The presence of two illustrious names makes it a leaderboard reminiscent of the 1985 US Masters, when Langer won and Nicklaus was tied sixth. But on this occasion, the German is unlikely to be looking over his shoulder, having claimed a share of the half-way lead in the £1.5 million Smurfit European Open yesterday.
Bernhard Langer moved into a familiar position through a brilliant 65 for a 36-hole total of 138 - six under par - at lunchtime. He was later joined, however, by former Ryder Cup colleague Jose Rivero. In the meantime, a 66 from Gary Nicklaus, third son of you-know-who, brought him a share of fourth place with his best performance of the season so far.
What did Darren Clarke think of the leaderboard? "It's different," he replied, disappointed by his failure to remain in close contention. Still, there was compensation at the end of a trying day in a two-putt birdie on the 18th, to leave him five behind the leaders but still very much in the hunt for a second title of the season.
But there will be no record three titles in a row for Per-Ulrik Johansson, who was a tantalising one stroke outside the cut on 150. In the mould of a true champion, however, he staged a spirited if unavailing revival with a bogey-free round of 67. Unfortunately for him, the damage of an opening 83 had been too severe.
The word "fragile" was again on Colin Montgomerie's lips when a miserable 79 left him well outside the qualifying mark on 152. "This is the culmination of something that has been going wrong for two years," he said afterwards. "My confidence is at a low ebb and it doesn't help to have a birdie putt on the 18th to break 80."
Payne Stewart also took his punishment with dignity. Though the winds were not quite as severe as on Thursday, a forbidding test offered few opportunities of repairing early damage. "I hope to come back - I'd hate this to be my last competitive round in Ireland," said the American after a second successive 77.
He then turned his thoughts to brighter things. "I'm looking forward to a flight in an F-16 out of the base in Norfolk, Virginia in October," he said. "But I first have to get permission next month from my cardiologist."
Stewart was diagnosed a few years ago with a left-side ventricular blockage in his heart, so, unlike the average golfer without aspirations about becoming a Top Gun, he has to be careful about such matters as G-forces.
Six Irish players survived the cut - Clarke, Paul McGinley, Padraig Harrington, Philip Walton, Des Smyth and Damien McGrane.
McGrane was on the limit, five over par, with three holes to play, but he birdied the treacherous seventh - his 16th - for priceless breathing space.
McGinley, in the same three-ball as Langer and Johansson, finished in a manner that distinguishes tournament professionals from more humble golfing brethern. With the pin on the back left portion of the green, McGinley hit his second shot into the front right bunker, presenting him with a very difficult recovery.
"Two years ago, when I played here with Tom Lehman, I was in that same bunker - and I hit my recovery into the lake," he said afterwards. "With that in mind, I practised this particular shot last Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. But the water was still on my mind when I faced it today."
The benefits of practice were evident in a beautifully-executed sandwedge recovery which left the ball a mere 18 inches from the flag. It represented belated, but nonetheless welcome compensation in a round which included ugly, back-to-back double-bogeys at the seventh and eighth, where he was twice in the Liffey.
We don't know if Raymond Russell ever reached the Liffey at the seventh. What is certain, however, is that he unwittingly made serious attempts at doing so, while running up a wretched 12 on this magnificent par five. It all happened with the best of intentions.
After starting on the 10th, Russell, who was tied fourth in last month's British Open, was five over par for his round facing the seventh. "Ideally, I needed birdies," he said with classic understatement. So, facing a third shot of 235 to the pin, he took out the driver - and lost his ball in bushes on the riverbank, left. And like the eponymous hero of the movie Tin Cup, he went at the shot again and again, failing each time.
Meanwhile, putting represented the essential difference in Clarke's fortunes - 34 in yesterday's 74 compared with 27 in Thursday's 69. "I played really nicely for the first five holes, but then I seemed to lose my rhythm," he said.
Missed putts tend to do that to a struggling player and the fact was that Clarke three-putted the ninth and 16th for bogeys, while failing to sink any birdie effort of more than three feet. Still, he remained sufficiently focused on his work to finish with a birdie at the 18th where a five-wood second shot of 247 yards was followed by two putts from the back fringe.
