Turning the tide

McCarron catches fire, Els finally birdies at blustery Royal St George's

Updated 07/18/03 9:15am EDT
SANDWICH, England (AP) -- Hennie Otto began to fade, Ernie Els failed to capitalize on numerous birdie chances and Scott McCarron fell apart after briefly grabbing a share of the second-round lead Friday at the British Open.

Otto, who shot a stunning 3-under-par 68 for the first-round lead, bogeyed two of the first three holes at Royal St. George's, ceding the top spot to Greg Norman and David Love III. Those two were set to tee off in the afternoon, trying to build on 69s in the opening round.

Tiger Woods also had a late tee time. He lost his ball on his very first shot of the tournament, but recovered for a 73 that left him within striking distance of the leaders.

Otto's putter began to let him down. The 27-year-old South African made a bunch of long putts on Thursday, but an errant tee shot at No. 3 left him with a 20-footer to save par. It slid by the hole, saddling him with another bogey.

Taking advantage of the calmer morning conditions, Els left himself with makable birdie putts on the first seven holes. Only two of them dropped in the cup for the defending British Open champion, trying to rebound from a 78 on Thursday.

At No. 7, especially, the Big Easy threw away a chance to make up ground. A booming tee shot left him a short iron to the green, but he skipped the ball into a bunker. Clearly disgusted, Els stood in the middle of the fairway with a hand on his hip.

Forced to settle for par, he threw the putter underhanded to his caddie, who managed to snag it with one hand.

Still, Els was 2 under for the round with three holes to play, bolstering his chances of making the cut after his worst round ever at the British Open.

Before Otto teed off, McCarron actually held a share of lead at 3 under. The American opened with two bogeys, then birdied five of the next seven holes to make the turn with a 33.

The back nine was ugly, however. McCarron bogeyed three holes before a triple-bogey 7 at the 17th, where he drove into the rough, then shanked a wedge that flew right at a nearly 90-degree angle and rolled behind a grandstand.

McCarron managed to get up-and-down at 18 for par and a 74.

Phil Mickelson, still trying to win his first major, signed for a 72 that left him with a 4-over 146 at the midway point of the tournament.

So far this year, McCarron gave little indication he could even contend in a major. He had missed the cut nine times and failed to finish higher than 11th in 18 tournaments.

But that's the way it goes at the British Open.

Already, the tournament was living up to its reputation as the quirkiest of golf's majors. Woods lost a ball. Norman played like it was 1993 all over again. And an obscure South African held the lead after the first round.

Otto, a part-time player on the European tour, was one of just five players to break par Thursday with a steady blast of wind rolling off Sandwich Bay.

Not bad for a guy who had to play 36 holes early in the week just to qualify for his third major.

"You've got to relax and take what the course gives you," Otto said, sounding like an old pro.

Royal St. George's certainly doled it out.

The only other players to break par Thursday were S.K. Ho and Fredrik Jacobson, who played bogey free despite 35 mph gusts late in the afternoon.

Jacobson couldn't follow up, bogeying six straight holes on the back nine for a 76 on Friday.

Norman, who spends more time these days designing courses than playing them, won the last Open held at Royal St. George's in 1993.

Still, the Shark's most recent victory came five years ago. Now 48, he has played only two tournaments this year while dealing with a bad back.

Is he back?

"If I get myself in position after the first two rounds, hopefully momentum will start to build," Norman said.

Four past major winners were among more than two dozen players who shot in the 80s Thursday. The most noteworthy was David Duval, the British champion from 2001, who made two triple bogeys and a quadruple bogey on his way to an 83. Colin Montgomerie got off easy. He tripped on his way to breakfast, injured a hand and withdrew after seven holes.

Love, who has never seriously contended in his favorite major, made only one mistake in an otherwise solid opening round. He played conservatively off the 18th tee with a 3-wood that left him a 4-iron to the green. He missed to the left, and failed to save par.

Tom Watson flirted with the lead for the second straight time in a major. He fell apart at the end, a double bogey-bogey finish for 71.

Also at even-par 71 were Charles Howell III, Fred Couples and Gary Evans, known best for losing his ball on the 17th hole at Muirfield last year.

Woods can relate, though he pulled himself together with two late birdies on Thursday.

"I kept myself in the tournament," he said.