Padraig Harrington and Darren Clarke managed to scrap through to add some extra colour over the weekend rounds of the Valspar Championship at the Innisbrook Resort near Tampa.

Valspar is one of the PGA Tour’s newest sponsors with the company the world’s sixth largest in the manufacture of paints and coatings, and with the $US 5.7m event being billed as the ‘most colourful event on the PGA Tour’.

However it was not looking so bright for both Harrington and Clarke when they ended their rounds near lunch at three over par and then one stroke outside the projected halfway cut of two over par.

Harrington shot a second round 70 while Clarke carded a 74.

However after an anxious afternoon wait both Irish players could breath a sigh of relief when the cut went out to three over par and thus ensuring some 84 players in the original 144-player field contest all four rounds of the $US 5.7m event.

“I’m hoping that three over par will squeeze in to the last two rounds,” said Harrington on the completion of his round.

“The funny thing is that standing here now I am only six shots off the lead, and it must have been a unique PGA Tour record yesterday as there was just 10 shots between the leader and last place.

“But looking back today I just chipped poorly.   I played poor chips at 16 and 17 that lead to bogeys but then it was nice to hole that 10-footer at the last for birdie.”

American-born Robert Garrigus produced the lowest round of the week of a five under par 66 to move three shots clear of his rivals on seven under par.

US Open champion Justin Rose (68), and Italy’s 20-year old Matteo Manassero (70) are among four players very well placed sharing third place on three under par.

And John Daly, who played alongside Harrington, put three balls into the water at one hole in his round of 90 to be in last place with a 22-over par total.

It was Daly’s highest PGA Tour score since an 89 on day two of the 2008 Open Championship at Royal Birkdale.