Jeff Hopkins is having a good week at the Lytham Trophy.Skerries’ Jeff Hopkins, defending champion Paul Cutler and Newlands’ Andrew Hogan were the only Irish players to make the halfway cut in the Lytham Trophy at Royal Lytham and St Annes.

Plus two handicapper Hopkins, 19, shot a nine over par 79 on another day of high scoring at the Lancashire venue to go into Sunday’s final 36 holes six strokes adrift of leader Tom Lewis on 13 over par.

West of Ireland runner up Alan Dunbar and Skerries’ Jeff Hopkins made promising starts to the prestigous Lytham Trophy at Royal Lytham and St Annes.

The pair carded four over par 74s on a day of tricky east winds and even trickier pin positions to trail Heysham’s Jack Senior by just three strokes and share 10th place.