Clarke goes low out West

DARREN CLARKE’S lowest European Tour round since 1999 was still not quite enough to give him the first-round lead in the Joburg Open yesterday. The 40-year-old Ulsterman shot an eight-under-par 63 over the easier West Course at Royal Johannesburg and Kensington, but little-known South African Neil Schietekat then went one better.

Ranked only 1,074th in the world, Schietekat turned his form in the event on its head. He missed the cut the last two years after opening with scores of 79 and 77.

This time the 25-year-old grabbed nine birdies and kept a bogey off his card.

But he faces the far more demanding East lay-out tomorrow – and the two rounds after that, assuming he makes the cut.

The last time Clarke shot lower was his Tour record-equalling 60 in the 1999 European Open, much closer to home at The K Club.

“I hit it close a lot of times and the only putt I really holed was on 17 from about 20 feet,” he said.

On a day of low scoring – placing was allowed on the fairways because of heavy recent rain, with another storm causing a hold-up of 102 minutes in the afternoon – there were four other 63s.

They came from England’s Simon Khan, winner of the Tour qualifying school in November, and David Lynn and South African pair Charl Schwartzel and Jbe Kruger.

Clarke’s playing partner Schwartzel is in a rich vein of form. Last Sunday he won the Africa Open and last month he was runner-up to Pablo Martin at the Alfred Dunhill Championship.

The Race to Dubai money list leader produced seven birdies in a row from the fifth to be eight under, but any thoughts of a 59 disappeared when he had four putts to double-bogey the next.

The best rounds on the 7,589-yard East were the six under 65s by English duo Barry Lane and Danny Willett.

Lane, 50 in June, is second to Sam Torrance in making the most appearances on the circuits and his 649th event began with a bogey.

But it was to prove his only mistake.

Michael Hoey was next best of the Irish after five birdies in his three-under 68 over the West course.

Simon Thornton, playing the more difficult East course, birdied the last three holes to sign for a one-under 70.

Rookie professional Niall Kearney recovered from a poor start on the East course, dropping shots at the first and third, to shoot a solid, one-over 72 to give himself a chance of making the cut.

But Gary Murphy (73) and Peter Lawrie (74), both playing the East course, have their work cut out to survive into the weekend.

Meanwhile, it is now nearly 50 days since Tiger Woods crashed his car into a fire hydrant and a tree – and still there is no word on his whereabouts or when he might resume his career.

A media gathering in London yesterday called by the world number one’s management company shed no light on the situation. Instead it was to announce the launch next month of a new television golf programme.

“I don’t know where he is or about his plans,” said Guy Kinnings, senior vice-president in Europe for the International Management Group.

The new programme is a 90-minute show to be aired five days a week which would bring a mix of news, behind-the-scenes features, travel and instruction.

Since it is being entirely financed by IMG it might seem the perfect platform for Woods to give an eagerly-awaited first interview.

But Kinnings added: “I would not be waiting for it to be on the first show.”

Michel Masquelier, president of IMG Media, went further by commenting: “I don’t think it (the Woods saga) is something we want to emphasise.”

Joburg Open First Round Scores

At Royal Johannesburg and Kensington GC

(British unless stated, Irish in bold, par 71)

WEST COURSE: 62 – Neil Schietekat (Rsa) 63 – Charl Schwartzel (Rsa), Jbe Kruger (Rsa), David Lynn, Darren Clarke, Simon Khan 64 – Alastair Forsyth 65 – Andrew McArthur, Matthew Zions (Aus), Clodomiro Carranza (Arg) 66 – Carl Suneson (Spa), Henrik Nystrom (Swe), John Parry, Joost Luiten (Ned), Soren Hansen (Den), Paul Broadhurst, Raphael Jacquelin (Fra) 67 – Desvonde Botes (Rsa), Neil Cheetham, Hennie Otto (Rsa), Jaco Ahlers (Rsa), Peter Baker, Marcel Siem (Ger), Pelle Edberg (Swe), Darren Fichardt (Rsa), Andrew McLardy (Rsa), Tjaart Van Der Walt (Rsa), Richard Sterne (Rsa), Deane Pappas (Rsa) 68 – Jacques Blaauw (Rsa), Anton Haig (Rsa), Josh Cunliffe (Rsa), David Horsey, Richard McEvoy, Doug McGuigan, Jake Roos (Rsa), Andrew Curlewis (Rsa), Jamie McLeary, Robert Rock, Gary Boyd, Ross Wellington (Rsa), Ariel Canete (Arg), Dylan Frittelli (Rsa), Michael Hoey 69 – Paulo Pinto (Arg), Tyrone Mordt (Rsa), Roope Kakko (Fin), Sion Bebb, Jarmo Sandelin (Swe), Paul Waring, Julien Guerrier (Fra), Carlos Rodiles (Spa), Kenneth Ferrie, George Coetzee (Rsa), James Morrison, Oliver Fisher, Scott Hend (Aus), Matthew Carvell (Rsa), Fredrik Andersson Hed (Swe) 70 – Michael Lorenzo-Vera (Fra), Charlie Ford, Scott Drummond, Irvin Mazibuko (Rsa), Marc Cayeux (Zim), Danny Lee (Nzl), Dion Fourie (Rsa), Stephan Gross Jnr (Ger), Thabang Simon (Rsa), Phillip Archer, Edoardo Molinari (Ita) 71 – Prinavin Nelson (Rsa), Clinton Whitelaw (Rsa), Daniel Brunson (US), Stuart Anderson (Can), Ryan Cairns (Zim), Dale Whitnell, Jean-Francois Lucquin (Fra), Alexandre Kaleka (Fra), Lorenzo Gagli (Ita), Martin Maritz (Rsa) 72 – Jean-Baptiste Gonnet (Fra), Steve Basson (Rsa), Toto Thimba jnr (Rsa), Jean Hugo (Rsa), Michael Dreyer (Rsa), Bradford Vaughan (Rsa), Steven O’Hara, Albert Pistorius (Rsa), David Drysdale, Andre Bossert (Swi), Adrian Ford (Rsa), Daniel Greene (Rsa), Louis De Jager (Rsa), Charl Coetzee (Rsa) 73 – Merrick Bremner (Rsa), Thomas Aiken (Rsa), Jake Redman (Rsa), Mohammed Tayob (Rsa) 74 – Darren Holder (Rsa), Cameron Johnston (Rsa), Omar Sandys (Rsa) 76 – Sipho Sithole (Rsa), Craig Liebenberg (US) 77 – Alphuis Kelapile (Rsa) 79 – Emmanuel Masoliedze (Rsa).

EAST COURSE: 65 – Danny Willett, Barry Lane 66 – Peter Whiteford, Adilson Da Silva (Bra), Alejandro Canizares (Spa) 67 – Reggie Adams (Rsa), Christiaan Basson (Rsa), Shaun Norris (Rsa), Branden Grace (Rsa), Tyrone Van Aswegen (Rsa), James Kamte (Rsa) 68 – Titch Moore (Rsa), Christian Ries (Rsa), Hendrik Buhrmann (Rsa), TC Charamba (Zim), Paul Lawrie, Keith Horne (Rsa) 69 – Carlos Del Moral (Spa), Steven Jeppesen (Swe), Klas Eriksson (Swe), Julien Quesne (Fra), Eirik Tage Johansen (Nor), Warren Abery (Rsa), David Dixon, Andrew Marshall, Teboho Sefatsa (Rsa), Vaughn Groenewald (Rsa) 70 – Brandon Pieters (Rsa), Chris Wood, Magnus A Carlsson (Swe), Robert Dinwiddie, Louis Oosthuizen (Rsa), Gary Lockerbie, Sam Hutsby, Michiel Bothma (Rsa), Callum Macaulay, Dawie Van Der Walt (Rsa), Oliver Bekker (Rsa), Mark Haastrup (Den), Mark Murless (Rsa), Simon Thornton 71 – Joakim Haeggman (Swe), Alex Haindl (Rsa), Alan McLean, Chris Swanepoel (Rsa), Jaco Van Zyl (Rsa), Mark Brown (Nzl), Jose-Filipe Lima (Por), Jamie Elson, Theunis Spangenberg (Rsa), Grant Muller (Rsa), Justin Walters (Rsa), Benjamin Hebert (Fra), David Hewan (Rsa) 72 – Patrik Sjoland (Swe), Anders Hansen (Den), Benn Barham, Nic Henning (Rsa), Kevin Stone (Rsa), Des Terblanche (Rsa), Trevor Fisher Jnr (Rsa), Fredrik Ohlsson (Swe), Ulrich Van Den Berg (Rsa), Francois Delamontagne (Fra), Phillip Price, Lee Slattery, Louis Moolman (Rsa), Stephen Gallacher, Richard Finch, Ryan Tipping (Rsa), Niall Kearney, Lindani Ndwandwe (Rsa) 73 – Andrew Tampion (Aus), James Kingston (Rsa), Brett Liddle (Rsa), David Howell, Ali Tsai (Tpe), Rhys Davies, Warrick Druian (Rsa), Gary Clark, Gary Murphy, Marco Ruiz (Par), Tyrone Ferreira (Rsa), Francois Calmels (Fra), Miles Tunnicliff 74 – Chris Gane, Eugen Marugi (Rsa), Andre Cruse (Rsa), Stuart Manley, Peter Lawrie, Daniel Vancsik (Arg), Byron Smith (US), James Ruth, Sam Little 75 – Divan Van Den Heever (Rsa), Keenan Davidse (Rsa), Steve Van Vuuren (Rsa) 76 – Andrew Georgiou (Rsa), Rick Kulacz (Aus) 77 – Anthony Michael (Rsa), Dean Lambert (Rsa), Willie Van Der Merwe (Rsa), Markus Brier (Aut) 79 – Chris Williams (Rsa) 81 – Muswalo Nethunzwi (Rsa).