It was 85 degrees when he left America; here it was about 55 degrees colder.The B & H used to be held at Fulford in York where, in 1988, Peter Baker defeated Faldo in a sudden death play-off Baker wore a tan and a short- sleeved shirt Yesterday he looked like Captain Oates. It yielded every score from an eagle three to a sextuple bogey 11. Anders Forsbrand signed for a six there instead of an eight and was disqualified. Faldo played it with a driver, a two iron over the lake to just short of the green and a chip to two feet.

I imagine it's an absolute nightmare for the amateurs." It is hardly a bed of roses for the professionals.The 17th, a par five of 585 yards, can be played conservatively, by following the fairway around the lake, or can be attacked with an approach shot over the water. Asked if he would observe the tradition, Faldo replied: "Bollocks." In fact, he was pretty chuffed with his performance. He followed the hole in one with birdies at the 17th and 18th for a round of 70, two under par and two behind Miguel Angel Jimenez."My hands started to go from the eighth," Faldo, who wore ski gloves in between shots, said "I couldn't feel where my right hand was on impact That was a great score on a day like that The course is demanding and playing very long. Nick Faldo was already on a nice little earner, in terms of appearance money, for playing in the Benson and Hedges International and after he won the Masters last month a clause about a "performance related bonus" came into play. Yesterday the sponsors might have felt that the largesse was money well spent when Faldo transformed his round with a hole in one. Such strokes of fortune are usually rewarded with a little gift, like a car or a cruise for two but not this week. In any case, Faldo is not short of a car or two and what the players were in need of yesterday was a touch of global warming "Horrible conditions," Colin Montgomerie said "Horrible.

They really are as bad as you find in England.'' Monty, who has shed several stones and has lost a layer or two of insulation, kept repeating himself, just in case you didn't believe him "It was frozen out there Frozen. It's so so cold and the wind chill factor makes it freezing." No doubt about it. Even the teeth of brass monkeys were chattering.Faldo was struggling at two over par and had just bogeyed the 12th. The honour on the 13th tee went to Diego Borrego, followed by Padraig Harrington with Faldo bringing up the rear. The 13th, which has a lake in front of the green, measures 171 yards and Borrego and Harrington both hit a seven iron. In his career Faldo had had six holes in one, all of them with a six iron.

Yesterday his seventh came with a seven iron."I've not won a bloody thing with any of them," Faldo said. "Thanks Benson and Hedges." When an amateur gets an ace, the form is to buy drinks all round in the clubhouse. He trained yesterday but it would be an unnecessary risk to start with him against Hungary.ENGLAND SQUAD (for the Far East tour to play China on May 23 and Hong Kong on May 26): Seaman (Arsenal), Flowers (Blackburn), Walker (Tottenham); G Neville (Man Utd), Adams (Arsenal), Wright (Liverpool), Ehiogu (Aston Villa), Southgate (Aston Villa), Campbell (Tottenham), Pearce (Nottm Forest), P Neville (Man Utd), Anderton (Tottenham), Stone (Nottm Forest), Gascoigne (Rangers), Ince (Inter), Wise (Chelsea), Platt (Arsenal), Lee (Newcastle), Redknapp (Liverpool), Wilcox (Blackburn), McManaman (Liverpool), Ferdinand (Newcastle), Fowler (Liverpool), Barmby (Middlesbrough), Beardsley (Newcastle), Sheringham (Tottenham), Shearer (Blackburn).. Either Dennis Wise or Jason Wilcox is likely to be on the left with Rob Lee replacing David Platt inside them.Alan Shearer is another doubt. Although he is doing 300 sit-ups a day he is still not entirely recovered from his groin operation.