Kiwi goes solo to claim lead

New Zealander Michael Campbell was excused for thinking that nobody liked him today as he grabbed the early second-round lead in the Smurfit European Open at the K Club near Dublin.

Campbell’s playing partners Pierre Fulke and Phillip Price - both members of Europe’s Ryder Cup side in two months’ time - both walked off the course.

Fulke, dead last after his opening 82, was the first to go after eight holes. He had dropped to 12 over and told Campbell he had a problem with his lower back, although a wrist injury was the official reason given for the Swede’s withdrawal.

‘‘Wrist, back - it’s all connected somehow,’’ joked Campbell.

Ten minutes later Price, himself eight over and with little chance of making the halfway cut either, told the Kiwi that he did not think he should go on because of a neck strain.

It left Campbell playing on his own, but only for a hole. Price walked with him to mark his card, then handed it to American Fred Funk, who was asked by an official to drop back from the group ahead.

‘‘It was an incredible day,’’ said Campbell after adding a 71 to his opening 68 for a five-under-par halfway total of 139.

‘‘It’s the first time I’ve had three professional partners on one day and had one of my fellow peers watch me.

‘‘I said to Fred that nobody on the European Tour seemed to like me - but it panned out nicely in the end.

‘‘Pierre and Phillip were both apologetic and there’s no animosity whatsoever. You have to look after your own health and there’s two big weeks coming up with the Scottish Open and Open.’’

Campbell feels it is time he got into the thick of things at a major again, having gone close in the Open at St Andrews in 1995.

‘‘I’ve made only one cut in the last six majors (it’s actually one in the last eight) and it’s very, very frustrating. I know I’ve good enough to win.

‘‘I still think about 1995. If you don’t you’re not human. On the surface Jean Van de Velde makes jokes about Carnoustie (in 1999), but it must be killing him.’’

Half the field were only just setting off when Campbell finished his round today - among them Colin Montgomerie and Greg Norman at three under - but he held a one-stroke lead over England’s Barry Lane, Welshman Jamie Donaldson and overnight leaders Jarrod Moseley and Darren Fichardt.

Defending champion Darren Clarke improved four strokes on his opening 74 to qualify comfortably at level par. His 70, in fact, was the best round of the morning.

Another to leave early - three quit yesterday - was former European number one Ronan Rafferty. Already nine over par and heading out, the Ulsterman was disqualified when he discovered - after teeing off at the eighth - that he had played the wrong ball on the previous hole.

Irish club professional John Dwyer, brother of Cheltenham Gold Cup winning jockey Mark, shared the lead for a while at five under, but then came a bogey at the fifth and double-bogey six on the next.

Sweden’s Jarmo Sandelin was celebrating when he holed-in-one with a six-iron at the 173-yard eighth. It won him a £20,000 car.