Golf: Lane delves into the past to rediscover his putting edge

WHEN Rees Jones, the noted American golf course architect and the son of a master of the profession, designed his course at The Oxfordshire, he had in mind the sort of beautiful summer's day that we were blessed with yesterday.

The layout, bringing into play some huge irrigation lakes, would not look out of place in Florida but the exposed nature of the land led Jones to incorporate a links feel to his design. The eclectic mix is not to everyone's taste. What most agree on is the need to have the sun on your back to play the course.

Jones was perhaps optimistic about how often the ideal conditions are presented in Thame and competitors in the Benson and Hedges International tournaments played here certainly had not encountered them until yesterday. It was a day to put joy into the heart of any golfer and Barry Lane had particular reason to be happy.

Lane has not made a cut since the Lancome Trophy last September. The only time the former Ryder Cup player has played during the weekend in his six previous tournaments this year has been when play has overrun from the first two days.

Following Thursday morning's delay due to thunderstorms, the second round here will not be completed until this morning, but Lane was safely in the clubhouse yesterday with a 36-hole score of nine under par. He held a one-shot lead over Philip Price and a two-stroke advantage over Colin Montgomerie and Norway's Per Haugsrud.

On Thursday Lane could not tee off until 7.30pm and had time to go to the DIY shop with his French fiancee, Stephanie, and paint the bathroom in their new house in Wokingham. Yesterday he completed a 69 in his first round and then went straight out and scored a six-under 66. Stephanie is not a golfer, but suggested Lane take up a wider stance while putting. "When I went back to some old videos, that's exactly how I used to putt," he said.

A slight grip change completed a return to his previous style and a trip down memory Lane followed. Of his nine birdies, three came at short holes, including the fifth where he holed from 45 feet. "I putted well and that's the thing that has been missing," Lane said. "I must have been averaging 34 to 35 putts a round before this week."

Three of Lane's four European Tour victories came in three years from 1992. In 1993 he earned his place at The Belfry in the Ryder Cup. A miserable collapse in his singles against Chip Beck - as America retained the cup - did not seem to affect him. In 1995 he won the Andersen Consulting World Championship, the European qualifier having been played at The Oxfordshire, and collected the $1m first prize.

Immediately, coincidentally or not, Lane's form disappeared, finishing 76th and 83rd on the money list in the last two years. "I never lost the desire to win and playing golf never stopped being fun," said the 37-year- old. "But it's frustrating. You lose confidence and get negative. You start to wonder if it will ever come back."

Montgomerie never feared his four-week break would affect his form and only one missed fairway in two rounds was the key to his threatening position on the leaderboard. "I suppose I have got to be happy with seven under," Monty said. "It gives me another - yet another - chance to win this tournament."

Jamie Spence, however, had mixed feelings about reaching five under par. This particular Arsenal fan's Cup final ticket will go begging, a double disappointment since his team's Premiership-clinching game against Everton coincided with another of his rare weekend appearances on the golf course.

BENSON AND HEDGES INTERNATIONAL OPEN (The Oxfordshire GC, Thame) Leading first-round scores (GB or Irl unless stated): 67 D Robertson, P Sjoland (Swe), P Lawrie, G Evans; 68 M Florioli (It), B Dredge, P Affleck, T Bjorn (Den); 69 B Davis, D Lynn, A Sherborne, P O'Malley (Aus), M Hallberg (Swe), G Orr, P McGinley, S Luna (Sp), R Claydon, D Carter, C Suneson (Sp), C Montgomerie, S Cage, P Price, B Lane, P Haugsrud (Nor), D Smyth, C Watts, P Curry, S Henderson; 70 N Joakimides (Fr), W Westner (SA), M Gates, J Lomas, P-U Johansson (Swe), S Leaney (Aus), D Clarke, G Brand Jnr, P Quirici (Switz), R Davis (Aus), M Gronberg (Swe), S Struver (Ger), P Harrington, C Van Der Velde (Neth), S Kjeldsen (Den), J Spence, M Mouland.