Golf: Australian takeover

Lucas Parsons and Peter O'Malley moved four shots ahead of the pack after the second round of the Australian Masters.

The two Australians were on 15 under par with totals of 131 for two rounds of the par-73 Huntingdale course, in Melbourne. Tiger Woods added a lacklustre 70 to his first-round 68 to fall seven shots behind.

Woods, who won the Bangkok Classic in Thailand on Sunday, described the Huntingdale layout as "very difficult" despite the abundance of low scores.

"The greens are very hard to read and you must drive the ball in the fairway. It is an absolute must," said Woods, whose round was marred by bogeys on the last two holes that left him sharing ninth place.

Jose Maria Olazabal has still to decide whether he will make his comeback at the Dubai Desert Classic in two weeks' time but he has asked his manager to arrange a visa for him.

He has not played a tournament since September 1995 because of rheumatoid arthritis in both feet, but after treatment from a German sports medicine expert, he has been exercising and practising regularly.