Send Darren Clarke, Peter Lawrie and Gary Murphy out on the town and it’s a fair bet that Lawrie would soon be handed the car keys as the designated driver.

It’s not that the Dubliner is more abstemious than the other two, but he’s simply not a man of extremes.

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Darren Clarke may have to sweat to make the cut after struggling to a one-over-par 73 in the opening round of the Maybank Malaysian Open in steamy Kuala Lumpur.

The Dungannon man was two under par after three holes but dropped five shots to slip to three over before repairing some of the damage with birdies at the final two holes and share 71st place.

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Darren Clarke believes he is close to getting back into the winner’s circle after a second round 66 sent him hurtling up the leaderboard in the weather-delayed Avantha Masters in New Delhi.

The Ulsterman birdied five of his last seven holes in a nine-birdie round to leap into a share of 12th place with Irish Open champion Shane Lowry, who also shot a six under par 66 at the DLF Golf and Country Club.

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Michael Hoey is Irish golf's human roller coaster. One minute he's soaring high, the next he's hurtling in a death-dive towards the ground. Could 2010 be the year he finally puts his career on some sort of even keel?

Apparently not yet on the evidence of his start in the Africa Open at East London Golf Club in the Eastern Cape, where he birdied three of his last four holes to open with a five under par 68 around the 6,770-yard, par-73 track.

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There are lies and damned statistics but the numbers produced by the European Tour boffins give Padraig Harrington the edge over Rory McIlroy this year.

Yes, McIlroy topped the stroke average and almost won the inaugural Race to Dubai while Harrington floundered in swing tinkering hell for half the season before exploding into life in August.

But if you add together their ranking in the nine Genworth Financial Statistics categories, Harrington finished an average of six places ahead of McIlroy.

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Edoardo Molinari is breathing down Pablo Martin's neck entering the final round of the South African Open Championships at Pearl Valley Golf Estates.

While Martin (72) leads by a shot on 11 under par in his bid for back to back European Tour wins just a month after nearly losing his European Tour card,  Molinari is seeking an amazing fifth victory in his last eight starts.

The 28 year old Italian posted a third round 69 and needs only a top nine finish to move into the world's top 50 for the first time.

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Gary Murphy birdied his last two holes to make the cut by a shot in the South African Open.

The Kilkenny man survived with a shot to spare as Spain's Pablo Martin took the halfway lead to remain on track for back to back European Tour wins.

Martin, the only player to win European Tour titles as an amateur and a professional, won the Alfred Dunhill Championship on Sunday.

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Damien McGrane eagled Leopard Creek's 18th hole for the second day in a row to move into the top 10 in the Alfred Dunhill Championship.

A closing three gave the Kells man a two under par 70 and left him just two shots behind second placed Edoardo Molinari and Ernie Els but still six adrift of a rejuvenated Pablo Martin on seven under par.

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Watch out for Shane Lowry on the European Tour this season.

The 22 year old from Offaly is just three shots off the lead after carding a five under par 67 in the opening round Alfred Dunhill Championship at Leopard Creek in South Africa - the first event of the 2010 campaign.

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Fairytale story for Simon ThorntonGary Murphy and adopted Irishman Simon Thornton survived a nerve racking final day to earn their tour cards at the European Tour Qualifying School finals at PGA Golf de Catalunya.

Murphy, 37, fired a brilliant four under par 68 to finish a shot inside the top 30 and ties on 11 under par and secure the 17th of 31 cards after six rounds.

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Gary Murphy confessed that he wanted to “smack” the slow coaches who have almost wrecked his bid to win back his European Tour card.

But the 37 year old Kilkenny man still has a fighting chance of a tour return after a battling 69 left him two shots outside the top 30 and ties entering the sixth and final round of the gruesome Qualifying School finals at PGA Golf de Catalunya.

On a sun-kissed winter's day when Simon Thornton (67) moved into the top 30 and Niall Kearney slipped to 50th after a 74, Murphy did well to keep his cool and pick up six birdies after three dropped shots in the first two holes.

“The pace of place was a disgrace,” Murphy said. “Most of the guys here haven’t a clue and it was the same yesterday.

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Niall Kearney is a towering six feet four inches but he looked 10 feet tall as he fired a brilliant, three under par 69 on the stunning Stadium Course to stride like a colossus in the last two rounds of the 108-hole European Tour Qualifying School finals at PGA Golf de Catalunya.

Just 10 weeks after he impressed in the Walker Cup on US soil, the 21-year old from Royal Dublin continued his remarkably poised professional debut to share 24th place on seven under par with the top 30 and ties earning tour cards tomorrow evening.

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