Burns and Walton hit form

RAYMOND BURNS bounced back after two weeks of gastric trouble to card eight birdies as he and Philip Walton shot a 10 under par combined round of 61 to lie one stroke off the lead at the Novotel Perrier Pairs event in Bordeaux.

Burns twice had three successive birdies - from the third to the fifth and from the eighth to the 10th - as he and Walton made light of a course that played longer than its 6,909 yards because of overnight rain.

The Irish pair are just behind surprise French leaders Christian Cevaer and Antoine Lebouc, and level with the English pairing of Paul Eales and Russell Claydon.

Yesterday's action was played in a fourball format, today is foursomes, tomorrow brings greensomes and on Sunday both players in each team will play singles with their scores added together.

As 23 year old Burns said: "Tomorrow will be the key day with the foursomes, but getting such a good score today takes a lot of pressure off us. Even if we don't have a good day in the foursomes we will not be out of it after our 61."

Burns, apart from his two birdie trebles, had two other birdies at the 14th and 15th and added: "I holed a couple of good 25 foot putts, but most of my birdies came because I hit my approaches almost dead.

"We were both on practically every green so you get a lot of chances and we took them. Philip had a particularly good 25footer at the last hole which wrapped up our round nicely."

Cevaer was the strong man in his pairing, for he had eight birdies and an eagle three, at the 536 yard 14th, while Lebouc made only one birdie, at the seventh.

But Cevaer was quick to point out: "In a four ball it's often the other guy who sets you up for the birdie."

Eales, given a putting lesson by partner Claydon yesterday, holed out twice from 30 feet for birdies but watched in amazement as teacher Claydon had eight birdies, though with only one putt from over 15 feet.