Amateur James Sugrue is leading the Irish challenge at Galgorm Castle after Shane Lowry and Padraig Harrington missed the cut.
Cork native and 2019 British Amateur Championship winner Sugrue was a late inclusion in the field after he made his US Open debut at Winged Foot last week.
The second round concluded this morning after fog and frost delayed the start of play yesterday and Sugrue is one of four Irish players who made the cut.
He is currently level par for the tournament early in his third round, five shots behind leaders Maverick Antcliff and Aaron Rai.
Ryder Cup captain Harrington recorded rounds of 71 and 75 and finished just outside the cut line on six-over par in his first competitive start since January.
Reflecting on his second round, he said: "I played a lot better, but I didn't take my chances early on and then got some swirling winds and didn't chip very well, so I played a lot better than the score but these things happen.
"I'm not going to get down on it. It is one week, I quite enjoyed playing, I saw some nice things in my game, and I know exactly what I need to do.
"I did some good stuff at times, so I will always take positives from it. My short game was poor, which is normally my strength, and that can be expected from not being out playing. I second-guessed myself a few times on a few shots and that is the sort of thing that goes away when you don't play."
Lowry went into the tournament as the betting favourite but admitted he struggled in the challenging conditions after missing the cut at +7.
"I struggled this week, the distance control, how short the ball was going in this cold. I just really struggled.
"I'm very disappointed to be going home and I hate missing the cut at the Irish Open and I want to be here for the weekend.
"It's not great for the tournament that myself and Padraig (Harrington) are going home. That's disappointing for everyone involved. But I came up here and gave it my best shot and I did what I did."
