Scot trails leaders Fisher and Hansen by two in Dunhill Links

Published on Thursday 2 October 2008 21:49

THE sense of trust Marc Warren feels for his simplified golf swing was reflected in an impressive performance over the Old Course yesterday as the young Scot took advantage of relatively benign conditions to negotiate 18 holes of assured ball-striking without dropping a stroke to par and keep tabs on Ross Fisher and Soren Hansen at the summit of the Alfred Dunhill Links leaderboard.

While the Englishman and the Dane both signed for 64, eight under par, at Kingsbarns, Warren matched the low score of the first day at St Andrews, 66, to mount a challenge for the title previously won by his compatriots Colin Montgomerie, Paul Lawrie and Stephen Gallacher.

On what was a heartening start for the home golfers, Helensburgh's Gary Orr also posted 66 at Kingsbarns to join Warren in contention.

Since he began working with coach Ian Rae six weeks ago, Warren has corrected faults in his address and begun to recapture the enjoyment of practising and competing. His opening round of six under was notable for half-a-dozen birdies at the third, seventh, ninth, 11th, 13th and 16th holes.

Having first set eyes on the Old Course in 1995 when his father brought him to watch the practice rounds at the Open Championship won by John Daly, the 14-year-old, who played off a handicap of 8, quickly became a scratch golfer and was soon back in the Auld Toun competing at the Links Trophy. It was not all success, of course, and Warren remembers once shooting 92 on the Jubilee course.

Yesterday's 66, however, was the Scot's lowest competitive score over the Old Course and confirmed his return to form. "I'm not thinking about trouble," he advised. "On the Road Hole I was left with just 80 yards to the green, and on the last I smashed the drive and just came up short of the green. I'm enjoying it again and not worrying about my swing. It's about having fun and playing without fear."

With three top tens in his last five tournaments – he's Scotland's third highest-ranked player at 190th in the world – Orr dropped only one stroke to par, on the 11th, at Kingsbarns, where his confidence received a boost from holing a birdie putt on the first green.

"I was three under after six holes, which was an encouraging start," recalled Orr. "Things carried on from there and I played pretty well overall. My form has been decent since August, there have been a few good finishes, so I'm hoping to carry on that run until the end of the season."

After finishing seventh at the Belfry and third in Germany, Fisher also brought a run of decent form to Scotland and capitalised on the gentle weather conditions to crush the front nine at Kingsbarns with five birdies between the third and ninth holes. He added two more after the turn, as well as making eagle on the 12th, thanks to a soaring 4-iron and 18ft putt.

Had Hansen, who started on the tenth at Kingsbarns, not delivered such a blistering finish – he scored 3, 2, 3 against the card of 4, 3, 5 – then Fisher would have led on his own. As it was, the Dane's outstanding finale earned him a share of the first- round advantage. "I holed a monster putt on the seventh, my third-last hole, a good shot into the par-3 eighth and on the ninth, my last, I hit an incredible second shot to within inches. It was a very good finish."

Playing in the same group as Hansen, Martin Kaymer posted 65 and indicated he's still ambitious to finish in the top five on the European Order of Merit and consolidate his place in the top 50 of the world rankings, where he's currently 41st.

This match was also notable for the amateurs who were involved. Hansen played with Wladimir Klitschko, not a Hearts' shareholder but a triple world heavyweight boxing champion, also known as "Dr Steel Hammer." The mild mannered Dane reported that his 6ft 6in partner, an 18-handicapper, was not someone he'd choose to argue with over club selection.

"I was afraid he was going to lose it on a few holes and break a few clubs," grinned the Ryder Cup player, "but he seems a very relaxed guy. Having said that, I wouldn't want to go into the ring with him. He's a monster."

Kaymer, meantime, played with his brother, Phillip, a scratch golfer, and had his father on the bag. After a year in which his mother died, it turned out to be a suitably rewarding family occasion. Nick Dougherty, the defending champion who also lost his mother, signed for 74 and was in 132nd place.

In terms of the quest for the Order of Merit title, Lee Westwood shot 68 and Padraig Harrington shrugged off any lingering weariness from a hectic summer of golf to birdie five of his last six holes at Kingsbarns and sign for 67. "I still feel pretty tired and need to take some substantial time off, but you couldn't fail to have fun this week," said the winner of the Open and the US PGA. "My relaxed frame of mind helped me play well."

Admitting his new beard was simply a ploy to give him five minutes longer in bed without reaching for a razor, Padraig was uncertain whether the designer stubble will last the week. "My wife is arriving tonight," he confessed. "She'll probably have the last say on the matter ..."

SCORES

(GB & Ire unless stated, par 72)

St Andrews

66: M Warren, G Bourdy (Fra), M Fraser (Aus)

67: P Archer, S Drummond

68: T Moore (SA), M Siem (Ger), T Pilkadaris (Aus), R Jacquelin (Fra), J Edfors (Swe), P Larrazabal (Spa), R McIlroy, L Slattery, A Canete (Arg), P Fowler (Aus)

69: S Walker, C Suneson (Spa), N Fasth (Swe), P Hedblom (Swe), J Nitties (Aus), F Andersson Hed (Swe)

70: S Webster, C Wood, G Chalmers (Aus), S Dyson, D Lynn, S Gallacher, A Forsyth, J Donaldson, E Canonica (Ita)

71: J M Singh (Ind), A Velasco (Spa), P Price, P Edberg (Swe), B Dredge

72: P Sjoland (Swe), S Kapur (Ind), S Kjeldsen (Den), A Coltart, S Strange (Aus), S Jeffress (Aus), D Drysdale, M Millar (Aus), S Little, P O'Malley (Aus)

Carnoustie

67: T Levet (Fra)

68: W Joon Lee (Aus), J Moul, M Ilonen (Fin), D Dixon, A Quiros (Spa)

69: G Houston, E Molinari (Ita)

70: A Canizares (Spa), Peter Lawrie, O Fisher

71: D McGrane, R Rock, M Jonzon (Swe), S Manley, J Bickerton, S Khan

72: J-B Gonnet (Fra), R J Derksen (Ned), C Cevaer (Fra), M Erlandsson (Swe), J Kingston (SA), Paul Lawrie, R Green (Aus), J-F Lucquin (Fra)

Other: 73: L Saltman. 76: S Torrance. 77: P Whiteford.

Kingsbarns

64: R Fisher, S Hansen (Den)

65: M Kaymer (Ger)

66: A Wall, T Aiken (SA), G Orr, D Howell, J Sandelin (Swe), M Brier (Aut)

67: R Karlsson (Swe), J-F Lima (Por), R Goosen (SA), P Harrington

68: F Molinari (Ita), G McDowell, M Campbell (NZ), C Schwartzel (SA), J M Lara (Spa), F Aguilar (Chi), L Westwood, M Tunnicliff, G Fernandez-Castano (Spa)

69: C Hoffman (USA), O Wilson, M Murless (SA), T Jaidee (Tha), A McLardy (SA)

70: C Montgomerie, R Gonzalez (Arg), L Oosthuizen (SA), M A Carlsson (Swe), T Bjorn (Den), J Kamte (SA), R Sterne (SA), H Stenson (Swe)

71: J Rose, A Da Silva (Bra), M Lafeber (Ned), C Rodiles (Spa)