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CARNOUSTIE - Padraig Harrington's British Open playoff victory could have saved his golfing career after the Irishman's hopes seemed to have been extinguished during a dramatic 72nd hole cave-in on Monday (NZ time).
Evoking memories of Frenchman Jean Van de Velde's slump at the 499-yard 18th here eight years ago, the popular Dubliner twice hit his ball into the notorious Barry Burn before holing out bravely for a double-bogey six.
That looked to have ruined the chances of a major title breakthrough for the 35-year-old but after Sergio Garcia bogeyed the last, Harrington kept his nerve to defeat the Spaniard by one stroke over the four extra holes.
"If Sergio had parred the last and I had lost I think I would have struggled to come back out and be a competitive golfer," last year's European number one told a news conference following one of the most enthralling Opens in recent years.
"It would have been incredibly hard to take .... I would have struggled in the future."
Harrington instead became the first European winner of a major since Briton Paul Lawrie claimed the 1999 Open at Carnoustie.
The title looked Harrington's for the taking when four birdies and a magnificent eagle three at the long 14th moved him one clear of overnight leader Garcia at nine under par with only the last to negotiate.
But his decision to take a driver from the tee backfired with a push into the Barry Burn which snakes across the 18th.
Harrington took a penalty drop but then hit his next one fat and the ball this time ran into the burn just short of the green, not far from the stretch which Van de Velde famously visited in 1999 to blow a three-shot Open lead.
He still kept his cool, experience perhaps born of a record of 30 previous tournament runner-up finishes as well as 14 wins in Europe, the US and Asia, and pitched to eight feet before converting for a double-bogey six and a round of 67.
"That putt was the most pressure-filled I had of the day," said Harrington.
"It is the toughest finishing hole in golf, no question about that. There is just trouble everywhere you look."
Harrington, who went on to beat Ryder Cup team mate Garcia in the playoff courtesy of a birdie to the Spaniard's bogey at the first extra hole, the 406-yard first, said he was now targeting more majors.
"My goal was always to win more than one major," he said, despite thinking initially that life as a golfing journeyman would suit him fine.
"At 21 I decided I would turn pro because the guys I was able to beat as an amateur were turning pro. I thought I would have a great life and if I did well maybe I'd make a comfortable living on the tour," he said.
After struggling in the US, he realised his game was not good enough to compete at the highest level and he resolved to knuckle down, becoming one of the hardest practising professionals in the game.
That work ethic with a know-how of links golf learned as a teenager ensured he became the first Irishman since 1947 Open champion Fred Daly, who hailed from north of the border, to win a major.
"It's been a long road," said Harrington.
Padraig Harrington factbox:
* Born August 31 1971 in Dublin.
* Turned professional in 1995, winning his first tournament, the Spanish Open in 1996, before teaming up with Paul McGinley at Kiawah Island a year later to win Ireland's first World Cup for 39 years.
* Made his Ryder Cup debut in 1999 and was a vital member of the victorious European Teams in 2002, 2004 and 2006.
* Renowned as a consistent runner-up - he has finished second on 30 occasions - Harrington became the first Irishman to win a US PGA Tour event at the 2005 Honda Classic, taking a second success at the Barclays Classic in the same year.
* Having twice finished second (2001, 2002) and third (2003,2004) in the European Order of Merit, topped the year-end rankings for first time in 2006.
* Ended a 25-year wait for a home winner of the Irish Open when he won the 2007 title at Adare, the 11th European title of his career, to emulate the feat of John O'Leary in 1982.
* Broke a more pressing wait, the eight years since Europe's last major champion, when he defeated Spain's Sergio Garcia in a playoff to win his first major title at the 2007 British Open at Carnoustie.
- REUTERS
- REUTERS
