Over three holes here at the Mines Resort yesterday, Padraig Harrington and Paul McGinley watched their playing partners from Argentina improve by no fewer than five strokes. Later, this became a beacon of hope for the Irish, after they had slipped eight strokes adrift of leaders Spain at the halfway stage of the $1.5 million World Cup.

When the Spaniards and their American partners were on the 18th, play was suspended for two hours because of an electric storm. But Santiago Luna and Miguel Martin both went on to card 66s for an aggregate of 12-under-par and a one-stroke lead over the US. Ireland, on four under, were seventh.

For his part, Tiger Woods continued to deliver a handsome return on a $1.1 million appearance fee. Even with a double-bogey six at the 13th, the world number one carded a 68 to share the individual lead with Martin and Phillip Price of Wales.

It gave serious impetus to the expected American threat, especially when Mark O'Meara found sparkling form with a seven-birdie 65.

Woods's experience on the 402-yard 13th graphically illustrated the treacherous nature of the greens. After chipping to within two feet of the target, he was horrified to see the putt career six feet past. And he missed the return.

Meanwhile, Price is giving himself the chance of compensating for the disappointment of 1991 in Rome, where he and Ian Woosnam lost the title by a stroke to Sweden. "After waiting out the storm, I went back to the 17th green and sank an 18-foot putt for an eagle," he said. And despite a bogey on the last, his 67 helped Wales to a share of fourth place with the Argentinians.

By that stage, everybody's favourite, impoverished professional was well finished - and on the lookout for further golf equipment. While sporting new shoes, shirt and slacks, courtesy of various benefactors, Jamaica's Ralph Campbell proceeded to demolish one of his few personal possessions.

After starting on the 10th, he was midway through his homeward journey - the front nine - when frustration with an errant driver reached boiling point. And he proceeded to smash it, before discarding the halves into a nearby pond. Yet the bogeys continued until he had completed a miserable 87.

Ireland's scoring was of a vastly higher quality. But Harrington still spoke of the need of much-improved wedge play if he and McGinley were to hold out hopes of regaining the title they captured at Kiawah Island two years ago.

"These greens are so difficult that you can't bank on making putts of up to 15 feet," he said after a fine 68. Harrington went on: "The challenge is simple: we must get the ball closer to the hole if we're to make more birdies. And we're going to need them after today's scoring which suggests the better players are getting the feel of the course."

McGinley, who continued to struggle with the blade, said: "It's true, we're not holing enough putts. But there's a long way to go and we're not out of it by a long chalk. You can get amazing fluctuations in this format."

For the record, Ireland were at 14 under par, two strokes behind leaders Scotland at the halfway stage at Kiawah. And though only one under par and five strokes behind the eventual winners, England, at this stage in New Zealand, they still challenged strongly for the title on the final day.

Harrington's new-found length was in evidence at the 527-yard third, which he reduced to a drive, four-wood and two putts from 12 feet. And he also birdied the fifth and sixth, holing putts of five feet and 12 feet. Then came his only bogey of the round when he drove into left rough at the difficult eighth.

On the homeward journey, he birdied the short 14th from 10 feet, but had reason to be disappointed over his failure to gain an expected four at the long 17th. There, he missed the green on the left with a three-iron second shot and failed to get up and down.

McGinley had a somewhat scrappy 71 which contained four birdies and four bogeys. One under par for the round at the turn, he dropped a stroke at the long 11th, where a wedge approach plugged under the lip of a bunker. And other shots were lost at the 12th and the short 14th.

The prospect of a rather grim round, however, was lifted by birdies at the 16th and 17th. For the first of these, McGinley had the rare experience of seeing a 20-footer run unerringly into the cup and he then hit the 17th green with a four-wood second shot to set up a two-putt birdie.

But he was denied the pleasure of three in-a-row when, after a beautifully-struck seven-iron approach to the last, his 10-foot birdie effort missed the hole on the high side.

Meanwhile, Sweden revived memories of a remarkable opening day in 1997 at Kiawah, where Per-Ulrik Johansson shot 64 and Joakim Haeggman had a 66 to blitz the field. This time, the exploits came from Jarmo Sandelin with a 65 and Patrik Sjoland on 66 to lift them into third place, from a share of 14th overnight.