BOCA RATON (Fla.) — Padraig Harrington was once scheduled to arrive at the Old Course, a newly-designed course at Broken Sound, early on Monday morning.
Perhaps sooner.
The Irishman would’ve started rolling putts. Hitting chip shots. Measure and document every slope of every green.
This is the man who, during a practice session at Augusta National, before the Masters, pulled it out on almost every green. This round took him over six hours.
It was the younger and more intense Padraig. We saw Padraig Harrington, at 52, playing three rounds of the TimberTech Championship, on the PGA Tour Champions. He was relaxed but no less competitive.
He said, “I’m just too old for that now.” After winning the TimberTech Championship on Sunday with a final-round 64 to finish seven shots in front of local favorites Bernhard Langer (hometown favorite) and Charlie Wi.
“When I used to be a child, I would come out and play 54 holes of practice, and I would hit every putt and every chip. It’s the Champions Tour. I’m not able to keep up with that pace. You can’t work as hard as you did when you were a child. I can’t roll putts and do that on every green. “My brain would be fried within a week.”
Harrington, however, rolled enough putts and bombed enough drives to make this a joke. After putting his drive in the water on No. 16, he had a two-shot advantage over Langer. 9. He then began to extend the lead in No. The lead on 11 just grew wider and wider.
Harrington says the alarm at No. He was forced to “batten the hatches” after receiving a wake-up call at No.
He said, “I was focused from that point on… I stayed steady and made sure I didn’t commit any mistakes.” “I just made sure I hit my par to force Bernhard to come at me.”
He finished the tournament with a score of 16-under-197. He is still third going into the final round of the Charles Schwab Cup Playoffs, which will be held this week at Phoenix Country Club. Behind Steve Stricker & Langer. Harrington is actually playing as a runner up, with Stricker already having won the championship.
Since the Old Course has been renovated, any institutional knowledge of most holes is useless. Langer’s 35-year residency in the area was no longer an advantage.
Harrington’s second thoughts of not doing a more thorough inspection on the course during the week, you know, by channeling his inner analytic, ended very early… as he birdied six out of the seven first holes.
Langer stated, “He played flawlessly.”
Harrington shouts out Langer
Harrington gave Langer an emotional shout-out at the trophy ceremony, saying that the Champions Tour’s leader in all-time victories is the person he “most admires.”
Harrington shouldn’t sell himself short. He was informed in March that he will be inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame. His career has seen him close to 40 wins worldwide, which includes six on PGA Tour Champions, and six on PGA Tour. This includes three majors, the 2007 and2008 British Opens as well as the 2008 PGA Championship.
Harrington acknowledged that being inducted into the Hall of Fame has been a real rush over the last few months.
The Irishman replied: “I really appreciate it, because I’m here to be with these guys in the Hall of Fame.” “I can see their names and I am also there.” I want to be in the list.
It’s always a good boost. It’s nice to be boosted. “You feel a few centimeters taller.”
He is even taller today.
