Jimenez in trouble as Manassero struggles in Paris

Miguel Angel Jimenez’s defence of the Alstom French Open title was in severe danger of ending at the halfway stage after a horror start to his second round at Le Golf National near Paris today.

Level par and joint 33rd overnight, the 47-year-old Spaniard followed a bogey at the 10th – his first – with a quadruple bogey eight on the 427-yard 13th.

And when another dropped shot came at the long next he had fallen nearly 100 places to six over and probably needed to cover the remaining 13 holes in four under just to have a chance of surviving.

Eighteen-year-old Italian star Matteo Manassero took a big tumble as well.

Twice a winner on the European Tour already – nobody has won at a younger age - Manassero resumed on three under and in a tie for sixth, but he bogeyed the 13th and 14th and then double-bogeyed the 15th.

Suddenly he was only 54th, with just the top 65 and ties progressing to the weekend.

England’s Graeme Storm and Australian Richard Green, joint leaders on six under, were both among the later starters.