Accenture World Matchplay: For the first time in one of golf's most distinguished careers Colin Montgomerie, at one time the world number two, is not only struggling, but can be seen to be so doing.

On the eve of the first of the season's big money events, the $7 million Accenture Match Play Championship at La Costa, the Scot has dropped out of the top 50 in the world rankings and is seriously concerned about the effect that will have on his career.

Montgomerie, the winner of seven successive Order of Merit awards, is no longer eligible for the Players' Championship, or the US Open, or the US PGA and views the prospect of not playing in two of the world's four majors with alarm.

"I've got to do something about this," he said yesterday. "It's a problem that, starting from now, has to be addressed."

Montgomerie, at the age of 41, still has major ambitions, particularly with regard to the US Open. He has always regarded that event as the major he is most likely to win, given the necessity for straight driving which has always been his strength.

But, of course, you have to be in it to win it and Montgomerie admits that when he first realised he was no longer eligible it came as a shock.

"I was messing around on my computer. I pressed the button marked world rankings and there it was, I was 57th. I thought 'bloody hell' how did that happen?" he said.

But pressed, he will admit that his position is a fair reflection of the way he has played during the past two years and that if he wants to play in the US Open he may have to go and pre-qualify.

"I'd do that, yes," he says, "it's an event I feel I can win. So if I have to pre-qualify I'll do that."

He has three tournaments before the Players' Championship, itself a $7 million-plus event, to regain a top 50 spot, but knows he has not in the past performed well at La Costa.

Asked if he liked the course, did it fit his game and was it like anything in Europe? Montgomerie replied: "No, no and no." This week, though, for the sake of his immediate future he needs to get to like it and find a way of fitting his game around it. The challenge starts today when he takes on Nick Price.

Since Padraig Harrington dropped out of the world's top 10 this month there is no European representative in there for the first time since the rankings started in 1986. A good performance here would restore the Irishman but he, like Montgomerie, has travelled more in hope than expectation.

Harrington finished 37th in Malaysia last week in his first tournament of 2004 and was not too optimistic about his chances against Japan's Toshi Izawa in the first round.

"I struggle in this event," said Harrington, who took nine weeks off at the end of last year.

"It's early in the year and I struggle on the course. I always take a while to get back into it but you have to start somewhere. I hope to play well but I'm not competitive enough, not sharp enough."

He added: "My record here is a long way from terrific. I've played four times and lost in the first round three of them and made the second round once."

That is identical to Montgomerie's record. He also doesn't like the course. "It's just not a course that jumps out at me. I don't play well on it," he added.

Of the match-play format he said: "You can win playing average golf and lose playing great."

Darren Clarke has been drawn against Eduardo Romero of Argentina.