GROUNDING HIS club on the line of his putt cost Eduardo Romero a share of the first round lead in the Italian Open yesterday. But Padraig Harrington, despite losing his ball at the eighth hole of the (appropriately named) Garda golf course near Brescia, escaped without having penalty shots added to his score.

This bizarre turn of events arose after English professional Carl Mason reported Argentinian Romero for touching the line of his putt with his putter at the short 14th, where he had walked forward to within 10 feet of the hole to essay a practice putt. Tour professionals are prohibited from touching the line of putt except to repair hole plugs or pitch marks, or while addressing their ball.

"I had a clear view from about 12 feet of exactly what Eduardo did," Mason said, and I immediately reported the infringement to the referee behind the green. When Romero, who had six birdies in his first 13 holes, handed in a card of 66, the tournament director, David Garland, was waiting for him.

Romero insisted that he was not aware that he had breached Tour Rule Eight, governing a player's actions on the greens, so Garland sought corroborative television evidence. It was not available, because the cameras were trained elsewhere on local hero Costantino Rocca and Ian Woosnam.

So when the third man in the group, another Englishman, Jonathan Lomas, confirmed Mason's version of events, the official applied a two-shot penalty at the 14th, turning Romero's 66 into a 68, and relegating him to a share of third place.

Mason said: "I was not accusing him of cheating. It was just an inadvertent mistake. But you cannot ground your club on the line of the putt like he did."

Romero, who won the Italian title three years ago, relinquished the lead to South African Retief Goosen who, despite suffering from influenza, had an eagle and four birdies in a blemish-free 66. Woosnam was one shot behind after charging home in 32.

Harrington, Darren Clarke and Raymond Burns were all in the group on 70, although all could easily have been pressing hard on Woosnam's heels.

Harrington had to thank former Walker Cup player Gordon Huddy, one of the guest referees from the Royal and Ancient, for avoiding a card-wrecking incident at the eighth, which he was playing as his 17th. His pushed tee shot hit a tree and his ball dropped down onto a cart path at the bottom of a steep bank. The official was stationed in the area because of the likelihood of rulings being required, and he was indeed required to make one shortly afterwards.

Italian Massimo Florioli, another member of the three-ball, had struck his ball into a nearby bush, and Huddy hastened to find it. Having done so, he returned to his former position to discover Harrington and his caddie John O'Reilly frantically searching for his ball.

"He told us that it was on the path when he left," said Harrington, who had noticed that a television buggy and a spectator had been there ahead of them. "We assumed that either the ball had been struck by the cart, or that the spectator had picked it up, but the referee was able to determine the exact place where the ball was lying and I was able to put a replacement ball back into play, without penalty," he added.

Harrington was then allowed a free lift from the path, but eventually had to hole from four feet to escape with a bogey five. He almost missed the green at the last, but holed out from 10 feet for the two under par return that immediately made him a contender for this title.

Earlier he had holed from six yards to birdie the 15th and get out in 35, before a wayward second shot to the first green cost him his first stroke against the card.

But he struck back strongly with chip-and-putt birdie fours at the third and fifth, before getting down from 12 feet for his fourth birdie at the seventh.

"I was delighted with that score because my swing is not in too good a shape at the moment and my back is sore," he said.

Clarke, who had four birdies in an outward 33 from the 10th, had eagled the third with a three-wood to eight feet to go four under par, and had a chance from six feet to go five under on the seventh green. But the eighth cost him a double bogey six when he took driver from the tee, and lost his ball in the water hazard that Harrington had been so close to.

Burns also had an eagle at the 16th - but Philip Walton also had a double bogey in his 71 after getting a five-iron flier over the green at the fourth, and that offset five birdies.

Eamonn Darey began with a 30-foot putt, and had twos at the ninth and 17th to return 73, as did Christy O'Connor Jnr, who birdied the last two holes of his morning round.

David Higgins began solidly with 71, but Cork's John McHenry had a fruitless wait as first reserve. There were no late withdrawals to allow him the chance of another appearance.