Verbal size 11 putts Clarke in the frame

What are friends for? In the case of Darren Clarke they're there to verbally apply a size 11 to your posterior on the ninth tee at Wentworth.

Languishing at one over par, he wasn't enamoured with life in general and was positively thunderous with regard to his putting, which he succinctly described afterwards as "atrocious". A few well chosen words from Vijah Singh and Ian Poulter, his playing partners served to galvanise the Irishman, not initially, as he conceded another shot to regulation figures at the 10th, but soon after. The last seven holes were vintage Clarke, a barrage of six birdies in seven holes that rescued both his round and his sanity.

"It was nice to finish the way I did. I had a few encouraging words from my playing partners. They were very good and kept egging me on so it was nice to have two playing partners looking after me. Four under is okay. There were a lot of scoring opportunities and that is reflected in the scoring.

"I didn't play great early on but I kept hitting greens and giving myself chances but my putting was atrocious to say the least. I had a bit of a pep talk from Vijay and he said 'come on, get going' and I managed to turn it around. Turning your putting around is never easy, remarkable (in these circumstances) to say the least.

"He (Vijay) has been very good to me, always helps me out when I am struggling. We have spent a lot of time in each others company, especially last year and this year in America."

Clarke heads the Irish challenge on four under, one ahead of Peter Lawrie. The latter stood on the 17th tee on the same mark as Clarke but drove out of bounds, taking a bogey six and could only manage a par five on the final hole. "That's the best golf I have played in quite a while; I hit a lot of good shots but them's the breaks."

Lawrie confirmed that he is considering taking up the option of trying to earn one of 12 places available for the tournament proper in a British Open qualifying tournament at Sunningdale.

Clarke was not alone in his grandstand finish, Graeme McDowell grabbing birdies at the last three holes to finish one under. "It was a pretty frustrating day. My focus is a little off at the moment. I haven't got the frame of mind back that I need to be in to be playing well right now.

"Since winning in Italy, it's been a little out. I have been working hard on my golf swing but I think I have been working on the wrong things. I am aware now that I need to refocus, to get my intensity levels up, to get the desire back to get the drive back again.

"It's nice to win but it's hard to get back into the grinding frame of mind again. It's not about dealing with success it's about refocusing on goals, giving myself something new to work towards. I'm such a goal orientated person that I need things to drive me forward. I haven't decided what I am going to do but I know I need to do something. I will."

McDowell confirmed that he won't attempt to prequalify for the US Open, instead concentrating on playing in Europe in the build-up to the British Open, now that his place in the latter is assured. As for this tournament, he's aiming to get aggressive today.

Paul McGinley is also at one under, although he'll be disappointed that he coughed up two bogeys in the closing holes and didn't manage to birdie either of the closing par fives. David Higgins had a 73, Gary Murphy posted a similar if more dramatic score, with a back nine that included four birdies, four bogeys and just a single par.

Damien Mooney showed great character to recover from six over after 10 holes, finishing with a 74, which included a disappointing bogey on the final hole.