ST. JAMES, Barbados -- At 26, Marcel Siem partner is young enough to be Bernhard Langer's son. And that could be a good omen for the Germans at the World Golf Championships-Barbados World Cup.

After all, Langer, who will celebrate his 50th birthday in August, just won the Del Webb Father/Son Challenge on Sunday. And the other half of that winning team, his son Stefan, is on the bag this week at Sandy Lane.

So Langer must be young at heart –-- and he certainly can still play. The two-time Masters champion made four birdies on Thursday as the Germans shot a 6-under 65 that left them one stroke off the lead in the $4 million event.

“Every once in awhile the golf ball doesn't know how old I am, so that's a good thing,” the relaxed Langer said. “Every once in a while I play pretty good. I played (well) last week. I brought a bit of confidence into this week and made some good putts today.

Feature content
FREE video: WGC-Barbados World Cup round one highlights Shot of the Day: WGC-Barbados Rd. 1 More FREE video

“That's what it's all about.”

Langer is a former World Cup champion, teaming with Torsten Gideon to win the title in 1990. A member of 10 European Ryder Cup teams and captain of one, Langer says he enjoys team competition but he hasn’t played the World Cup since 1996.

“Every once in a while you have to stay home and get to know your kids and your wife, too,” he explained.

Siem, on the other hand, has played in two World Cups -- tying for fourth with Alex Cejka in 2003 and sharing seventh the following year when he played with Kariem Baraka. It’s safe to say, Siem is a tad more nervous this year.

“To be honest, yesterday evening was my most exciting Wednesday I've ever had in my life,” he said. “I felt pressure already, but I think it's getting better and better.”

Langer turned and patted Siem reassuringly on the shoulder. “No pressure, we're here for fun,” the veteran said with a smile.

It’s clear, though, Siem is soaking up everything he can this year. “I learned a lot,” he said eagerly. “Like in the practice round yesterday -- how he treats the golf course and how he's doing the strategy and just measuring the wind things and everything.”

Langer was hands-on Thursday as Siem fought a wayward swing much of the round. The young German, who had never played with Langer before Wednesday, had picked up a reverse pivot, and Langer helped him sort it out.

“I asked him if he saw that and he said right away, yeah, it is definitely this mistake,” Siem said. “If you know what you're doing wrong, it's quite easy to make it better afterwards. ... I'm a feeling player, I know my body and (if) Bernhard says this mistake I know how to handle.”