Simon Dyson needed a good round at Woburn today to stand a chance of making the cut in the Victor Chandler British Masters.

His first round of one over par 73 yesterday left him well down the field but still gave him hope of a decent placing after today's second round.

The damage was done on the back nine when he double bogied the par four 12th and dropped shots at the 14th and 18th.

He was seven shots behind leader Robert Karlsson of Sweden after the first round. Karlsson had today moved onto nine under after the first five holes, four shots clear of Italian Marco Bernardini and Peter O'Malley of Australia.

Karlsson, the 6ft 5in Swede birdied the long 11th - his second hole - and then the tricky 343-yard 12th to go three clear of the field at eight under par early today.

Earlier in his career Karlsson experimented with body psychotherapy, a curious technique where he talked through his fears and anxieties while putting himself through all sorts of contortions.

Then came 'body cleansing'. The 31-year-old began last year with a 21-day fast during which he lost nearly two stones on a diet restricted to white bread and milk.

Without a single top 10 finish all season the benefits were not there to be seen and now Karlsson admits he is back to eating normally.

Having been controversially overlooked for the 1999 Ryder Cup - he finished 11th in the points table, but 12th-placed Andrew Coltart was given a wild card - a win at the Spanish Open in April put him back in contention.

Updated: 11:44 Friday, June 01, 2001