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ST LEON-ROT, May 20: Trevor Immelman cited his recent switch to a 'belly-putter' for a dramatic change in fortune as he fired a seven-under-par 65 for a share of the lead in the Tournament Players Championship of Europe first round on Thursday.
But his compatriot and world number three Ernie Els, trailing Immelman, Frenchman Gregory Havret and Britain's David Howell by two strokes, caused controversy when he urged golf's rule-makers on both sides of the Atlantic to ban the belly-putter. Els has suffered putting problems recently but said he was not interested in following suit.
Immelman is unfazed by the controversy, adding: "Nick Price gave me a couple of great tips last night. Honestly, as long as I keep rolling the ball the way I've been rolling with it, then I don't care what they say."
Colin Montgomerie, arguably the tour's most renowned fan of the belly-putter, refused to comment on Els' views after shooting a 75. Immelman, in search of a second European Tour win of the year, Havret and Howell, lead by a stroke from Spaniard Jose Maria Olazabal, Robert-Jan Derksen of the Netherlands, South African-raised Briton Alan McLean and Germany's Marcel Siem.
Leading first round:
65 - Gregory Havret (France), David Howell, Trevor Immelman (South Africa).
66 - Robert-Jan Derksen (Netherlands), Alan McLean, Jose Maria Olazabal (Spain), Marcel Siem (Germany).
67 - Kariem Baraka (Germany), Ernie Els (South Africa), Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spain), Barry Lane.
68 - Markus Brier (Austria), Emanuele Canonica (Italy), Ben Curtis (US), Jamie Elson, Anders Hansen (Denmark), Stuart Little, Phillip Price, Stephen Scahill (New Zealand).
69 - Alex Cejka (Germany), Klas Eriksson (Sweden), Joakim Haeggman (Sweden), Marten Olander (Sweden), Andrew Oldcorn, Louis Oosthuizen (South Africa), Eduardo Romero (Argentina), Jarmo Sandelin (Sweden), Adam Scott (Australia).
70 - Paul Casey, Darren Clarke, Andre Cruse (South Africa), Alastair Forsyth, Peter Fowler (Australia), Stephen Gallacher, Retief Goosen (South Africa), Richard Green (Australia), Christopher Hanell (Sweden), Soren Hansen (Denmark), Padraig Harrington (Ireland), Soren Kjeldsen (Denmark), Thomas Levet (France), Miles Tunnicliff, Steve Webster, Paul Broadhurst, James Hepworth, Robert Rock.
Choi delights
SEOUL: South Koreas Choi Kyung-ju launched his title defence at the $400,000 SK Telecom Open on Thursday with a three-under-par 69 to lie one off the lead while former US Masters champion Fred Couples overcame a back ailment to post 70.
Choi, who won last years title in a playoff, got off to a sluggish start at Baekhamvista Country Club, turning in one-over before charging home with four birdies in the Asian Tour event.
Leading first round scores (a denotes amateur):
68 - Thaworn Wiratchant (Thailand), Terry Pilkadaris (Australia).
69 - Edward Loar (US), Choi Kyung-ju (South Korea), Lee Seung-man (South Korea), Danny Chia (Malaysia)
70 - Rafael Ponce (Ecuador), Rick Gibson (Canada), Ted Oh (South Korea), Simon Yates (Scotland), Fred Couples (US), Charlie Wi (South Korea), Kong John-joon (South Korea), Jason Dawes (Australia)
71 - Kim Sang-ki (South Korea), Anthony Kang (US), Kim Hong-sik (South Korea), Satoshi Tomiyama (Japan), a-Lee Dong-hwan (South Korea), Chung Joon (South Korea), Choi Ho-sung (South Korea), Mo Joong-kyung (South Korea), Lee Yong-hun (South Korea). -Agencies
