Irish duo frustrated at failure to fire

Graeme McDowell and Pádraig Harrington both have work to do in today’s US PGA Championship second round if they want to avoid early flights home from Valhalla.

Both of the Irish Major winners shot two-over-par 73s to open their accounts in the final Major of the year and each of them left the recorder’s office eight shots back of early clubhouse leaders Lee Westwood and Kevin Chappell and cutting frustrated figures on a hot and humid day in Kentucky.

Given his recent form in claiming five top-10 finishes in a row, including victory at the French Open last month, McDowell had more reason to feel disappointed and that was evident as he declined to talk to the media following a round featuring two birdies, two bogeys and a double-bogey six at the par-four second hole, the 11th of his day having started at the 10th.

Indeed that start over the back nine did not get off to the most auspicious of starts, McDowell missing the fairway of the par-five 10th off the tee, and avoiding it with his second shot before bunkering short of the green with his third. That he managed to get up and down from there, his par putt dropping from 10 feet, was a relief and McDowell appeared to resume normal service with a birdie at his fourth, the par-four 13th, stemming from an excellent wedge into the island green that led to a successful 15-foot putt.

Alas, the Portrush golfer gave that shot straight back after missing the par-three 14th green off the tee and he went into arrears two holes later, three-putting from 30ft.

There were other miscues, a fairway wood at the par-five 18th, McDowell’s ninth hole, landing short and in a greenside bunker well below the green, from which he could only reach the fringe.

Yet the Irishman still got up and down from there.

He was not so fortunate at the second hole, where missing the fairway left off the tee and again with his second shot forced him to lay-up before a two-putt double bogey.

A par-five hole eventually produced a much-required birdie at the seventh, McDowell sending in a wedge with his third shot to 12ft, from where he putted out. It got the 2010 US Open champion back to two over for the day but was not enough to ease his frustration.

Harrington, who had teed off one group ahead in the company of fellow former PGA champions Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods, would probably have gladly skipped his media duties as well and presented a heavy-hearted account of his opening 73 that at least finished on a high with an excellent bunker shot to four feet that was good enough to save par at the par-four ninth.

“I really didn’t get much out of it,” Harrington said of his first-round 73. “Probably up until the last hole, very much every hole, was the worst I could’ve done at that hole.

“So it’s a little bit disappointing. A number of holes, I played them half-decently and ended up as bad as I could’ve done on them. I played well enough possibly to shoot two under par.”

Harrington was pleased to report the fear he expressed pre-tournament of getting in his own way mentally had not materialised.

“It was great, very happy with that. I saw some really good stuff on that side,” he added.

Yet there was still plenty to test the Dubliner’s resolve having turned for home at one under par thanks to birdies at the par-four 12th and 17th holes either side of a bogey four at the 14th.

He had done well to save par at the 18th having sent his tee shot on the par-five into a right-side water hazard but his inward nine did him no favours at all, four bogeys in six holes from the first only marginally rescued by a birdie at the par-three eighth and his final-hole flourish.

“At the first, I hit one straight down the pin and it cost me two shots. That was painful. It looked like I was going to stiff it but to end up taking five once you’ve hit it in the trap, that was a tough break.

“Again, five, six and seven, I’d three fives and they were all bad fives.

” I’d a lovely chip in to the par-five, I was telling it to get up the hole but, somehow, it ran eight feet by and I missed the putt.

“I hit a good bunker shot on the previous hole and put my tee shot pretty much where I wanted to on the fifth and couldn’t get up the green out of the lie.

“That’s the way it goes, just a lot of good stuff but I obviously need to score better with how I played.”