Harrington hits form with first hole in one

HE SHOWS no fear, at least none which is readily discernible. Padraig Harrington, yet again, refused to play the role of an innocent rookie and, on a day when some of the European Tour's big guns struggled to tame the course, the Dubliner strode away from the first round of the Volvo Masters at Valderrama with more memories to stow away.

Stephen Ames - the first ever touring professional from Trinidad, who hankers after a life on the US Tour - was the rather unlikely overnight leader after producing two birdies in the closing three holes for a four under par 67. But Harrington stole some of his thunder with a beautifully flighted seven iron tee shot at the third for a hole in one, the first ace of his professional career, on his way to a 69.

Sadly, there was no reward for Harrington's feat at the third hole, a rather curious situation given the way that money is being tossed around like confetti in the tour's finale. Still, the 25 year old's solid start put him in tied fourth (crucially, two shots ahead of his main adversary for the "rookie of the year" Thomas Bjorn) and in a strong position to accomplish his cited aim of staying in the top 15 of the Order of Merit which gains exemptions into next year's US Open and British Open championships.

It was a rather unusual opening day, from the Robert Allenby shenanigans in the heat haze to Ian Woosnam using a one iron to putt for most of his journey around next year's Ryder Cup venue. The Welshman broke his putter when he swung at an acorn as he walked from the fifth green to the sixth tee. Elsewhere, holder Alexander Cejka laboured to a 78; Seve Ballesteros showed glimpses of his old self until floundering over the home stretch, and Colin Montgomerie managed what he termed "a very fortunate 71" to stay in touch.

Just 10 players managed to heat par, despite near perfect conditions. Invariably, though, any inaccuracy is punished the treelined fairways are just 15 yards wide in most places; the greens with subtle borrows are so slick that putts have to be hit precisely right, while it is an accomplishment to get up and down if a green is missed, given the tendency for the rough to play strange tricks on balls.

All of which made Harrington's performance so noteworthy. Undoubtedly, the hole in one was the highlight. The ball pitched eight feet short of the hole and trickled in, although Harrington didn't see it drop - "It was all a bit of a blur, my eyesight isn't so good," he said - and only realised he had recorded an ace when the crowd erupted.

Harrington had two holes in one in his amateur days, the most recent in the All Ireland Mother and Son at Malahide last year, a championship Padraig and mother Breda won by half a shot. "Now, that was a really important shot today's was just an eagle," he quipped.

The Irishman was four under par after six holes (at which stage Bjorn, playing alongside Paul McGinley in the match behind, was two over par) but he pulled his drive at the ninth and incurred his first bogey of the day. A nine iron approach to five feet at the 10th, however, put him back into the tournament lead.

However, Harrington dropped a shot at the 13th. "I played a really bad putt," he explained and, after conjuring up a magical par four at the 16th where he put his tee shot into trees, attempting to cut the ball left to right, he dropped a shot at the final hole when again finishing up in trees, this time after trying to draw the ball left to right. "Overall, I'm happy with a 69 and I am in good shape," he said.

Of the other Irish challengers, Darren Clarke (72) had most to be happy with, even if he had a strange round which featured seven bogeys, six birdies and five pars. The only other player to have as many birdies was Ames, the leader. Clarke "I was inconsistent, I'd hit one really good shot and follow with a really bad one" immediately headed off to the practice ground in a bid to rectify things.

Yet, Ballesteros had only good words to pass on Clarke. "There are two players who have made a big impression on me and look likely Ryder Cup men," said Europe's captain. "Darren Clarke and Thomas Bjorn are looking really good."

Ronan Rafferty had a 74, but Paul McGinley experienced "one of those days when everything went wrong" on his way to a 78, putting himself under enormous pressure to stay within the top 15 in the money list. "I have a lot of work to do," admitted McGinley.

McGinley's day was summed up by his experience at the 16th. A good looking drive somehow finished up "dead, beside a tree," he said. The recovery shot hit another tree and ricocheted back into more trouble and he eventually scrambled a double bogey six.

A brand new putter reaped dividends for Ames, however, who surprised even himself with his performance. The man from the Caribbean took three weeks off prior to the event - "I only played nine holes twice in all that time and didn't expect anything this week," he said and overcame his dislike of the course to take a one stroke overnight lead on Gordon Brand Jnr and Paul Curry.

"I played here in 1993 and walked out after three rounds, I didn't think much of the place," said Ames, who won the Benson and Hedges International this season. He exceeded all expectations yesterday and covered the back stretch in four under par 32 to take the lead. Ames, more than anyone, knows Valderrama loves to exact revenge. There is still long way to go.