Howell charge puts him in hunt for Irish Open

David Howell put the latest in a long line of near misses behind him today to get right into the thick of things again at the Nissan Irish Open.

The Ryder Cup star, beaten by Thomas Bjorn in a play-off for the British Masters on Sunday, had four birdies in five holes and moved into a share of the second-round lead with Liverpool's Nick Dougherty at Carton House.

Howell, who twice bogeyed the short 18th at the Forest of Arden to give Bjorn his chance, is still without a victory since the 1999 Dubai Desert Classic, but has had more than 30 top 10 finishes since then.

He actually bogeyed two of his first three holes on the back nine in the early morning wind and rain, but while others continued to struggle he picked up shots at the second, third, long fourth and 394-yard sixth.

Dougherty, who shared the overnight lead with Swede Klas Eriksson and is chasing his second victory of the season, managed only 37 for the back nine, but then birdied the short third.

With Eriksson falling back to one under, the pair were a stroke ahead of Welshman Stephen Dodd, Eriksson's compatriot Mattias Eliasson and France's Jean-Francois Remesy.

Howell's Ryder Cup team-mates Lee Westwood and Paul McGinley reached three under as well, but Westwood had a double-bogey seven on the 513-yard 18th, his ninth, and McGinley did the same at the 554-yard 15th.

With four to play they were level par and one under respectively.

Sixteen-year-old amateur Rory McIlroy, a brilliant joint 13th overnight following a 71, was looking to become one of the youngest players ever to make a halfway cut on the European tour.

But the County Down star had a real battle on his hands when he bogeyed five of his first nine holes and fell back to four over.

Last week McIlroy made his tour debut in the British Masters and shot rounds of 82 and 81 to be down in 150th place of the 153 who completed 36 holes.

Yorkshire's Simon Dyson and Argentinian Angel Cabrera were others to taste the lead for a while at three under. Dyson turned in 33, but bogeyed the fourth and fifth, Cabrera had three bogeys in four holes after also covering the back nine in 33.

Jamie Spence, chairman of the European tour's tournament committee, will be at the FA Cup final cheering for Arsenal tomorrow. But he wishes he was playing golf instead.

Spence disqualified himself after realising he had signed for an incorrect score in the first round.

The 41-year-old from Tunbridge Wells, playing on an invitation after losing his tour card last year, bogeyed the short seventh, but his marker put him down for a par three and he did not realise the mistake until it was too late.

"Having dinner last night Roger Chapman mentioned I was down for a 75. I called the tour and went through my card," said Spence, who actually took 76.

"It's the first time I've done that and I'm a silly idiot for not checking the card closer. What a plonker."

Spence will now be taking one of his two sons with him to Cardiff. "I've missed our last two finals because I was playing, so I guess out of darkness shineth light.

"But trust me - I'd rather be still in the tournament."

He is 127th on the Order of Merit and only the top 115 at the end of the season earn cards for next year.

Two weeks ago Spence revealed that he had thought about quitting as chairman because it was turning him into a "crap" golfer.

"Being chairman is a pretty thankless task. Everyone's moaning at you. There's too much moaning, to be honest," he had said.

"I asked some serious questions of myself. I don't want to be a good chairman and crap golfer, but I've decided not to quit. When I'm playing I've just got to concentrate on playing and when players come to me about something I'll tell them to put it in a letter."

A sixth-place finish in the Italian Open then boosted his confidence, but his future remains uncertain.

There was a second disqualification this morning. Swede Christopher Hanell, winner of last year's Madeira Island Open, was down near the rear of the field after an 80, but before teeing off again he was out of the event because he had dropped from the wrong place on the 10th hole.

Course designer Colin Montgomerie (one under), Darren Clarke (two under) and Padraig Harrington (one over) were late starters.

Dougherty had another birdie at the fifth and led by one at five under, but a wild tee shot two holes later brought a bogey and Howell's second successive 70 made him joint leader again.

McGinley's birdies at the 192-yard seventh and eighth - he hit the flag at the first of them - took him back to three under.

Fifth last year, his 69 left him sharing third with Dodd and Eliasson.