Olazabal decides to postpone comeback

FOR sharply contrasting reasons, much attention is currently being focused on the playing commitments of Greg Norman and Jose Maria Olazabal. And at a domestic level, there is the intriguing absence of last year's runner up, Paul McGinley, from the Smurfit Irish Professional Championship at Slieve Russell next week.

Olazabal, who was to have played in the Turespana Masters which starts at El Saler tomorrow, has decided to postpone his comeback until the Spanish Open on May 9th to 12th. But his manager, Sergio Gomez, insisted yesterday that the move should not be viewed in a negative sense.

"It was a very tight decision to withdraw from El Saler," he said. "We want to be realistic about the future and the fact is that Jose is very close to being ready. He has entered for the US Open and the British Open and there is also a good chance that he will be playing in the Irish Open."

The 30 year old, who is being treated for rheumatoid arthritis in both feet, has not played competitively since last September. At this stage, however, there is no reason to believe that a sparkling career, which included a US Masters victory in 1994, may be at an end.

"The truth is that the situation is getting better and we hope it continues that way," added Gomez. "Jose will try to play a minimum of 11 tournaments in Europe this season and three in the US - the Open, the PGA Championship and the Sprint International (a week later). The improvement in the weather is clearly helping his condition and he played a total of 62 holes over four days last week."

McGinley, who finished a stroke behind the winner, Philip Walton, at Belvoir Park last year, has written to the organisers explaining his absence from next week's Irish Championship. He will be competing in the conflicting Italian Open so as to boost his chances of gaining an exemption into the British Open at Royal Lytham and St Annes.

Currently ninth in the Order of Merit, the Dubliner needs to get among the leading five non exempt players in the top-20 after the Volvo PGA Championship on May 24th to 27th, so as to be exempted into the Lytham field. And if he happens to fare particularly well over the next few weeks, there is the prospect of claiming one of the two places in the US Open, which will go to the leading `two non exempt' players' at that stage. Francis Howley and David Higgins will also be in Italy in an ongoing battle to secure their tour cards.

Norman is prepared to make a tournament appearance in Europe this season, other than in the British Open. The Shark has offered to return to the Canon European Masters in which he failed to make the cut at Cranssur Sierre last September. "It was the first time in 13 years that Greg missed a cut in Europe," said his manager, Frank Williams, yesterday.

Currently fishing and scuba diving from his yacht "Aussie Rules" off Belize, Norman will not be returning to competitive action until the Memorial Tournament on May 30th, when he defends the title at Muirfield Village. Then he has another week off before competing in the US Open at Oakland Hills.

In the meantime, from their Florida office, Williams is keeping the Shark informed of the remarkable surge of public sympathy, arising out of Norman's dramatic collapse at Augusta National. "We've now had about 5,000 faxes and the next task will be to deal with all the letters," he said.

Williams went on: "Greg's first words to me when we got on the plane on Sunday night were I'm sorry I let you down. This was also the way he felt towards his supporters. Now, he can hardly believe that people care so much. He has told me that he finds it to be the most humbling experience imaginable."

Williams concluded: "With that sort, of support, he's going to be fine.

. Bobby Browne, and Tony Healy, were the only players in the field of 129 at Seapoint yesterday to break par in the qualifying test for the Smurfit Irish PGA championship.

Browne (53) was an early clubhouse leader and his two under par 70 was carved out with four birdies and two bogeys. Healy was almost last to finish and his 71 contained birdies at the second and 13th holes and a bogey at the third.