Lundberg climbs leaderboard at Irish Open

Welshman Jamie Donaldson had company at the top even before he teed off in the final round of the Irish Open at Royal Portrush today.

Swede Mikael Lundberg packed five birdies and an eagle – plus a bogey – into the opening eight holes to catch Donaldson at 12 under par.

After morning rain, conditions had vastly improved as the overnight leaders began in front of another sell-out crowd of around 30,000 for Northern Ireland’s first staging of the event since 1953.

Padraig Harrington was the leading home hope, joint third after 54 holes only two back.