Monty manages to smile at last

Such has been paucity of Colin Montgomerie's luck this season that you get the impression he would fail to find a ray of sunshine even if he were to stand in the middle of the Sahara.

These are stormy times for the Scot who, until Lee West-wood finally broke through last year, dominated European golf for seven straight seasons.

With facial expressions that have alternated between anger and frustration, Montgomerie missed successive cuts at the Masters and the Portuguese Open, and looked like recording an unprecedented hat-trick of early exits when he carded a one- over-par 73 in yesterday's opening round of the £1 million Benson and Hedges International Open at The Belfry.

Montgomerie was glowering after finding a bunker at his first hole of the second round, the signature 10th.

But when he splashed out to save par, a rare smile creased Montgomerie's lips. And it was to stay with him until the last where he missed a six-foot putt.

But his three-under-par 69 left him two under for the tournament, and in contention for the weekend.

"It's coming back slowly but surely," he said. "I've just got to become more patient. I'm not the most patient guy in the world, but I've got to become one." Two groups ahead, defending champion Jose Maria Olazabal struggled to maintain a challenge that saw the Spaniard lie just one shot adrift of joint leaders Paul McGinley and Henrik Stenson at the conclusion of the first round.

Olazabal dropped three shots on the way to a three over par 75. That leaves him two under for the tournament, five behind clubhouse leader Thomas Bjorn and eight in arrears of Stenson, who was on his own on 10 under heading for home after McGinley hit into the gallery approaching the third green.

Bjorn, who carded a 68 today to go seven under, is on course to reclaim a place in Europe's Ryder Cup team after missing out on selection to Brookline two years ago. And after the Dane's superb victory over Tiger Woods in Dubai earlier this year, his inclusion will be welcomed by team captain Sam Torrance.

After following up his first round 68 with a 70 to lie just one shot off the clubhouse lead, the veteran Scot admitted: "I've always been very impressed with Thomas's game. I love his attitude. He's very hard on himself, but he's also very aggressive and very competent."