Golf/Seve Trophy: A soft, warm sun, lighting up a deep-blue sky, inspired some wonderful golf on the second day of the Seve Trophy at the El Saler course here yesterday.

Britain and Ireland, possibly more grateful for the conditions than their Continental cousins, eased further ahead, stretching an overnight lead of 3½ - 1½ into one of 6½ - 3½.

Ten players shared 65 birdies and two eagles as golf was played at its attacking best. Paul Casey and Brian Davis, for instance, against Miguel Angel Jimenez and Ignacio Garrido, had nine birdies against a mere seven by the Spaniards, with Casey's birdies at the 17th and 18th giving them a win by those two holes.

He holed from a bunker at the 17th and hit a 193-yard seven-iron second at the last to three feet, both gestures coming in the grand style.

But Severiano Ballesteros had no birdies at all and his partner, Jose Maria Olazabal, had only three, leaving Justin Rose and Ian Poulter, whose hair resembled an artist's palette, simply to keep the ball on the course to win 3 and 1.

Lee Westwood and David Howell have looked invincible this week, mostly because Westwood has rediscovered, in order, his long game, his short game and his confidence. In a fourball format he has been able to give the ball a good run at the hole and, as players down the years have discovered, it is amazing how many putts go in when hit hard enough. He began with two birdies, eagled the long fifth, Howell birdied the sixth and seventh, and when Westwood birdied the short ninth the pair were out in a seven-under-par 29 and were four up on Sergio Garcia and Thomas Bjorn.

Garcia is not used to this kind of treatment, especially in his own province of Valencia, and his short haircut and sulky demeanour made him look like a squaddie who had been told to go twice round the parade ground instead of getting a smoke break.

At the 11th, Garcia missed a five-footer for a half, went to try the putt again but stopped and shrugged his shoulders, perhaps realising the futility of it all. Westwood put him out of his misery at the long 15th, trumping the Spaniard's birdie with another eagle for a 5 and 3 victory.

Paul Lawrie and Colin Montgomerie together collected 2½ points out of four in the 1999 Ryder Cup, which was the basis for a resumed partnership this week. But since then Montgomerie has stopped holing putts and Lawrie almost never has or does. Both are specialists at hitting fairways and greens, and yesterday they were arguably better than Alex Cejka and Raphael Jacquelin in that department; but they made birdies at only two holes that were not par fives.

The last hole they played summed it all up. Two down on the 17th tee, the Scots hit superb shots to this difficult, 214-yard hole. Lawrie finished five feet away, Montgomerie four, and if either had holed his putt the match would have gone on. But Lawrie pushed his right, Montgomerie lipped out and it was all over.

Here is a thought for the weekend. How long do you think the average fourball at your club should take? Four hours? Four-and-a-half? Five, maybe? Or would you expect any group that took five or more hours to play 18 holes to be hauled before the committee, have their membership bag tags torn from them.

That punishment might be deemed lenient by some who would prefer, as did The Mikado, "something with boiling oil in it". Yet this week at El Saler the European Tour's pace-of-play guidelines provide for a fourball to take five hours 10 minutes.

These, mind you, are fourballs consisting in the main of fit young men who hit the ball mostly on to the fairway and, when they miss, have a caddie and usually several hundred spectators to help them find it.

There would be a riot at most ordinary clubs in the land if in the monthly medal a group of middle-aged gents were allowed to get away with taking five hours plus for a round of golf.

Day two results and Morning draw

SEVE TROPHY

Continental Europe v Britain and Ireland

(at El Saler, Valencia, Spain. Britain and Ireland led 3½-1½ after first day fourballs)

Fourballs (Continental names first)

Sergio Garcia and Thomas Bjorn lost to Lee Westwood and David Howell 5 and 3

Raphael Jacquelin and Alex Cejka bt Paul Lawrie and Colin Montgomerie 2 and 1

Miguel Angel Jimenez and Ignacio Garrido lost to Paul Casey and Brian Davis 2 holes

Fredrik Jacobson and Niclas Fasth bt Padraig Harrington and Phillip Price 1 hole

Jose Maria Olazabal and Seve Ballesteros lost to Ian Poulter and Justin Rose 3 and 1

Fourballs result: Continental Europe 2 Britain and Ireland 3

Match position: Continental Europe 3½ Britain and Ireland 6½

This morning's greensomes

(all times Irish)

7.00 Niclas Fasth and Fredrik Jacobson v Padraig Harrington and Paul Lawrie

7.15 Thomas Bjorn and Jose Maria Olazabal v Justin Rose and Colin Montgomerie

7.30 Alex Cejka and Raphael Jacquelin v Paul Casey and Brian Davis

7.45 Sergio Garcia and Seve Ballesteros v Lee Westwood and Ian Poulter