Despite the good performance shown by the British Open hero Darren Clarke in the Irish Open at Killarney, Colm Moriarty and Simon Thornton- home team's hottest performers, won the heart of the nation.

Among 18,803 spectators at the Killeen Course, Thornton and Moriarty took the limelight in the first round, from the four Ireland's Grand Slam heroes- Rory McIlroy, Graeme McDowell and Padraig Harrington, and Darren Clarke.

Clarke has performed well, in comparison to its last performances, and said, "I didn't feel as pressurized as I have done in past Irish Opens". This new self- confidence would be beneficial for him, to equal the six-stroke gap created by first-round leader Jeev Milkha Singh, who offered 63. Even, Michael Hoey also shot a 69, but the McDowell and Harrington were not in their best form, and continued to give sub- standard performance.

Another main factor for this Irish Open to be in headlines is that US Open champion Rory McIlroy has expressed his anger for golf commentator Jay Townsend, on Twitter, as he criticized his first-round performance. Townsend, known for his best work, said that this kind of behavior is only expected in under-10 boys’ golf competition.