The Europeans are strumming their way to the top. They need to win just two matches today to retain the Royal Trophy in what appears to be a one-sided rout. Yesterday, they kept Asia at a distance to win the four-ball segment 3-1 and extended their overall lead to 6-5-1.5.

A large number of fans showed up at the Amata Spring Country Club yesterday to lend support to the downcast Asians but that did not deter the rampaging Europeans from dominating.

"We need only two points and I'm confident with the way things have worked out,'' said European captain Seve Ballesteros.

With their backs against the wall, the Asians will have to pray for a miracle. They need to win seven of the eight singles matches today to prevent Europe from retaining the title. Joe Ozaki still has faith in his boys to turn things around today.

"The position we are in is not good for us but I will tell my boys to focus and play their best golf for the sake of fans. They played better today but will have to do even better tomorrow,'' Ozaki said.

Thongchai Jaidee and Prom Meesawat put Ryder Cup experts Darren Clarke of Ireland and Lee Westwood of England to the test before squaring the first match.

In fact, the Thai duo trailed their more elite opponents most of the afternoon but finally found their way out, thanks to the splendid performance of Cup debutant Prom, who fired six birdies including the crucial one on the 15th that got his side back into the game.

Asia's biggest flops were Tetsuji Hiratsuka of Japan and Thailand's Thaworn Wiratchant, who blew away a three-stroke advantage on the front nine to fall to Anthony Wall of England and Paul McGinley of Ireland.

The turnaround happened on the 12th hole as Thaworn missed a birdie putt whereas McGinley sank a birdie and lifted the spirits of his side by levelling for the first time. Westwood then picked up a birdie at hole 16 to gain the upper-hand and secured it until the end, extending his unbeatable team event record to 12.

Swedes Johan Edfors and Henrik Stenson were the only Europeans who had not been tested at all. They put in a solid performance right from start, leaving the pair of YE Yang of South Korea and Toru Taniguchi of Japan scrambling the whole time before prevailing 2&1.

Asian No 1 Jeev Milkha Singh of India and SK Ho of South Korea had a one-shot lead over Niclas Fasth and Robert Karlsson of Sweden but a late comeback by Ryder Cup player Karlsson dashed the hopes of the Asians to strike the first blood.

Karlsson showed his class, hitting a shot that landed half a foot away from the par-3 17th hole before firing it home for a birdie to draw the match.

Ozaki praised his boys for raising the level from Friday but regretted two possible points from the Thongchai-Prom and the Singh-SK Ho pairings.

"Obviously every Asian player played better than yesterday. We had two good matches that went into the 18th hole but the European players were strong. We had the chance to draw but we could not make it," said the Japanese skipper, who complimented Ballesteros' side.

Despite a big advantage, Ballesteros would not get carried away as he was still aware of the fight Asia put up last year. The hosts, down 2-6 from foursomes and four-ball, crawled back in the singles and lost 7-9 on the final day.

"It was exciting. Asians were much stronger. I am happy we are leading. But it is not over yet as there are still eight more points in the singles on Sunday. We don't know what will happen tomorrow."

Prom, 22, from Hua Hin, stole the limelight yesterday with his birdie binge. His card would have been spotless had he not bogeyed the last.

"Birdeing all par five holes gave me a lot of  confidence. I putted very well and hit good wedge shots. If Thongchai had made a couple of good putts, we could have won,'' said Prom, nicknamed "Big Dolphin", who drew the largest crowd yesterday.

"Seeing such a big crowd gave me extra motivation. I was excited at the beginning to be playing against class players such as Clarke and Westwood. It's been a wonderful experience,'' added Prom, who according to Ozaki has a bright future.

With yesterday win, Stenson prolonged his Royal Trophy winning streak to 5-0. The Swede doesn't think Europe's commanding lead would keep the spectators away.

"The Asians will come out firing like last year. But it would have been more fun for the Asian fans if the results had been closer. However, it's not over yet," he said.

Lerpong Amsa-ngiam

The Nation

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