GOLF DIGEST:SEVE BALLESTEROS will undergo further brain surgery today to ease swelling from a serious brain tumour, the hospital treating him said yesterday.
"The patient Severiano Ballesteros remains stable (in a serious condition)," Madrid's Hospital La Paz said in a statement, adding that the operation to stop a haematoma (bleeding) and to ease swelling would take place today.
La Paz said the 51-year-old was suffering from an oligoastrocytoma - a tumour that affects two types of brain cell.
Dr Geoff Pilkington, a tumour expert at England's University of Portsmouth, said that type of tumour was very difficult to eradicate but a patient's survival time could be improved by radiotherapy followed by chemotherapy.
Ballesteros, who captured the British Open three times and the US Masters twice, was admitted to hospital earlier this month suffering dizziness and a brief loss of consciousness.
Doctors had to operate a second time, 48 hours after the first operation, to remove a piece of his skull to ease swelling.
Pilkington said surgery was likely needed because of a complication from his original operation on October 14th.
While doctors are operating they will also remove more tumour cells, the hospital said. His situation is complicated by the position of the tumour.
"It is located in an area that requires a very thorough approach of great complexity," the statement said.
•CHALLENGE TOUR: Scotland's Andrew McArthur is intent on shedding his "nearly man" tag after joining Spain's Rafael Cabrera Bello at the top of the leaderboard on day two of the Apulia San Domenico Grand Final.
Having finished 22nd and 27th in the end of term Challenge Tour rankings in successive seasons, and therefore missed out on qualification for the European Tour by the narrowest of margins, McArthur set about banishing the disappointment of the past two years with a round of 65 to move to 10-under-par 132, the same mark as Cabrera Bello who shot 66.
Gareth Maybin is best of the Irish on 137 after a 70 while Michael Hoey and Michael McGeady are on 141 after shooting 68 and 70 respectively.
•US TOUR: Richard Johnson pencilled in eight birdies in a first round 64 to claim the early lead at the Frys.com Open at Grayhawk GC, in Scottsdale, Arizona yesterday.
The Welshman leads by one from Chris Stroud, with Robert Garrigus and Bill Haas a shot further back on 66. Chris Reilly leads a group of six on three-under-par 67.
