Hansen sets clubhouse mark

Ryder Cup Dane Soren Hansen moved into contention for the European Open at the London Club in Kent today – and also witnessed something he has never seen before.

While Hansen defied the blustery conditions to shoot a five under par 67 and set the early clubhouse target on five under par, Spanish playing partner Pablo Larrazabal ran up a sextuple bogey nine on the 225-yard 17th.

It did not come close to Tom Weiskopf’s 13 on the short 12th at Augusta during the 1980 Masters, but it was bad enough.

Larrazabal, last year’s French Open champion, went into the bushes long left, took a penalty drop, then had an air shot playing left-handed, then hit into another bush and had to take another drop.

After chopping his way to the green and eventually holing out he told Hansen to put him down for an eight – then thought about it again walking off the 18th tee and told him to change it to a nine.

“It was a pretty good nine in the end,” he said after initially storming off, but then calming down enough to speak.

“But it’s still maybe the best week of 2009.” He is a huge Barcelona fan and went to school with Andres Iniesta.

For the second day running the 471-yard 18th, with water down the left, was causing even more problems.

After a six there in his second round world No 3 Sergio Garcia went in the water again and this time ran up a triple bogey seven.

After signing for a 74 and two over total Garcia said: “I just screwed up a pretty decent round.

“You’ve just got to hit a good shot off that tee and unfortunately for me I didn’t.”

Scot David Drysdale had also taken a seven and Australian Brett Rumford an eight on the par four as the overnight leaders set off knowing the greatest challenge was still to come.

Indian Jeev Milkha Singh and France’s Michael Lorenzo-Vera shared top spot on eight under at halfway.

Lorenzo-Vera opened with a birdie to Singh’s bogey and led by two, but he then found himself behind only three weeks later.

While he bogeyed the short third Londoner Anthony Wall, seeking only his second Tour win in well over 300 starts, birdied there and almost chipped in for eagle at the long fifth.

Wall did follow that with a first bogey of the day, however, so he and Lorenzo-Vera were eight under, one ahead of a large group which included Chris Wood, the Bristol 21-year-old who finished fifth in The Open as an amateur last year.

Earlier, Stephen Dodd mixed eight birdies with six bogeys in a real rollercoaster ride 24 hours after driving all the way from Kent to Wales thinking he had missed the halfway cut.

The 42-year-old former World Cup winner was not alone in that, though.

Lee Westwood was between Cambridge and Peterborough in his new Jaguar when he was contacted and told he was back in the tournament.

“I increased my carbon footprint,” said the Ryder Cup star after a disappointing third round 74. “I got a call – but I wish I hadn’t!”

All those who finished on one over par at lunchtime yesterday looked like missing out on the final two rounds and even Colin Montgomerie at level par went off to spend the afternoon in London with his children thinking he was out.

But a strong afternoon wind sent scores soaring.

“I live the other side of Cardiff and got home about 5.30pm,” said Dodd after a 70 for one under.

“I watched on television and could tell that one over had a chance. So after it was confirmed I drove back at 9pm and got to the hotel about midnight.

“I’ve only done it once before in my career I think – a long time ago when I drove home from Collingtree Park in Northampton.”

Westwood was down to three over, while Montgomerie also shot 74 to finish the day two over.

As the day wore on shots were being thrown away like confetti. Lorenzo-Vera double-bogeyed the sixth, Wall bogeyed the sixth and seventh.

There was a seven-way tie on seven under for a while, but when Wood bogeyed the 16th, Welshman Jamie Donaldson the ninth and Singh the seventh it was Wall, Christian Cevaer, Alvaro Quiros and Marcus Fraser who were left out in front.