Monty's troops gain an edge

Unlike the Ryder Cup, where players play purely for the honour and the glory, there is something like €2.4 million to be divvied up in this second version of the Seve Trophy currently unfolding at Druids Glen.

If, however, anyone felt this contrived match between a divided continent was just about money, then the serious nature of the new rivalry was reflected not just in the quality of golf produced yesterday on a tough course but also in the various emotional outpourings.

Worried frowns and furrowed brows - mainly from Continental Europe captain Seve Ballesteros - and some animated high-fives - mainly from the British and Irish players - encapsulated a day when the "home" team took an early advantage, establishing a 5-3 lead after the first day.

Ballesteros, for one, refused to be defeatist. "We're not too far back, two points is not too much," insisted Ballesteros, who decided to sit out the first day's play but who will enter the fray today when renewing his partnership with Jose Maria Olazabal in the fourballs.

In terms of crowd appeal, that teaming up of the two Spanish players who hold the best fourballs record in Ryder Cup competition against the Irish duo of Padraig Harrington and Paul McGinley will add an edge to proceedings.

"I wouldn't be surprised if 99 per cent of the crowd watched that particular game. I knew Seve would play fourballs with Ollie and I am just glad we have some strength against them. Padraig and Paul are probably our strongest pairing," said Montgomerie, who took a full part in the first day's play and deputised firstly Andrew Oldcorn and then Ian Woosnam to keep a captain's eye on things.

On a day that stayed dry but grew gradually colder, with a wind sufficiently strong to make club selection problematic, the morning greensomes finished level and it was only in the afternoon foursomes that Britain and Ireland edged ahead. Crucially, as Ballesteros had forewarned in midweek, the three Irish players played key roles. Harrington and McGinley won two matches out of two while Clarke, who had lost in the greensomes, teamed-up again with Lee Westwood in the afternoon foursomes and proceeded to play the best golf of all.

There had been a doubt that Clarke would be able to play two matches in the one day. He spent Thursday evening in the physiotherapy trailer having his right knee strapped, a legacy of walking the undulating Augusta National course in soft weather. After losing yesterday's greensomes, however, there was no suggestion of him not playing in the foursomes.

"It was a bit of a gamble, playing Darren twice, but Darren and Lee were so annoyed at lunchtime that I had to put them out again," remarked Montgomerie.

It was to prove a wise move. Unlike Ballesteros, who could play a full captain's role, moving from one match to another, Montgomerie had to focus on his own game - with much glancing towards leaderboards - and rely on his deputies. "If this has proved anything, it is that it would be absolutely impossible to be a playing captain in the Ryder Cup. This is so much of a drain," he said.

As it happened, the Scot's appraisal of the leaderboard would have shown that Clarke and Westwood were in total command of their foursomes match with Alex Cejka and Thomas Bjorn. Not only that, but they produced six birdies and an eagle to give the afternoon serving a nice dollop of cream on the dessert and more than made up for the sour taste left by their morning defeat to Raphael Jacquelin and Thomas Levet.

"We felt we threw away the greensomes match," observed Westwood. To which Clarke added, "yes, and we were fired up (in the afternoon) to make amends". All of which is an indication of the sort of team spirit that Montgomerie has attempted to instil into his team.

And few players demonstrated the spirit better than Harrington and McGinley. In each of their two matches, the two Dubliners were required to go to the final green in order to win. With the physical and emotional hangovers of Augusta, the record of two wins from two matches was to be highly commended.

With Ryder Cup captain Sam Torrance among the official observers, it was a telling contribution. "I think if we show the right amount of form going into the Ryder Cup, we will be partners," opined Harrington.

In the greensomes, Harrington and McGinley had a one-hole win over Cejka and Mathias Gronberg and, in the foursomes, won the 18th - which proved to an extremely tough finishing hole with not one pairing managing anything better than bogey - with a bogey to the double-bogey of Jacquelin and Levet.

All in all, the Britain and Ireland team could be satisfied with their day's work. "I'd have taken any lead at the start of the day," Montgomerie said. As Ballesteros would no doubt tell him, it's winning at the end that matters. "There is still a long way to go. Eighteen matches? Anything can happen," said the Spaniard.