Course record earns Garrido four-shot Spanish lead

By Norman Dabell

SEVILLE, Spain (Reuters) - 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.