Ireland play catch up after opening 74
The leading score in last year’s first round was 59, but despite being 15 shots worse, Ireland were by no means out of the running.
Harrington, who birdied the first two holes, said: “It was a tough day but we both didn’t play well. I was out of sorts with my swing and it was a tough day not to be on form.
“We got a few bad breaks but I can’t say we deserved a hell of a lot better.
“But we are not out of it, we did fairly well to hang in there.”
Ian Woosnam gave up rum and cokes and afternoon siestas to steer Wales towards a fine round.
Woosnam and partner Bradley Dredge carded a four under par 68 in testing blustery conditions to lie just one shot off the pace in the hunt for the £830,000 first prize.
Germany’s Alex Cejka and Marcel Siem fired a 67 to lead by one as strong winds sent scores soaring.
Woosnam narrowly avoided a confrontation with a snake on just his second hole, and then saw playing partners Chile forced to withdraw from the event after just nine holes.
Woosnam’s six-iron approach to the par five second pitched on the edge of the green but bounced off into a virtually dry water hazard.
That meant he could find his ball and attempt to play on to the green, but only after playing partner Bradley Dredge helpfully pointed out he had just seen a snake a few feet away.
Undeterred, Woosnam attempted to hack out of trouble only for his ball to hit the wooden beams supporting the raised green and bounce further into trouble.
The former world number one then realised he could take a penalty drop on the edge of the green where the ball had last crossed the hazard, and promptly chipped in for an amazing par five.
By then it had become apparent that Chile’s Felipe Aguilar was in severe difficulties with a hand injury.
Aguilar had tripped up when getting into a mini-van on Tuesday and landed heavily on his left hand. Having battled through qualifying, the 29-year-old attempted to play on in support of his team-mate Roy Mackenzie, but was obviously badly hindered when he tried to swing the club. He did not play the first two holes but with Mackenzie in trouble on the third, attempted to hit a tee shot and succeeded only in carving it into trouble.
Aguilar did manage to complete the sixth hole with a double-bogey six, but with Chile six over par by the turn, decided to call it a day.
“I had an X-ray on Wednesday and it was a perfect fracture but the rules won’t let us call up another player so I had to tee it up,” Aguilar said.
“I had cortisone and tried to wrap it up to get the pain away but after nine holes I just couldn’t hit. I only played one complete hole and hit three other balls, one topped, one shanked.
Left to their own devices, Wales were allowed to play through by the group ahead on the 12th hole and Woosnam, who made his World Cup debut in 1980 in Colombia and won both the individual and team title in 1987, carded five birdies to spearhead their recovery from one over after three holes.
Asked what he would have been doing now if he had stayed in Barbados, Woosnam said: “Sitting down on the beach or in a bar drinking a nice rum and coke, or going for a siesta.
“But it didn’t take much persuading to come here. It was nice to come and represent your country again.”
England’s Paul Casey and Justin Rose were going well at three under after 12 holes but then double-bogeyed the 13th and dropped another shot at the 15th.
Scotland’s Paul Lawrie and Alastair Forsyth had been in the first group out and recorded what looked at the time a modest 71. But with the wind strengthening they were soon in the top six with half the field in.
Pre-tournament favourites Jim Furyk and Justin Leonard were one over after 15.
France’s Thomas Levet and Raphael Jacquelin moved into third place with a 69 and Levet summed up the feelings of the whole field ahead of Friday’s foursomes, where only one ball per team is in play.
“There are going to be 22 players having nightmares tonight, it’s going to be terrible.”
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