LAST UPDATE | 51 mins ago

SHANE LOWRY IS two shots off the lead after a brilliant opening round of three-under 67 at the Irish Open in Doonbeg.

The Offaly man is in a share of second place heading into the second round as he picked up five birdies in challenging conditions at the West Clare course where play has been suspended due to darkness.

There is currently a five-way tie for second. South Africa’s Shaun Norris has also carded a three-under 67 while Poland’s Adrian Meronk, Maximilian Steinlechner of Austria and Italy’s Renato Paratore have yet to complete their rounds.

Rory McIlroy is four shots off the lead on one-under after opening his tournament with 69. His round consisted of birdies on the second and fourth on the front nine. A double-bogey at the 13th proved costly, but he managed one more birdie on the 15th.

Tom McKibbin had an encouraging opening day with a two-under 68 to leave him in a strong position heading into the second round. He made a blistering start with three birdies on the first four holes, along with a fourth on the 10th hole before slipping with bogeys on the 11th and 18th holes.

Joaqúin Niemann continues to sit at the top of the leaderboard after completing the first round on five-under (65).

The Chilean had a hot streak from the 14th and 17th holes, hitting a birdie in each and finished with a par-four.   

Of the other Irish players, Pádraig Harrington carded a one-over round of 71 after a frustrating back nine.

The Dubliner started promisingly with a birdie on the second and didn’t drop a shot before the turn.

He maintained a steady day until back-to-back bogeys on 14 and 15. While a birdie on 16 eased some of the damage, he finished the day with another bogey on the par-four 18th.

Elsewhere, Max Kennedy, Cormac Sharvin and Séamus Power all finished their opening round on three-over with Mark Power and Thomas Higgins both one shot further back. Liam Nolan is on one-over after 13 holes.

Additional reporting by Sinéad Farrell

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Written by Declan Bogue and originally published on The 42 whose award-winning team produces original content that you won’t find anywhere else: on GAA, League of Ireland, women’s sport and boxing, as well as our game-changing rugby coverage, all with an Irish eye. Subscribe here.