THERE are people unkind enough to suggest Ireland has only three golfers - but Damien McGrane's ambition is to break the stranglehold on the nation's consciousness held by Harrington, Clarke and McGinley.

And if determination and attitude have anything to do with it, the big-hearted native of Kells, County Meath will get right up there with the top men.

Yesterday, McGrane buckled down to the challenge posed by the daunting conditions of the week to play 29 holes, 11 of them from the postponed first round. He was one of the fast movers of the day, going from five over par to level par 144.

McGrane finished his first round on 75, collected a couple of bogeys but steadied the ship and arrived safely in good shape with a closing 69.

Now he hopes to push on from that position but knows it won't be easy.

The 35 year old who has been a PGA professional since 1991, only made it out on the full Tour four years ago but had to go back to Q-School in 2002 and 2003.

McGrane was unusual in that he combined his club duties at Wexford, but in 2004 he won his playing rights for '05 and gave up the club job to concentrate on tournament golf.

The life of a Tour pro entails sacrifice and realistic appraisal of what is required to survive and then prosper on the circuit.

It's no surprise, given his slow, steady but focussed improvement that the Meath man has a reputation for grinding.

At the same time he was quick with a reply when asked by a reporter if he "liked grinding".

"I wish I was a better player. Then I wouldn't have to grind," he quipped.

US Open champion Michael Campbell predicted that ten under par will win this tournament; McGrane has more modest ambitions.

"Ten under? I'm hoping not to go back to five over!"

McGrane had played only seven holes of his first round when the bad weather hit on Thursday.

Yesterday he admitted he made a slow start but once he got into his stride the confidence began to flow.

"I just got a bit of confidence and all of a sudden I was able to hit the ball close to the pin and hole a few putts.

"All of a sudden I felt a bit better with my game and then from there on I hit a lot of good shots and I converted maybe half the putts.

"I gave myself a lot of opportunities and that's what you need to do.

"It's difficult out there, and God knows what the weather's going to bring as well. I won't say it's a lottery but it really does change the whole thing once the weather's difficult.

"Those bunkers are hard to avoid once the wind is slightly moving because it's not from the same direction every time.

"But that's golf and tomorrow's another day," he said philosophically.

The 'Big Three' may be concerned with Ryder Cups and Majors. Right now, McGrane is just trying to put a decent run together.

So far this season he has played 16 events, missing cuts in seven of them.

He has two top 10 finishes - tied seventh in the UBS Open in Hong Kong and 10th in Madeira, earning €129,237.47 for 67th place in the Order of Merit.

Liam Kelly