Golf: The Masters - Montgomerie's smooth start

The Masters: Fairways to Scot's liking as opening 70 leaves him one shot off early leaders Love and Chamblee

COLIN MONTGOMERIE got the start he wanted in the 63rd US Masters with a two-under-par round of 70. As soon as he saw the strips of rough, or the "second cut" as they quaintly call it here at Augusta National, lining the fairways, the Scot's mood improved.

In the past, Montgomerie has not felt comfortable on a course that does not play to his strength - being able to drive the ball on to the sort of pencil-line fairways that appear at the US Open. Although the rough is nowhere near enough to lose a caddie in, as at other venues, it is just enough, given the hard and fast greens, to put more of a premium on driving.

"The fairways mean more than they did before," said Montgomerie, whose best result was eighth last year. "I am happy with a 70. It is exactly the start I wanted. I was more confident than in past years."

Montgomerie had the advantage of an early tee time but even by the time he finished at lunchtime, the day was getting hot and the greens were drying out fast. Gone was the garden party atmosphere of the practice days, although Montgomerie enjoyed a joke or two with Steve Jones, one of his playing partners, whose caddie is sharing a room with Monty's.

Montgomerie's only dropped shot came at the par-three sixth, where he took three putts from the lower tier. He dealt himself an eight-footer for par, which he missed on the right, but at least the ball did not come back to his feet as happened with Jones.

Out in 37, Monty then came home in 33. He birdied the 10th from 10 feet, took two putts on the 13th for a birdie four and then hit his tee shot at the short 16th to three feet. The only two fairways he missed were at the 17th and 18th, but even so, at the last his chip from beside the green lipped out for another birdie.

"This course is a great challenge," the Scot added. "The pin placements are very difficult. As soon as you relax, you can drop a shot. I only made one bad mistake, but any time you can say that here is good. The winner is going to be the one who makes the fewest mistakes and not the most birdies."

The early leaders on 69 were Brandel Chamblee, who qualified by winning his first tournament, the Greater Vancouver Open last year, and Davis Love. The American Ryder Cup player has enjoyed a low-key build up to the event thanks to the concentration on David Duval and Tiger Woods. While Duval was a late starter, Woods could not have made a more erratic beginning, with only three pars in an outward 38 that included a triple- bogey eight at the eighth.

Ernie Els started with a 71, as did Sandy Lyle, who has only played four times this season, missing the cut twice. Having lost his US Tour card, the 41-year-old Scot is only eligible to play in regular events on sponsors' invitations. However, he has a lifetime exemption to the Masters and a birdie at the last, with a five-iron to six feet although not from the fairway bunker, was a small reminder of his victory at Augusta in 1987.

In a steady round, Lyle bogeyed the short fourth, but immediately birdied the fifth from eight feet and the seventh from 10 feet before dropping his only other shot at the 12th.

"I have not played much this year, and none at all in the last three weeks, but I have tried to make use of that time by practising," Lyle said. "This is the first time in years I have had that much time off and it has done me a lot of good. I came out fresh and on the first tee I felt totally in control. Coming back here always gets the juices going."

Lyle's wife, Jolande, almost returned to their US base in Ponte Vedra Beach in Florida on Monday after their two small children were involved in a car accident. The car, driven by their nanny, was written off but there were no injuries. "It was not a high-speed crash and they are all fine," Lyle said. "Typical that it should happen the first time we are both away but the neighbours have been very supportive."

One tradition at Augusta has not changed. The 63rd Masters officially got under way when the three honorary starters teed off at the first. Gene Sarazen, at the age of 97, led the way, managing to find the bottom of the hill, but Byron Nelson, 87, topped his drive 40 yards. Sam Snead, the 86-year-old three-times winner, hit the best drive, into the new rough on the right, just short of the bunker.

Another oldie, 90-year-old Paul Runyan, stole the show at Wednesday's par-three tournament. Runyan, a double USPGA winner, scored a nine-over 36, some 14 shots behind the winner, Joe Durant. "My score was terrible," he said. "I was amazed that so many people in the crowd recognised me. I thought I was too old for that."

Runyan is one of the few survivors from the first Masters in 1934, when he finished third. "I remember that it was a very important event for us," Runyan said. "Anything that Bobby Jones had anything to do with was important the first time. Of course, nobody at that time would understand how important it has become now."

Part of the reason was the victories of Arnold Palmer, four of them in seven years between 1958 and 1964. When Palmer, 69, teed off yesterday if was for the 45th consecutive appearance at the Masters, setting a record for the tournament. The fates, however, were no respecter of history and Palmer opened with back-to-back double-bogeys.

EARLY FIRST-ROUND SCORES FROM AUGUSTA

US unless stated, par 72; *Amateurs.

69

B Chamblee, D Love

70

C Montgomerie (GB), J M Olazabal (Sp)

71

S Pate, B Estes, S Pate, S Lyle (GB), E Els (SA)

72

C Stadler, J Daly, B Glasson

73

R Mediate, T Lehman

74

O Browne, G Hjertstedt (Swe), R Floyd

75

S Hoch, C Pavin, C Parry (Aus)

77

S Jones

78

S Verplank

80

G Brewer

86

B Casper

88

D Ford

SECOND ROUND TEE-OFF TIMES

US unless stated, all times BST

1315 G Player (SA), *T Immelman (SA), S Stricker. 1326 B Crenshaw, *T McKnight, L Roberts. 1337 S Ballesteros (Sp), H Sutton, B Mayfair. 1348 J Maggert, V Singh (Fiji), P Stewart. 1359 N Faldo (Eng), B Watts, J Durant. 1410 F Zoeller, M Ozaki (Japan), F Funk. 1421 A Palmer, *J Miller, W Wood. 1432 B Langer (Ger), M Calcavecchia, D Clarke (N Ire). 1443 P Mickelson, G Norman (Aus), J Parnevik (Swe). 1454 L Janzen, J Cook, F Lickliter. 1505 J Haas, B Andrade, T Bjorn (Den). 1516 M O'Meara, *H Keuhne, L Westwood (Eng). 1527 D Duval, N Price (Zim), B Tway. 1538 C Coody, B Jobe, P-U Johansson (Swe). 1549 M Brooks, S Cink, D Toms. 1600 P Azinger, J Furyk, G Day. 1611 B Casper, G Brewer, D Ford. 1622 S Pate, S Hoch, B Estes. 1633 J Daly, G Hjertstedt (Swe), O Browne. 1644 S Lyle (Sco), C Pavin, S Verplank. 1655 C Stadler, C Parry (Aus), R Mediate. 1706 R Floyd, C Montgomerie (Sco), S Jones. 1717 JM Olazabal (Sp), B Glasson, B Chamblee. 1728 E Els (SA), D Love, T Lehman. 1739 J Leonard, S Maruyama (Japan), J Huston. 1750 F Couples, S Elkington (Aus), S McCarron. 1801 B Faxon, JP Hayes, T Dodds (Nam). 1812 T Watson, *M Kuchar, S Appleby (Aus). 1823 I Woosnam (Wal), P Sjoland (Swe), A Magee. 1834 T Woods, *S Garcia (Sp), T Herron. 1845 L Mize, C Franco (Par), J Sluman. 1856 T Aaron, M A Jimenez (Sp), C Perry.

TV Times: BBC2: 2100-2230.