Colin Montgomerie, who came back from four down to beat holder Michael Campbell yesterday, found himself in even deeper trouble against Ryder Cup team-mate Paul Casey in their HSBC World Match Play championship semi-final at Wentworth today.
Montgomerie, winner in 1999 and three times the Volvo PGA champion on the course, managed only a three-over par 38 for the first nine holes and when Casey birdied the short 10th he moved into a massive five-up lead.
In the other match, meanwhile, Robert Karlsson, another member of Ian Woosnam's side at the K Club next week and trying to become the first Swede ever to reach the Match Play final, was one-up on American Shaun Micheel after nine holes.
Casey, making his debut in the event and with victories already over major winners Retief Goosen and Mike Weir, went ahead when Montgomerie missed the green at the short second and failed to get up and down.
The Surrey golfer did three-putt the next, but his birdie four on the long fourth took him ahead again.
Neither player was on the green in two, but Casey chipped to within two feet of the flag, whereas Montgomerie's bad drive meant he still required a six-iron for his third shot and he could hit it only to 35 feet.
The Scot had further bogeys on the sixth and eighth - he had what almost looked like a shank out of a fairway bunker on the first of those - and Casey hammered home his advantage by making birdie putts of 10 and four feet at the next two greens.
Montgomerie finally had his first success of the day on the 416-yard 11th, but it was only with a par. He had still to record his first birdie and was four down.
Micheel, this week's biggest giant-killer with the scalps of Tiger Woods and world number 10 Luke Donald already under his belt, was saying the same after nine holes.
The former US PGA champion missed a four-foot putt on the first and ran up a bogey six at the fourth to fall two down.
Karlsson, like Casey a debutant in the event, bogeyed the next, chipped in at the seventh, but then had another bogey on the eighth and although he turned in 34 to Micheel's 37 the gap was only one.
The four players were already guaranteed £120,000 for their week's work, but reaching the final was worth £400,000 and winning it £1million - golf's richest first prize. PA
