Golf: Bjorn exhibits cutting edge

IT IS hard to believe that Jackson Stephens, the chairman of Augusta National, has been feeling remorse for not inviting Thomas Bjorn to the Masters but his decision to retire has come at an interesting moment. Should Stephens have decided to fall on his sword, the Dane has been sharpening the blade.

His victory a week ago in the Spanish Open gave Bjorn his second win of the year. If he achieves back-to-back victories by prevailing at Castelconturbia in the Italian Open, the 27-year-old Ryder Cup player will overtake Ernie Els and Jose Maria Olazabal at the top of the money list.

A high ranking at the end of the year would ensure an invitation to next April's Masters, which will be presided over by William Johnson, a vice- president of Augusta since 1975. Bjorn shot two 66s over the weekend in Barcelona and repeated the feat in the same day yesterday.

"I don't think I have ever been 12-under in one day before," Bjorn said. "I struggled a bit on the final holes in the morning and went to the range after the round but played really well this afternoon. I had a lot of chances and that gives me a lot of confidence going into tomorrow."

Weather permitting, the second round will be completed this morning and a third and final round will be played this afternoon. Each time Bjorn has been in contention this year, he has won. "I lost a lot of tournaments last year but I think I have matured a bit," he said. "You have to have the desire to win every week, but I'm not afraid to lose any more. My goals are not just to win tournaments but to be one of the best in Europe and one of the best in the world."

After two days of inactivity, the second half of the draw finally got on to the course yesterday morning. Patrik Sjoland's first-round lead from Friday evening did not last long as Ireland's Paul McGinley scored a nine-under-par 63.

Like many sequels, however, his second effort did not live up to the first. He scored an eight at the eighth, the hole that was shortened by 135 yards to 385 but retained its par-five status. McGinley duly eagled the hole in the morning, but found the water twice in the afternoon. He recovered well, however, finishing with three birdies in his last four holes.

Sjoland and Olazabal only began their second rounds late in the day, but both went out in 32. The Swede leads on the course at 13 under.