Monty has record in his sights

GOLF: Oh my, but he's greedy. Colin Montgomerie wants the lot. He wants the winner's cheque, the new Waterford Crystal trophy and the Chelsea jersey (size XL) with his name in block capitals over the number eight to testify to his eighth Order of Merit title.

It isn't over yet, to be sure, not with Sergio Garcia breathing down his neck, but all the signs are that Monty will get most, if not all, of his wish list.

On a grey day, when sporadic showers took some of the fire out of the Valderrama course's greens, Montgomerie played with effortless ease, until a blip at the end, when he missed a par putt from 18 inches to signify a hint of frailty.

Could it prove costly in the long run? We'll see, as the Scot's 66 for nine-under-par 133 left him two shots clear of his nearest pursuers, Garcia and defending champion Ian Poulter, as the season-ending Volvo Masters reached its midway stage.

Meanwhile, Michael Campbell, his only challenger for the money title, refused to buckle entirely. The Kiwi shot a 69 for 141, to be eight shots adrift, but took the glass-half-full approach.

"Monty's up there doing his stuff, but I can't control what he does. I can just control my own destiny here, and I'm just going to play the same way I've been playing for the next two rounds," said Campbell.

Only 13 players have reached the midpoint under par, and Montgomerie is on top of the pile.

"I'm in the lead. I came here to win the Volvo Masters and, if I do that, everything else will look after itself. So, so far, so good," he said, after a round that included seven birdies and two bogeys.

The bogeys came on the 10th, where his approach spun 65 yards back off the green, and the 18th, when he missed a tap-in.

But for much of the round Montgomerie played like clockwork. His iron play was precise, finding 13 of 18 greens, and only twice did he fail to get up and down.

He had his moments of good fortune, too, it must be said. Most notably on the short 15th, where he missed the green and was left with an awkward stance beside a bunker. His recovery finished 40 feet from the hole and, wouldn't you know it, he holed the putt.

For the second day running, Montgomerie took only 25 putts.

That missed putt on the last, though, left him a tad testy. In the post-round media conference, he even resorted to a profanity to stop a line of questioning about the putter he apparently threw away in Madrid two weeks ago after a tougher time on the greens.

Is there a hint of stress? "You come here with all sorts of pressures and anxieties, there's all sorts of stuff going on. To score nine under par on this course after two days is a result. I'm even proud of that," said Montgomerie, who nevertheless griped about the late start, dictated by television, which left him finishing in poor light.

Not that Poulter or Garcia - or Campbell for that matter, despite the gap that has developed - are likely to make life any easier for him. In today's final grouping, the Spaniard will play alongside the Scot, and Garcia, who was bogey-free until he dropped a shot on the last, remarked: "I feel like I'm at seven under, but I haven't done anything extraordinary yet."

While none of the Irish challengers have managed to get under par, Paul McGinley at least negotiated his way into a position on the fringes.

Unlike the first day, when his card was ruined by a triple bogey and a double bogey, the Dubliner kept such catastrophes away in a 68 that left him on level-par 142.

"The only difference is that today, unlike yesterday, I didn't have a triple bogey or a double bogey in my round. At this level, those things are going to kill you. Nobody ever goes way under on this course, so I've got myself back in the tournament. I'm in good shape, we'll see what happens," said McGinley, who started with a bogey.

After that, he played error-free golf and rolled in birdies on the sixth, eighth, 10th and 14th, where he holed from 20 feet, his longest birdie putt.

Graeme McDowell had seemed set to at least match McGinley's mark, but he dropped shots on the last two holes to sign for a 71, which left him on one-over 143. That he has managed to compete at all is incredible, however, given his health circumstances.

"Dale's done an unbelievable job," attested McDowell, of the role that his physical therapist, Dale Richardson, has performed in combating the spinal injury he arrived here with.

But looking at the leaderboard, and seeing what Montgomerie was doing out the course, McDowell spoke for many of his peers. "It's phenomenal what Monty's doing. You've got to applaud him. He's the real deal," said McDowell.

Whether Montgomerie sees it through remains to be seen, but the cards are stacked in his favour.