Kilpatrick pulls clear in the rain

East of Ireland Championship:It was a day when mental toughness was a primary attribute in fostering aspirations at the East of Ireland Championship. Relentless rainfall for the morning and early afternoon was exacerbated by a stiff breeze that coursed over County Louth Golf Club, and it wasn't until the late afternoon that the leaden skies brightened.

Given he played in the most inclement conditions, that rendered Richard Kilpatrick's six-under-par 66 (Jim Carvill holds the course record, 65, dating back a couple of years) all the more laudable.

Having started the day one shot behind Pat Murray and David Finn, following Saturday's opening 18 holes, the 25-year-old from Banbridge reached the halfway stage of the tournament six shots clear of the field.

He's got form, as the sporting vernacular goes, having finished second in the Irish Amateur Strokeplay Championship at Royal Dublin and in a tie for sixth at the Brabazon Trophy a fortnight ago. He also reached the quarter-finals at the West of Ireland Championship earlier in the season.

Yesterday he demonstrated that pedigree, amassing seven birdies and just a single bogey. Starting on the 10th tee, he would twice during the round fire a three-hole birdie salvo. On the 11th, he hit a four-iron to 25 feet, holing for birdie, and repeated the feat at the next by knocking a six-iron stone dead.

A third birdie came at the 13th, the by-product of a nine-iron to 10 feet.

He would hole from twice that distance at the 17th to turn in four under the card.

The only blemish came at the second, when he pulled his drive into the left rough and compounded the error by being a little greedy with his second shot, courting further problems that eventually culminated in a bogey six.

His response, though, could not have been better, rattling off three more birdies from the fourth, holing from four, 15 and eight feet respectively. He created a couple of further opportunities but couldn't take advantage of them. Not that he was overly upset.

Quite apart from the physical prowess involved - he missed few fairways and found ideal yardages for his choice of iron shots - he pointed out the importance of staying mentally solid.

"It was about doing nothing stupid, just keep plodding along and if you hole a few putts, great. I holed a few early," he said.

"I was disappointed with Royal Dublin (he dropped a couple of shots in the closing holes to finish two back of Lloyd Saltman), but finished sixth at the Brabazon. I have had a couple of good finishes this year and I'm ready to win one, ready to step up. I'm sick of finishing second.

"You can't do anything stupid, just use your experience to your advantage and keep it in play."

He's twice finished third here, pointing out, "I like the golf course and enjoy playing here."

Murray is six shots back alongside Shane Lowry (71, 71), having shot a 73 to go with his opening 69. The Tipperary man, who recently made the cut at the Irish Open in Adare Manor Hotel and Golf Resort, admitted: "I left a couple out there. It was horrendous, five-and-a-half hours. I went through seven or eight gloves out there and as many towels as I could carry, but I have put myself in position and I'm happy enough going into the last two rounds."

His comments merely serve to underline the quality of Kilpatrick's performance.

Dungannon's Fergal Rafferty, playing in more advantageous conditions, recorded an excellent four-under-par 68 to go with a first round 80, 12 shots behind his fellow Ulsterman.

The top 50 players tee it up for today's final 36 holes.