Shane Lowry will lead the Irish challenge into the weekend at golf's Valderrama Masters.

Tournament host Sergio Garcia claimed a share of the lead after the first round of his belated title defence in the Andalucia Valderrama Masters.

Tournament host Sergio Garcia claimed a share of the lead after the first round of his belated title defence in the Andalucia Valderrama Masters.

Tyrrell Hatton defended his Alfred Dunhill Links Championship title at St Andrews after a final-round 66 secured a three-shot victory.

Tyrrell Hatton defended his Alfred Dunhill Links Championship title at St Andrews after a final round 66 secured a three-shot victory.

Given the summer he’s had, this seems like a quiet week for Paul Dunne.

Rory McIlroy’s injection of golfing Hollywood into the Irish Open was manifestly evident approaching 8am yesterday, as elements of the game’s royalty limbered up to unleash their opening shots of the 2015 renewal.

The third round of play is under way at the Irish Open in Fota Island.

Robert Rock has experienced more than his share of pain and suffering at the Irish Open but the affable Englishman is slowly piecing together another challenge for one of the European Tour’s historic titles at Fota Island.

The Irish Open has not one but three homegrown contenders at Fota Island Resort as Graeme McDowell leads the pursuit of halfway leader Mikko Ilonen.

Graeme McDowell hopes it will be 13th time lucky in the Irish Open this weekend as Rory McIlroy made an early exit from the event for the second year in succession.

Graeme McDowell and Rory McIlroy carded contrasting days at day two of the Irish Open in Fota Island.

Three birdies and one bogey in 15 holes keeps Padraig Harrington within three shots of the lead so far and well placed for the weekend.

Graeme McDowell admitted it was a pleasant surprise to be in contention for the Irish Open after moving into a share of the lead on Friday.

Graeme McDowell is in the clubhouse with a score of eight-under, after a five-under round today, giving him a share of the lead.

Graeme McDowell now sits at the top of the leader board at eight-under on day two of the Irish Open in Fota Island.

Graeme McDowell set about improving his poor Irish Open record as the second round got under way in more glorious sunshine on Friday.

Play is underway at Day Two of the Irish Open in Fota Island.

Robert Rock fully understands he will always be remembered as the fall guy in this country when Shane Lowry pulled off his sensational victory as an amateur in the 2009 Irish Open at Baltray.

Shane Lowry is hoping his most demanding schedule in two years will enable him to contend at Fota Island next month when he bids to win the second Irish Open of his career.

For a second time in three years Rory McIlroy has seen Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship glory snatched from his grasp due to a rules blunder.

A rules blunder by Rory McIlroy left him only able to claim a "moral victory" for the second time in three years today.

It was the most English of distances — a couple of paces less than a cricket pitch — yet for Paul Casey the 20-yard walk to pull the ball out of the hole on the 18th green on the Montgomerie Course was the most pleasant of journeys.

Sleeping on Saturday evening would not have come easy to the top two players on the eve of their final round of the 2013 Irish Open.

The title sponsor that Pádraig Harrington says he has up his sleeve, and anyone who may be contemplating pumping millions into the Irish Open prize fund, will not have been enthused by the leaderboard in Maynooth yesterday.

Paul Casey today claimed the 12th European Tour title of his career in dramatic fashion after overturning a four-shot deficit in the final round of the Irish Open.

There are no Irish players in the top ten after round three of the Irish Open.

Shane Lowry today carried home hopes into the third round of the Irish Open after Ireland’s four major champions all missed the halfway cut at Carton House.

Shane Lowry cast himself in the role of Irish Open messiah once more when he finished with a roof-raising brace of birdies to ease the pain of a major exodus by Rory McIlroy and the rest of Ireland’s Big Five at a wind-blown Carton House.

It was billed as a week to celebrate the achievements of our major champions, but yesterday the mood at the Irish Open turned sour, a slow funeral procession of sorts if you like, with the ultimate failure of all four champions as well as next year’s Ryder Cup captain, Paul McGinley.

Rory McIlroy will head into the Open Championship at Muirfield on the back of a missed cut at the Irish Open – and was joined in making an early exit by fellow major winners Graeme McDowell, Padraig Harrington and Darren Clarke.

Shane Lowry has finished with back-to-back birdies to move into contention at the half-way stage of the Irish Open.

Shane Lowry remains the leading Irishman on day two of the Irish Open.

Peter Uihlein and Robert Rock share a two shot lead at the Irish Open , they are nine under after 18 and 17 holes respectively.

Shane Lowry might have become just the third amateur to win on the European Tour at Baltray in 2009, but he’s not piling his cash on a fairytale repeat from one of the quartet of amateurs at Carton House this week.

An eight-under-par round of 63 helped the in-form Richard Sterne set the early pace on the opening morning of the Joburg Open.

Former champion Shane Lowry believes playing this year’s Irish Open on home ground at Carton House can help him regain the European Tour title he first won as an amateur four years ago.

Welshman Jamie Donaldson, the man who recently sent Robert Rock a picture of his US Masters invitation just to wind him up, has now succeeded him as winner of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship.

Tiger Woods was hit with a controversial two-stroke penalty today and is now poised to join world number one Rory McIlroy in missing the halfway cut at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship.

Justin Rose came out of the shadows of Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy again today to underline what a force he has also become in golf.

Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods – multi-millionaire Nike stablemates now and golf’s two biggest attractions – go head to head in Abu Dhabi tomorrow in their first competitive round of the year.