However, after enquiries into the 32-year-old's eligibility for September at the K Club the European Tour are to study the position. Keith Waters, the tour's director of international policy, said:

"The chances are that he should not be on the list.

"It's probably a mistake, but we need to double and triple-check this and that will be done tomorrow."

Chopra is a former European tour member but never won on the circuit and therefore does not come into the same category as the likes of fellow US Tour players Justin Rose, Jesper Parnevik and Carl Pettersson.

They have all rejoined the European tour as past winners and appear on the Ryder Cup table. Chopra's only victories came on the "second division" Challenge Tour. The administrative error seems to be that he was eligible for Ryder Cup points last season when qualifying started in September, but his membership then expired and he should have come off the list when the new season began.

The Orlando-based golfer was born in Stockholm to a Swedish mother and Indian father but moved to India at age seven and in recent years has made most of his rare appearances on the European tour in Asia. His only tour event actually in Europe in the last five years was the Open at St Andrews last July . . . and he missed the cut.

After two opening rounds of 66 at Cog Hill, Illinois, he was 10 under . . . with Vijay Singh his nearest challenger at eight under. But not for the first time it is Tiger Woods who has the biggest spotlight on him. Woods is seven strokes behind and only 35th, but thanks to a secondround 67 he has two more rounds to build confidence ahead of his defence of the Open championship at Hoylake.

A second successive missed cut . . . something he has never suffered before . . .was a distinct possibility after his opening 72 at Cog Hill.

But the world number one had an intensive session with coach Hank Haney and demonstrated with four birdies in his next six holes that it had been beneficial.

This is just the second tournament Woods has played since the Masters at the start of April. His father Earl died a month later and on his return at the US Open his focus was clearly not back and with back-to-back 76s he took an early exit from a major for the first time in his professional career.

After yesterday's round he not surprisingly looked a lot happier. "Hank and I had to organise a whole bunch of different things, " said Woods.

"I just needed to keep progressing and had to get everything organised. I did that, which is really nice. I drove it great and hit my irons better . . . not great, but better . . . so I'm pretty excited."

He accepts he may have too many players to pass to collect a fourth Western Open title, but to be sharp for the Open is the real target.

Chopra, seeking his first US Tour victory, had his second successive 66 thanks to a back nine of 30 containing seven birdies . . . the last a holed bunker shot on the 18th.

"I feel like I have the capabilities to win, " he said. "The hardest part of winning on the PGA Tour is the mental aspect, believing that you can.

"Each shot is costing 100,000 dollars, where before I'd be lucky if I had made that in a year. That put a lot of pressure on me. People always say it's not your money until you've won it so you're not losing anything, but it's hard to think that way sometimes."