Senior British Open:Ireland's Des Smyth leads the Senior Open Championship at Muirfield having capitalised on a windy second day when low scoring was difficult.

Smyth, 54, carded a second-successive 70 — helped by an incredible run of four birdies over the last four holes — to post a two-under 140 total and then watched as several players above and around him fell away.

Nick Faldo, making his Seniors Tour debut, could not match his opening 68 which gave him a share of the first-round lead and a 74 dropped him back to level par.

The 50-year-old, returning to the scene of two of his three Open Championship victories, began with three bogeys in his opening four holes, although birdies at the third and fifth lessened the damage.

Three more bogeys on the back nine — with just a single birdie at the 11th — were not what Faldo was looking for but he was relieved to still be in contention.

"This was a tough day. You come and play this great golf course in a tough wind and that bit was a fun challenge but I made a meal of it on the greens," said the six-time major winner, who admitted he struggled with his putting.

"It felt quite good at the start but as the day wore on it started eating at me.

"I needed some help on the greens because I was making more of a mess of it. It is a tough game and you start looking for your comfort zone (for holing putts) — mine was two feet.

"The crazy thing is I'm still in there, which is nice as it lifts your hopes a lot.

"If I can find something which will give me a boost I can get some momentum."

Faldo admitted he had tried to tell himself he wanted just to enjoy his first outing on the Seniors Tour but had found that impossible.

"When I come and play I want to come and play well," he told Sky Sports.

"The word 'fun' doesn't work for me. If I am not shooting scores or shots I know I can hit it is not fun for me. The only way it can be fun is to do what I know I can do and that is when I get a kick out of it."

Gordon J Brand, one of three other overnight leaders with Faldo, was one ahead playing the last but three-putted from long distance for a double-bogey six to finish with a 73 and a one-under total.

He shares second with America's eight-time major winner Tom Watson, Argentinian Eduardo Romero — both had level-par rounds of 71 — and Australia's Stewart Ginn, who shot 70 on a day when no player broke that number.