SANDY LYLE, without a tournament win for almost four and a half years, had a spring back in his step when a four under par 68 left him only two shots behind Australian Steve Elkington after the opening round of the prestigious US Players' Championship at Sawgrass in Florida.

While Nick Faldo bogeyed his last two holes for a 71 and Colin Montgomerie double bogeyed the short 13th after reaching four under and had to be content with a 70, 1987 winner Lyle birdied two of the last three holes to put himself in joint seventh place.

Between him and 1991 champion Elkington are five Americans - Fuzzy Zoeller, Mark Calcavecchia, David Edwards, left hander Russ Cochran and Open champion Tom Lehman.

Ian Woosnam managed only a 76 and Sam Torrance an even more disappointing 78.

Lyle has slumped to a lowly number 190 in the world rankings since the heady days of winning the Open in 1985 and both the US Masters and Players' Championship two years later. He has not played in the Ryder Cup for a decade, but watching Tiger Woods on television has prompted a change in the Scot's swing in the last few weeks, and for his return to Sawgrass he also decided to ditch the broomhandle putter he had been using for nine months.

Lyle said he may yet return to it, but there will be no need on this evidence as he sank seven birdie putts, five in the last eight holes. He outscored Woods by three strokes. A bogey at the 10th left the 39 year old, back as a member of the US Tour now, only level par. He then splashed out of sand to five feet at the long 11th and made a 15 footer at the next.

A 190 yard seven iron to six feet at the downwind 14th took him to three under, but he then went over the 15th green with the same club and had his third bogey of the day. But far from letting it dent his confidence, he hit straight back with a long drive and three iron onto the green at the 497 yard 16th. He two putted for a birdie and made another from 12 feet at the 17th.

"I saw Tiger Woods swing with his left arm ram rod straight and so I've done a little change," he said. "It seems to have helped my scatter pattern is not as bad. That round was very pleasing. My form's not been good this season but I hit the ball well and didn't three putt."

Lyle has the most bizarre record at Sawgrass, where prizemoney this weekend is a staggering £2.25 million over £400,000 of it to the winner. Aside from winning 10 years ago, he has missed the halfway cut on nine of his other to visits and stated: "The bad memories far outweigh the good. But conditions (still and soft) are similar to when I won. It makes it target golf, but the fairways are narrow and the rough is dense. You must drive well."

Late starter Montgomerie had only the second air shot of his career at the 13th, going right under a chip. He dropped another shot at the next, but birdied the 16th and said: "I will take that. It was very tricky there were spike marks all over the place and when "the sun goes down they look awful."

Faldo also looked set to be right in the thick of things when he turned in 33, but missed the green at the 215 yard eighth (his 17th) then pitched into sand at the ninth for a bogey six. "I turned a nice 67 into a 71," said Faldo, who defends his Masters title in a fortnight.

His two three at the 17th and 18th were, remarkably, seven strokes better than Sam Torrance, who dumped his tee shot into the lake at the 17th and after bunkering his next attempt made a triple bogey six then double bogeyed the 18th. A bad day was made even worse when he slumped to a seven at the ninth, twice being in sand.

"Disastrous again," was his first comment. Torrance, now on a slimming diet of fruit and cabbage soup and off alcohol, has missed three halfway cuts already this season and also missed the Dubai Desert Classic altogether because of gout. Woosnam said: "I didn't play very well. I don't think I ever have here." In seven appearances at the course he has bowed out early four times.

Elkington, who beat Montgomerie in a play off for the US PGA title two years ago, double bogeyed the 18th midway through his round but either side of that had eight birdies.