Golf: Monty and the Master

THE FIRST heavyweight final pairing of the European season sees Colin Montgomerie, the six-time winner of the order of merit, and the Masters champion, Jose Maria Olazabal, tee off last in today's final round of the Benson & Hedges International. The best two players to come along since the big-five of Ballesteros, Faldo, Lyle, Langer and Woosnam, this pair have had frequent battles in the past.

Olazabal used to dominate their meetings, notably winning the final of the 1984 British Amateur and the Lancome Trophy in 1990. But for a man who has the advantage of two major championships, the Spaniard is still generous in his praise of the Scot. "We look like average workers and he looks like the gifted one," Ollie said. "He doesn't need to practise, he's taken three weeks off and he's hitting the fairways and the greens, and he is leading the tournament."

But where Olazabal would like to hit the ball as easily from tee to green as Montgomerie, the Scot would like the Spaniard's ability on the green. With the wind switching to a more testing direction, Monty and the overnight leader, Per-Ulrik Johansson had the opportunity to put clear water between them and the field. But the Swede slipped to a 74 to join a large pack on nine under and Montgomerie missed a number of chances in his 71. At 11 under, he is one in front of Olazabal, who produced a 69 to a 73 by his playing partner Nick Faldo.

"I started one behind and I'm now one in front so it sounds like a good day," Montgomerie said. "But it is disappointing not to put more distance between me and second place. My putting left me on the back nine." In a rare move, Montgomerie headed to the putting green after his round for "as long as it takes" to sort out the problem.

Only bogeys at the 12th and the last two holes prevented Anders Forsbrand from figuring higher on the leaderboard. The 38-year-old Swede scored a 69 to be seven under. The dropped shots were as nothing compared to what he has been through. Until finishing 17th last week at the French Open, Forsbrand, who has six tour titles to his name, had not made a cut since the B&H a year ago.

"I couldn't break 80, that's how bad it was," Forsbrand said. Returning to his old coach Simon Holmes has resulted in a change of fortune. "We have worked hard and it has paid off quickly. I never wanted to quit but there comes a time when if you can't make a living, you had better do something else. But now God has given me another chance to play this game and I've got to take it."

The feeling that the season is now really under way will be enhanced this week in Heidelberg as Tiger Woods, Mark O'Meara, Ernie Els and Nick Price appear for the Deutsche Bank Open. The sponsors have dipped into their reserves to secure a field of such quality, one not even matched by the following week's Volvo PGA Championship, the tour's flagship event.

Whether Lee Westwood will be playing remains in doubt. The 26-year-old is the defending champion at two of the next three tournaments, in Germany and at the Compass English Open, but had to withdraw from this event in an attempt to sort out his shoulder problem.

Westwood underwent X-rays and an MRI scan on Thursday and received the results yesterday. "The specialist found nothing serious," said Andrew `Chubby' Chandler, Westwood's manager. "He thinks the injury may be a muscle spasm which is touching a nerve. I don't know when Lee is going to play next. It may be next week or in four weeks but the injury is not serious or career threatening."

One man who could do with a couple of good weeks is Ian Woosnam. A 71 yesterday left the Welshman trailing the leaders on four under and needing a low score today to make a significant move up from 38th on the order of merit. Woosie needs to get into the top-two on the money list by the end of the PGA at Wentworth to gain a place in next month's US Open.

He is on a run of 43 consecutive majors and has played in the US Open each year since finishing as runner-up to Curtis Strange in 1989. "But if I don't get in, I don't think I'll go over to qualify as my wife has not been well recently," Woosie said.