Darren Clarke believes John Daly would boost interest in next year’s Irish Open despite the troubled American drawing controversy on the opening day of the Australian Open in Sydney.

Daly snatched a digital camera from a spectator and then hurled it against a tree at his last hole during a disappointing six-over-par 78 on the Royal Sydney Golf Club course.

The spectator had unlawfully taken the camera onto the course and after annoying Daly with a number of close-up shots, the double Major winner lost his cool when forced to take a penalty drop on his final hole.

Daly was playing with Clarke and Australia’s Robert Allenby and hurriedly handed in his scorecard before leaving the course.

"I was looking to take a drop and the camera was six inches away from my face," said Daly. "If I was 10 under par I would have felt the same. My eyes are still burning from the flash of the camera. I feel it was very rude to put a camera that close to anybody’s face in any situation."

Sydney-born spectator Brad Clegg informed tournament director Trevor Herden he was focusing his camera about a metre from Daly’s face when it was snatched and thrown against a tree. Herden said Clegg had breached his conditions of entry which clearly stated spectators were not allowed to bring cameras or mobile phones onto the course.

Herden said: "There will be no sanctions for John from Golf Australia."

Daly later apologise to the spectator for his actions.

Despite this latest drama, Clarke believes the former US PGA and British Open winner would be a huge draw-card at Mount Juliet.

"John is still a big draw in worldwide golf and he’s still got a lot of game left," said Clarke after his level-par 72 round.

Clarke’s first-ever Australian Open got off to an underwhelming beginning when he recorded a second-hole triple bogey after pulling his drive into trees.

The Dungannon golfer was forced to chip out, from where he put his three-iron third shot into a greenside bunker ahead of thinning his fourth through the green and then taking another three shots to get down.

However, he then birdied his next before getting back to level par with back-to-back birdies at his 11th and 12th holes.

The Australian-born trio of Mathew Goggin, Ewan Porter and Stephen Dartnall head the field by two strokes after carding course record-equalling 65s.

Goggin was the runner-up in last week’s Australian PGA Championship, while Porter has bounced back to form after deliberately snapping four clubs in one round during the same event.