Darren Clarke had long departed the scene as the halfway leader on 133 - nine under par - when his supremacy of the 126th British Open came under threat here yesterday. In the sunshine of a delightful evening, however, Justin Leonard lost the chance of getting within a stroke of the Irishman, when he three-putted the 18th for a bogey.

The punishing winds of Thursday had abated when the second round got under way. Yet the stubborn old links continued to torment its more celebrated challengers, among them Tiger Woods, who carded a wretched eight at the 10th.

But no hole wreaked as much havoc as the innocent-looking Postage Stamp eighth which, at 126 yards, is the shortest on the Open rota. England's Stephen Bottomley, who was tied third behind John Daly at St Andrews two years ago, carded an incredible 10 there yesterday, to add to his seven of Thursday.

Then there was the promise of a revival of former glories for Tom Watson, who got to four under par after seven, before the eighth halted his progress. And Greg Norman bogeyed the last for a 73 while the defending champion, Tom Lehman, never recovered from a miserable seven at the second, on the way to a 72 and unimpressive survival on 146.

Nick Faldo also had a seven on his card, at the long fourth, where he was punished for a wayward third shot. But there were holes in one for Dennis Edlund, at the eighth (nine iron), and amateur Daniel Olsson at the short fifth (five iron).

From an Irish standpoint, however, these became no more than interesting side issues to the superb dominance of Clarke who, last evening, was installed as 11 to 4 favourite to capture the title.

Yet Leonard could have spoiled it all, at least for the day. He didn't seem to have a chance of threatening Clarke when he set out at two under par, but eagle threes at the long fourth (five iron to 15 feet) and long sixth (five iron to 20 feet), changed things dramatically. And when he pitched to three and a half feet for a birdie on the long 16th, he was eight under par and within sight of a share of the lead.

A two-putt par at the 17th kept him on target. But when two characteristic slashes at the ball got him safely on the 18th green he proceeded to three-putt, missing the second effort from five feet.

The winner of the 1992 US Amateur, Leonard will be remembered by Irish travellers to the Walker Cup at Interlachen in 1993 as the dynamic youngster who crushed Raymond Burns by 4 and 3. It was a performance which prompted the Banbridge player to remark ruefully: "I thought I was good until I saw this guy."

"The last time I had two eagles in a round was during a college tournament in Colorado," Leonard said yesterday. "The course was definitely easier today and I'm happy with my position."

In a recent change of equipment, Leonard became one of the last US Tour players to discard a persimmon driver in favour of graphite/titanium.

Parnevik also had an eagle on his card, at the fourth, which he reduced to a drive, three iron and six-foot putt. "I changed putters today," he said afterwards. "That and the fact that I hit pretty much every green, kept me going."

The enigmatic Swede, who claimed he had not looked at a leaderboard when losing out to Nick Price at Turnberry three years ago, added: "I sure looked at the scoreboards today. But it's tough to take golf serious because it's a mind-boggling game. Take it serious and it'll drive you mad."

Meanwhile, the American challenge is supported by Fred Couples after an admirably tidy 68 that contained three birdies, including one at the last, where he sank a 35-foot putt. Incidentally, when it came to spectacular finishes, nobody could seriously rival Frank Nobilo, who, in Clarke's company, sank a huge, 70-footer for a closing birdie.

In the event, from a position of two under par starting his round, Couples felt he had no option but to be aggressive. "Apart from Darren Clarke's great rounds, I don't think the scores generally are going to be low," he said. "So I like my position (four shots off the lead) and am looking forward to tomorrow."

Jim Furyk, who was joint leader with Clarke overnight, let the round slip away from him through indifferent striking over the opening seven holes. This included a bogey six at the long fourth, where he drove into a bunker and was later short of the green in three.

"I didn't shoot myself in the foot - I'm still in a good position," he said after ending the day on 139.

Colin Montgomerie sent Scottish hearts fluttering with a run of birdie, birdie, eagle at the fourth, fifth and sixth to get back to one over par for the championship at that stage. But like so many talented players, he failed to get on top of the challenge and a doublebogey five at the short 17th forced him back into the pack.

Of his relationship with Clarke, he said with a smile: "It looks like I've taught him too well." Then he added: "I'm really delighted to see Darren up there. We had two good practice rounds last Monday and Wednesday, when I showed him not only the correct lines to take off the tee, but the ones to be avoided."

Montgomery went on: "I gave him a nudge or two last year and told him he had more talent in his little pinky that most players on the European Tour. Now he's getting the chance to show it."

Meanwhile, there was a timely warning for the Irishman from twice former winner, Norman, who is level par.

"Nine shots isn't that much. There's a long way to go and those players at the top of the leaderboard have now got to contend with the heat of battle. I've just got to shoot a couple of scores in the sixties and we'll see what happens."

As Clarke relaxed on a coastal drive yesterday evening, however, he could enjoy the considerable comfort of having his score solidly on the board. And the knowledge that even Norman in full flow can't be sure of birdies.