Plenty to smile about for in-form Harrington

IT is not difficult to spot which Ryder Cup star has been enjoying himself most back at The Belfry so far this week.

Pádraig Harrington takes a two-stroke lead over defending champion Angel Cabrera into today's third round of the Benson and Hedges International Open.

And not even a late double bogey was going to take the smile off his face.

"It would have been nice to be four ahead, but coming here I never expected to be leading, so I can't complain," said Harrington after adding a 68 to his opening 67 for a nine under par halfway total of 135.

The Dubliner, one of the 10 heroes from last September's win taking part, was distinctly worried about his swing after missing the halfway cut in the Masters last month and then taking three weeks off.

But apart from hooking his drive into the lake on the 428-yard eighth, his 17th, Harrington fully justified his position as the only European currently in the world's top 10.

So while three of his cup team-mates Darren Clarke, Thomas Bjorn and Pierre Fulke missed the cut and of the others only Colin Montgomerie and Bernhard Langer managed to get under par, Harrington took over at the top from European tour rookie David Dixon.

When he turned in 33 and then eagled the 538-yard third for the second day running, Harrington had the chance to set the course record. That would have been only fitting after what happened in the event in 2000.

In that year's third round he put himself in the record books with a 64, only for it to be erased when he was disqualified the next morning after the discovery that he had forgotten to sign his first round scorecard.

Montgomerie hopes he has his bad stretch out of the way too. He was lying fourth with four to play, but bogeyed two of them and then went from sand to water for a closing double bogey six on the ninth.

"Never mind," he said. "We'll get it going tomorrow."