McGinley makes hay as Clarke labours

Paul McGinley and Darren Clarke went in opposite directions in the Nissan Irish Open at a windswept Co Louth today.

McGinley, having survived the halfway cut with nothing to spare at level par, charged through the field with a superb six under par 66.

Pre-tournament favourite Clarke, meanwhile, crashed out of contention at three over following a six over par 78.

As for Padraig Harrington, the other main Irish hope for a first home win in the event since John O’Leary in 1982, he was a mixture of both.

The world number eight turned in 40, but when he then birdied five of the next seven holes he was suddenly back in with a chance at five under.

That was because Australian Peter Lonard, three clear of the field at 12 under par, came to grief with a triple bogey six on the 163-yard seventh and fell back alongside Scotland’s Stephen Gallacher, nephew of former Ryder Cup captain Bernard.

McGinley began the day in joint 67th position, but he was all the way up to joint eighth as the leaders, all struggling in the worsening conditions, headed for the turn in their third rounds.

His round re-ignited his hopes of keeping his Ryder Cup place.

Since knee surgery in April the Dubliner, match-winning hero of The Belfry two years ago, has slipped to 17th in the points race and said: “I’ve had a lull the last month, but that’s part of the game and you have to deal with it.

“I will have them again, but hopefully today is the start of a run in the other direction.

“If I’m going to make the team again I’m going to have to have a lot of rounds like that, but there’s always a springer from the pack and there are people who make a rush and then slow down.”

David Howell, eighth in the points race, and Ian Poulter, in the 10th and last automatic qualifying spot, both missed the cut last night and so opened the door to those in the chasing pack.

France’s Jean-Francois Remesy was another player McGinley had to overtake and the chances of that happening became brighter when the French Open champion covered the back nine in a horror 44 for a 79. He was all the way back to seven over.

Clarke did find something to congratulate himself on around his performance. He had not lost his temper.

“I give myself a pat on the back for being in a remarkably good mood,” said the Ulsterman, who has started working again with Belgian sports psychologist Jos Vanstiphout.

“I played atrocious and I don’t know why. I was fantastic tee to green the first two days and flushed it on the range, but once I got out there I struck it really badly.”

Lonard had taken a two-stroke lead into the day and that became three when he birdied the long second.

Gallacher, also bidding for his first tour win, bogeyed the seventh, but with Lonard badly missing the green and getting in all sorts of trouble they became tied together at nine under.

That put them one ahead of Lonard’s fellow Aussie Nick O’Hern and Swede Henrik Stenson, who had just five to play.

McGinley, 10 behind at the start, was suddenly only two back as Lonard bogeyed the eighth and Gallacher missed a four-footer at the next.

They were both eight under and part of a three-way tie with Spain’s Miguel Angel Martin, who turned in a one-under 37 and then birdied the 410-yard 12th.

Harrington bogeyed the short 17th, but birdied the par five last for a 71 and five under aggregate.

On finding himself only three off the lead at the time he said: “I am amazed.

“I was 11 behind and the first time this week that I thought I was in the hunt was on the 18th. All my birthdays had come at once.

“It’s taking me six holes to find my focus and my preparation needs to be a bit sharper.

“I’m not getting my head around things and it happens all the time – I’m going out with too complicated a mind and I have to get to breaking point before I start worrying about my score rather than my swing.”

Gallacher had further bogeys on the 10th and 11th, making four in five holes, and the one to take advantage was South African James Kingston, who birdied the 11th and 13th to reach nine under.