Ignacio Garrido opens four shot lead after course record

Spain’s Ignacio Garrido broke the Real Club course record by two strokes on Friday to take a commanding four-shot lead at the halfway stage of the Spanish Open.

The 1997 Ryder Cup player rediscovered top form after a poor recent run to produce a faultless second round card of nine-under-par 63, two better than the record set by first round leader Martin Erlandsson of Sweden on Thursday.

Nine birdies took Garrido to 15-under 129, four strokes ahead of Erlandsson, who added a 68 to move to 11-under.

Garrido’s 15-under return for the first two rounds was the third-best ever recorded in the European Tour.

It was a dramatic change in form for Garrido, whose career has faltered since his 2003 European PGA success.

After a tied fourth place in the early-season Abu Dhabi Championship, Garrido slumped with six missed cuts in his last seven tournaments.

The 36-year-old from Madrid insisted his bad run had not worried him.

“I am never worried about my golf,” he told a news conference. “The only thing that would worry me is if I did not have the illusion that I wanted to practice and improve any more.

“And lately, anyway, I’ve been feeling a lot more confidence. In the past months half my rounds have been under par but I couldn’t put all four together, except for Abu Dhabi.

“So I knew my game was there, it was only the mental approach I needed to get right and I’ve done that here so far.”

Erlandsson knew he faced a stiff task when he went out in the afternoon to try to catch Garrido but did not make the best of starts by bogeying the first.

The Swede then came surging back with a birdie-birdie-eagle run from the third to give himself hopes of a maiden victory at the weekend.

“There will be a big crowd for me and Ignacio tomorrow but I’m just going to enjoy it,” Erlandsson said.

Australian 48-year-old Peter Fowler, Paraguayan Marco Ruiz, Briton David Lynn and Spaniard Carlos Rodiles share third place, seven strokes behind Garrido.

Invited American John Daly cheered himself with a closing eagle but the two-times major champion missed the cut by two strokes on one-over after a second round 70.