth hit the hole, but ran six feet on and he missed the birdie putt.

England’s Stuart Davis was another on seven under following a superb 65, while John Daly and Colin Montgomerie – two under and level par overnight – were among the later starters.

Their first task was to survive a halfway cut expected to fall at two under.