Irish duo look to improve game

RORYMcILROY and Pádraig Harrington will endeavour to put on a show at Lough Erne tomorrow, for the official opening of the Nick Faldo-designed course. It’ll be an exhibition between the two highest-ranked Irish players in the world; but the pair aremore aware than anyone of a recent slide – McIlroy to 26th, Harrington to 16th – that neither would like to see go on much longer.

Indeed, while the pair will trade shots in a match tomorrow where spectators will be allowed walk the fairways with them, both will be looking ahead for improved per- formances when they resume com- petitive play at the WGC-Bridge- stone Invitational in Akron, Ohio, in a fortnight, ahead of the sea- son’s final major, the US PGA at Hazeltine, where Harrington defends his title.

McIlroy has targeted Akron as a place where he can reinvigorate his game.

“It’s a massive tournament with lots of world ranking points and also points for the Race to Dubai,” said the 20-year-old Ulsterman, who finished outside the top-20 in a major for the first time this season with his tied-47th finish in Turnberry. “And then we have the PGA. I think that style of golf suits my game a little better, so hope- fully I can flight the ball high and shoot some low numbers.”

Harrington, McIlroy and Graeme McDowell are all on a competitive break until Akron, where Darren Clarke will also resume play there. However, Clarke is not in the field for the PGA and was disappointed that his performance in Turnberry didn’t strengthen the case of his man- ager, Chubby Chandler, in seeking a special invitation.

“I’d think probably the way I’ve played this year, I don’t deserve an invite, so I’ve got no qualms. But I like Akron and played well there again last year, so hopefully I’ll get on well there,” said Clarke.

There are six Irish players com- peting in this week’s Scandinavian Masters in Malmo. Damien McGrane is joined by Peter Lawrie, Michael Hoey, Gary Murphy, Gareth Maybin and Jonathan Caldwell.