On a Harrington High

Lesley Kilmurray speaks with Padraig Harrington about the bounties and bunkers of golfing life.

Sporting a sunkissed face fresh from the Abu Dhabi Championship, Padraig Harrington is fast joining the ranks of the golfing greats. In the last four months alone, Ballyroan-born Harrington has earned the European Order of Merit, out-played the inimitable Tiger Woods to win the Dunlop Phoenix in Japan, and shot two highly respectable rounds of five under par 67 in tournaments either side of year end.

Harrington's early season form is promising. "My ultimate and long-term goal is to improve yearon- year and become a better player over time. For 2007, my basic goal is to compete well in a Major." Currently ninth in the official world rankings, it wont be long until this ambition is fulfilled.

It would seem that Harrington's entry into the game was inevitable. He first held a golf club at the age of four, encouraged by his elder playing brothers. His policeman father helped found Stackstown golf course in South County Dublin and this soon became Harrington's playground. At the age of 15 years old, forsaking his interest in Gaelic Games and other sports, the young enthusiast proceeded to represent the country in numerous Irish Boys Championships, turned pro at 24 and never looked back.

With brother Tadhg caddying for Harrington in his amateur years, he never underestimates the role of this crucial companion. Nor that of Bob Torrance, father of the American Ryder Cup Captain Sam and Harrington's coach for the past nine years.

"Caddy and coach are unbelievably important. You must be 100% confident in them, as you need to trust their advice. Both need to say the right thing at the right time, and equally, need to know when nothing needs to be said - good or bad - as this could make all the difference."

"Brilliant" is how Torrance describes his trainee. "He's the ideal pupil for any man to work with. He’s dedicated and very willing to learn. It's like a father and son relationship."

Bobby Jones once analysed golf as the closest game to the game we call life. "You get bad breaks from good shots; you get good breaks from bad shots - but you have to play the ball where it lies." This sentiment echoes Harrington’s own. "There are no shortcuts in golf; it's just lots of hard work."

He also believes: "If you don't play golf as a team sport as well as individually, you won't have the discipline and patience to accept the bad days on the golf course." During his 11-year professional career, Harrington has played in four Ryder Cups, four Seve Trophys, six Dunhill Cups and 10 World Cups. It's little wonder that humility is one of Harrington's trademarks, not to mention his signature smile.

With 10 European titles and two US tour wins under his belt, the trophy cabinet at Rathmichael must be something to behold. But are there any which hold more significance? "There's always more meaning in some than others as there might be different grades of competition. At the moment, my biggest achievement is winning the Order of Merit, but some of my other titles have been won in a more exciting way."

Harrington is referring to the 2003 Deutsche Bank - SAP Open TPC of Europe which he says was particularly thrilling as he hadn't won for a while, and did so in a play-off. Another was winning the 2006 Dunhill Links Championship with amateur playing partner JP McManus. "It was very special as it's a team event, as is the Ryder Cup, which is also incredibly close to my heart."

If Harrington was forced to choose from his most memorable shots, one would be his putt to win the 2005 Barclays Classic at Westchester. "It's not often that you have to hole a putt to win on the last green; normally you could have two holes to play. I even remember that the putt was 66 feet and 7 inches long, with difficult slopes."

The first morning of the fourballs at the 2006 Ryder Cup was no less striking. "Under complete pressure and it being pure satisfaction, my five wood on the sixteenth hole was great, especially as I knew what a difficult shot it was from when I'd practiced."

In his honest way, Harrington also owns up to the not-sonoteworthy shots. "I've had plenty of bad shots, my worst probably being on the 72nd hole of the 2002 British Open at Muirfield, where I ended up in the bunker to miss the play-off. The consequence was severe!"

From Edinburgh to Kildare and the K Club, host to the recent Ryder Cup. Harrington has proud memories of the event and believes that the impact of Ireland's hospitality was huge. "Everybody was aware of what was going on. Golf was in the spotlight - even the non-golfers were excited and it encouraged people to want to play!"

In fact, his view of the changing nature of golf in the country over the past two decades is down to people watching additional coverage of the sport. "As more international golf is shown, it increases the standard of what people see and the game in general has become much more widespread."

When it comes to the mechanics, Harrington likes the competition element most, while his favourite physical part is the driving. And lest one forget the golfing mentality. "For a beginner, I believe that the game is 95% physical. However, for me, I feel my game is 95% mental. As you progress and become a better player, the importance of the mental game increases over the physical side."

Harrington works with Bob Rotella, a sports psychologist on improving the mental component. "It's very important to prepare yourself in the right way for a tournament. I think it's vital not to do too much practice and essentially concentrate on routine. I hit all practice shots like I would if I was on the golf course."

Asked about who he most admires as a sports personality, Harrington points to the darts player Phil the Power Taylor. "Imagine winning 11 out of the last 13 World Championships in your chosen sport!" In Harrington's opinion, Ireland's best sporting achievement goes down as the Ryder Cup and outside of golf, the Irish soccer team's performance in the FIFA World Cup, Italia 1990.

Time abroad is far from a foreign concept to Harrington. "The best thing about being on tour is probably travelling around the world and seeing places that you might not normally see. Travelling and being at tournaments is a very comfortable way to visit different locations, and we're looked after and treated very well along the way." Naturally, he finds the worst thing about life on the road as the distance from his family - wife Caroline and three year old Paddy.

With a gruelling schedule of tournaments dotted across the globe, days off are precious. Harrington confirms his top priority is to spend time with his son during any breaks. "I haven't got any quirky hobbies. In my spare time, I also like to go to the cinema and restaurants."

The book on Harrington's bedside table is The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. And if current chemistry is anything to go by, this sporting hero is destined to find the secret ingredient for becoming a true golfing legend. EM