Poulter and McDowell find form at Belfry
Ian Poulter, who began the week racing cars at Brands Hatch, was among those setting the pace as the Quinn British Masters continued at The Belfry today.
Desperate to ignite his bid for a second Ryder Cup cap, Poulter added a 69 to his opening 68 and at seven under shared the lead with US Open champion Michael Campbell and Ulsterman Graeme McDowell, who caught the other two in spectacular fashion with a hole-in-one on the 177-yard seventh.
After spending most of the early season in America, Poulter came back across the Atlantic last week and told his manager he could not wait to start the run of events on home soil.
He is at the Irish Open next week – after first flying to Paris for Arsenal’s Champions League final – then the BMW Championship at Wentworth.
“It’s nice to be home, sweet home,” he said. “It’s fun in America too because I am doing a job I love, but I’ve been seeing lots of friends and family since I got back and I have a lot of them out there.
“The weather is drawing everybody out, which is nice.”
Campbell, who has taken the last month off after missing three successive cuts in the States, led by one with two to play, but bogeyed the 428-yard eighth for a 70.
Overnight leaders were Darren Clarke and Peter Hanson and while Clarke had still to tee off again the Swede could add only a 72 to his 66 to be one behind.
England’s former British amateur champion Graeme Storm was on the same six under mark after a superb course record-equalling 64, but McDowell took some of the attention away from the Hartlepool golfer with his own burst through the field.
After a desperate start to the season in America, McDowell opened with a 70 and was in a fight to survive the halfway cut when he had a double bogey seven on the long 15th, his sixth.
But then came birdies at the 17th, third and fifth and the second ace of his European tour career to lift him to seven under.
Dubliner Padraig Harrington was another enjoying himself on his return to the famous Ryder Cup venue.
Harrington was down near the rear of the field at five over after 16 holes of his first round, but after two birdies in the last three for a 75 he turned in 32 and after three birdies in the next six holes he stood four under.
However, the round finished disappointingly with a bogey at the short seventh for a 66 and three under aggregate.
Even more disappointed, though, was defending champion Thomas Bjorn after making a great attempt to stay alive in the event.
When he spun his approach to the 10th – his first of the day – into the water and double-bogeyed the Dane was five over. He managed to climb all the way back to one under, the likely cut-off mark, only to three-putt from only six feet for a bogey on the eighth.
His 69 left him level par and he had to wait to see if it was good enough. He feared it would not be.
Playing partner Lee Westwood slumped to a 75 and so looked almost certain to suffer a fourth successive cut – the other three were on the US tour – on one over.
