Clarke’s battle of wounded knee
Having played himself to within a stroke of the lead at the halfway stage of the Smurfit European Open, the 36-year-old Ulsterman hobbled off the course having aggravated an injury to his left kneecap and had to sit down before he could speak to the assembled media.
The problems he was enduring weren't readily apparent on the golf course, where he struck the ball beautifully and was fully justified in believing that his efforts merited a lot better than a one under par round of 71. Nevertheless, Clarke accepts that he is perfectly positioned on four under going into the weekend, just one adrift of Denmark's Thomas Bjorn and the little-known 29-year-old Welshman Jamie Donaldson. Clarke is joined on four under by last year's Nissan Irish Open champion Brett Rumford; Englishmen Graeme Storm and Jonathan Lomas and another Dane, Anders Hansen, winner of the PGA Championship in 2002.
"I picked up this injury in the gym at the Forest of Arden in early May and I'm not sure what it is," he said. "It's at the front of my patella and it will be alright for tomorrow. It's fine when I'm hitting the ball, it's only when I'm walking between shots that I have a little bit of a problem.
"I'm pleased with my score. I didn't expect to be as much in contention as I am. I played better today than I did yesterday, gave myself a lot of chances, burned the edges a lot and still stayed very patient. 71 is a good score today.
"This is not the same golf course on which I shot 60 six years ago, although to have done that does instil a little extra confidence. It's a much sterner test. You can't get away with an awful lot. It's much too early to think about winning. Coming into the week, winning was not part of the process at all. I'll just go and play and if it happens, it happens. I'm probably a little more relaxed, I gave myself a lot of chances and if they went in, they went in, if not, so be it. I'd like to be more like that all the time. A calmer, cooler Darren? I don't know, extenuating circumstances I suppose."
A reference, of course, to the ongoing battle against cancer being waged by his wife Heather. Twelve months ago Thomas Bjorn had personal troubles of his own. They were of a psychological nature and it will be readily recalled how he slumped dejectedly off The K-Club south course, his mind frazzled, tears in his eyes, fearful of what the future might hold and talking about how he was being "devoured by my demons." Twelve months on he is a different man, holder of the British Masters title and after yesterday's round of 69, he is also ideally poised to challenge for his second high profile tournament victory of the current season.
"I have tried to forget that golf course (his troubles last year were on the neighbouring South course) but yeah, in a year there's a lot of guys who go through stuff like that," he mused. "You can deal with it in different ways. You can stand on the driving range and try to battle your way through it or you can go home and get a bit of perspective on things. I chose the second option and I think it was the best thing I ever did. I was going through a rough spot and I couldn't really see my way through it.
"I went home and said, 'let's get back to what I'm good at' and it didn't take long to start playing well again. I put it behind me. I played with Michael Campbell at the Heineken Classic and I think he will be the first to say he wasn't pretty. I honestly thought he had a big problem there, but he didn't look like he had many problems a couple of weeks ago. So it changes quickly and good players do that. It's eventually a question of saying 'I am going to do this'.
"I always thought Michael and I were very similar. We go up and down in our golf. We don't always perform as well as we should do and then all of a sudden we will go and perform very, very well. I think it's a question of the desire if we do the work we'll be fine. We are the type of guys who lose our games very quickly and can't understand why. Michael learned from it. I know what I have to do, that I have to work harder, and when I'm tired, to spend some time at home. I'm a stronger person now."
Credit to Campbell, he went on the course yesterday with a far more positive attitude than on Thursday and was rewarded with a solid even par 72 that left him on two over par and two within the cut off mark. Four of the starting Irishmen, Clarke, Damien McGrane (who has had only two bogeys in 36 holes and shot 71 to be only two off the lead), Gary Murphy and Graeme McDowell are around for the weekend. With the field very tightly bunched, all have every hope of departing the Co Kildare venue with large dollops of the €3.4 million prize fund.
However, the two major pre-tournament Irish hopes, Padraig Harrington and Paul McGinley (both plus 9) have departed.
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