Struggling Els could miss halfway cut
Ernie Els is in danger of missing his first halfway cut on the European tour in six years. The world No3 hit a one-over par 73 in the first round of the Qatar Masters in Doha - seven strokes behind the leader, Pierre Fulke.
As the round came towards its conclusion, Els was not even in the top 80. Only the leading 70 and ties tomorrow night go through to the final 36 holes.
Europe's new Ryder Cup captain Ian Woosnam dropped five shots in the last five holes to record a level-par 72.
Four under par after 14 holes, the Welshman hooked his ball among some rocks in the desert scrub and ran up a triple-bogey seven.
Woosnam dropped two more shots over the last three holes to finish with a level-par 72. That was five behind Australian left-hander Richard Green and Henrik Stenson of Sweden.
"I got absolutely stuffed," Woosnam said.
