Monty Doesn't Like It When They Play That Funky Music

Norman Dabell on Monty's latest run-in, this time with "a burst of disco music."

Montgomerie had put together a solid opening round and needed a birdie on his last hole to lie only four shots off the lead when he three-putted for a bogey to the accompaniment of loud disco music from a nearly tent.

"Is this a ****ing party or a golf tournament?," the 46-year-old Briton fumed after signing for a one-under-par 71 which left him six strokes behind early leader Ricardo Gonzalez of Argentina.

Montgomerie, seeking a tour victory before he leads Europe into battle against the United States in October, received support from playing partner Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano.

"I felt sorry for Monty," the Spaniard told reporters. "The music was a bit much. He'd played really well."

And this Irish Times story notes:

Even before handing in an opening 71, one-under-par, Montgomerie yelled at tournament director Miguel Vidaor after being told that the noise from the tented village had already been turned down once.

“Should never have happened in the first place,” shouted the eight-time European number one before adding, with expletive deleted: “Is this a party or a golf tournament?”

Montgomerie had just three-putted the long ninth and, having bogeyed the 231-yard seventh as well, his hopes of ending more than 22 months without a top-10 finish had taken a real blow.

It came as no surprise in the circumstances that the Scot, famous for his temper, refused to talk to reporters after emerging from the scoring area.