Stolz clear ahead of storm

Golf: A ferocious Sydney storm, with 155 lightning strikes recorded in 15 minutes on The Lakes course, played havoc with the second round of the ANZ Championship yesterday.

Establishing a rhythm was practically impossible as players attempted to complete their rounds with the storm swirling around them. England's Jonathan Lomas, for instance, the overnight leader, was out late and had to stop playing twice during his first nine holes. Little wonder he played them in one over par and went from his first-round total of 20 points, to only 19.

The new leader, Andre Stolz, on the other hand, played in the morning under the first blue skies seen in the city for a week. A round of 65, eight under par, gave him 19 points for a two-round total of 30, a one-point lead over the 22-year-old South African Trevor Immelman and two over Craig Parry.

Parry had the benefit of a hole-in-one at the 15th, a feat that did not go unanticipated. Some time earlier Andrew Langford-Jones of the Australian PGA had been discussing the hole with John Paramor, the European Tour's chief referee.

There is a £45,000 sterling 2.7-litre Audi to be won at the hole and Langford-Jones asked Paramor if it applied over all four days. Paramor said: "I told him it was just the last two days and he said that was a pity because the pin was in a perfect hole-in-one place. Two minutes after he had said that, Craig hit a four-iron straight into the hole. It was an eerie feeling."

Parry himself was phlegmatic. He has had four aces in competition and has not won so much as a camshaft. "I was just happy," he said, "to take the five points." Stolz has played the Australasian tour for 10 years without making much of an impression and has no ambition to play in Europe.

"This is a pretty good country," he said, "I like living here. To reach the heights you have to make a lot of sacrifices that I'm not willing to make," he said.

Immelman is another promising player who has yet to turn potential into achievement. In terms of physique and ego he has much in common with his friend Sergio Garcia, the world number four.

Immelman did not fulfil the expectations placed on him last year, finishing 88th on the Volvo order of merit. "I'm only 22," he said yesterday, "but sometimes I feel 40. I've been playing pro tournaments since I was 16 and Sergio told me I should spend more time being a 22-year-old and find a life off the golf course."

Guardian service

LEADING COLLATED TOTALS: (Brit & Irl unless stated, par 73, round to be completed today because of thunderstorms): (eagles = 5pts, birdies = 2, par = 0, bogey = minus 1, double bogey or worse = minus 3) 30 - A Stolz (Aus) 11 19, 29 - T Immelman (Rsa) 10 19, 28 - C Parry (Aus) 10 18, 27- S Laycock (Aus) 11 16, 25 - C Rodiles (Spa) 10 15, 24 - G Havret (Fra) 5 19, 23 - G Ogilvy (Aus) 7 16, 22 - M Gronberg (Swe) 9 13, S Gallacher 10 12, 21 - P Sjoland (Swe) 11 10, 20 - S Alker (Nzl) 7 13, A Hansen (Den) 9 11, E Walters (Aus) 12 8, 19 - D Lynn 12 7, R Johnson (Swe) 3 16, G Turner (Nzl) 10 9, R Jacquelin (Fra) 15 4, 18 - D Smail (Nzl) 11 7, P O'Malley (Aus) 9 9, D Gilford 7 11, 17 - P Broadhurst 6 11, A Painter (Aus) 4 13, M Cort 7 10, J-F Remesy (Fra) 11 6, 16 - A Forsyth 3 13, J Skold (Swe) 5 11, B Andrews (Aus) 8 8, G Coles (Aus) 7 9, A Cejka (Ger) 7 9, Yeh Wei-tze (Tai) 10 6, A Coltart 5 11, 15 - G Orr 10 5, N Dougherty 7 8.