Irish hopes rest with Mac attack

There will be no Darren Clarke or Padraig Harrington for the expected huge crowds to cheer on in the last two rounds of the Irish Open in Killarney, but Rory McIlroy and Graeme McDowell plan to fill the void.

McIlroy, not backing down in the slightest in his Twitter row with former European tour player Jay Townsend, grabbed three late birdies for a second-round 68 today.