Clarke whistles straight into lead
By early afternoon, it looked as if they had taken over the place altogether with Darren Clarke shooting a spectacular course record seven under par, nine-birdie 65 to take the early lead. And to ensure he wasn't lonely up there at the head of affairs, Padraig Harrington birdied his last three holes to sign for a four under par 68. The big disappointment was Graeme McDowell's 77, a bitterly disappointing outcome for the young Ulsterman who had to call a two stroke penalty on himself at the 15th where his caddy unwittingly raked a bunker unaware that his player was in the same hazard albeit 40 yards away.
Clarke's 65 left him one ahead of playing partner Justin Leonard and pre-tournament favourite Ernie Els with Vijay Singh one of those ominously two off the pace.