RORY MCILROY, the 20-year-old second favourite for the 3 Irish Open starting at Baltray this morning, was last night taken to task by both Colin Montgomerie and Pádraig Harrington for describing the Ryder Cup as an “exhibition”.

Colin Montgomerie crashed out of the US PGA Championship at Oakland Hills last night, equalling the worst round of his major career.

Robert Karlsson and Jeev Milka Singh made the early running at Oakland Hills with opening rounds of two-under-par 68 at the 90th US PGA Championship.

Graeme McDowell intends to pick the brains of Europe’s 2004 Ryder Cup team as he prepares for the final major of the year at Oakland Hills.

The absence of Tiger Woods is going to be far more noticeable at the final major of the year than it was at the Open.

Newly-crowned US Open champion Angel Cabrera is waiting until next week’s French Open to make his return to the European Tour.

THE YOUNG brigade are having the better of matters in recent times on the European Tour.

BRAY’S Keith Nolan has revived his professional golfing career on the back of a fighting performance in the US Tour School that ended yesterday with the sixth and final round over the PGA West and Jack Nicklaus Tour courses in Florida.

THE Ryder Cup might still be almost three weeks away but there are already fears that the only thing “epic” about the competition’s first staging in Ireland is the hype.

Darren Clarke, so gloomy on the eve of the Quinn British Masters that he nearly quit and headed home from The Belfry, turned it around in stunning fashion today to lead the event.

NINE of Europe’s 2004 Ryder Cup heroes contest the Quinn Direct British Masters at The Belfry this week.

Nine of Europe’s 2004 Ryder Cup heroes contest the Quinn Direct British Masters at The Belfry this week.

THE Irish Open at Carton House on May 18-21 is likely to be the last sponsored by Nissan Ireland, but chief executive Gerard O’Toole is unlikely to declare his intentions until at least the final day of the tournament.

Darren Clarke, who threw away a chance to win the event on the 72nd hole last year, had a terrible opening day of the Verizon Heritage at Hilton Head Island yesterday, closing at five over par.

A brilliant putting display lifted David Toms into a share of the lead with Chad Campbell after the third round of the Sony Open.

TWO years after Tiger Woods and Ernie Els staged an unresolved tension-packed twilight play-off duel in South Africa, someone might finally take sole possession of the Presidents Cup this weekend.

The 2004 Ryder Cup trio of Paul Casey, Miguel Angel Jimenez and Lee Westwood are among a host of names to confirm their participation in the Nissan Irish Open in Co Kildare later this month.

A final group pairing of Nick Dougherty, Colin Montgomerie and Thomas Bjorn produced some enthralling golf at the Caltex Masters in Singapore and, after the lead changed hands several times, it was the former who came out on top at the conclusion of round three.

Overnight leader Nick Dougherty held off the early challenge of defending champion Colin Montgomerie and Thomas Bjorn to hold a two-stroke lead at the halfway point of the third round of the Caltex Masters in Singapore.

Colin Montgomerie is wasting no time re-launching his 2004 Ryder Cup campaign, joining Lee Westwood in the field for the South African Airways Open at Erinvale on January 15-18.

COLIN MONTGOMERIE and Bernhard Langer reproduced their Ryder Cup form to inspire the Rest of the World to a slender 3½ to 2½ lead over the United States after the opening day of the UBS Cup.

Colin Montgomerie and Bernhard Langer reproduced their Ryder Cup form to inspire the Rest of the World to a slender 3 1/2 to 2 1/2 lead over the United States after the opening day of the UBS Cup.

Colin Montgomerie and Bernhard Langer today carried on where they left off in last year’s Ryder Cup on the opening day of the UBS Cup in Georgia.

PAUL McGINLEY walked off the Robert Trent Jones designed course at Adare Manor Hotel & Golf Course yesterday having shot a tidy three under par 69 in the Smurfit IPGA pro-am and described it as one of the finest he had ever played.

SAM TORRANCE has revealed there will definitely be changes to the qualification process for the next European Ryder Cup team.

THE European Tour will unveil a new qualification procedure for the 2004 Ryder Cup early in the New Year after meetings of the tournament committee and the board of directors at Wentworth yesterday examined how to scrap the current outdated system.

Nick Faldo has set himself perhaps the toughest task of his glittering career - winning another Ryder Cup cap.