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Harrington Does a Double Take
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Things really started to get going for Harrington at the 499-yard 13th hole. Ahead by a shot after Norman had lipped out an eight-foot putt for a bogey at the 12th, Harrington hit a 3-iron off the 13th tee into the fairway and left himself 230 yards to the flapping flag. He crushed a second shot 5-iron to within 15 feet, and made the birdie putt for a two-shot swing and three stroke lead on his playing partner, the only man he said he was concerned about as he played the back nine.
At the 544-yard 15th, a drive in the fairway and a 3-wood on the green left Harrington a 40-foot eagle attempt. He two-putted from there for birdie, matched by Norman when he hit a fine bunker shot to four feet and sank the putt for his only birdie of the round.
But the true denouement came at the downwind 17th, a birdie hole all week. Harrington hit a 5-wood, his favorite club in his bag, off the tee. Then he used it again on a second shot from 250 yards out in the fairway. His caddie, Ronan Flood, told him he had a two-shot lead over Poulter at that point and wondered if he might want to lay up and play safe.
"I knew I could make birdie if I hit 5-wood," Harrington said. "I was anxious that Greg was going to make eagle going down there, and if I laid up and I make par, all of a sudden I've got a one-shot lead. I was more worried about giving Greg a great chance to get within one, and one shot is not comfortable in any way shape or form going down 18."
Harrington had the perfect lie with the ball slightly below his feet to keep his shot low, "and once I hit it, it was perfect," he said. "It's one of the few times I've ever heard my caddie say 'good shot' to me before the ball is finished. It was a real bonus to finish three feet away. I would have been quite happy with it on the green and take my chances. It helped me enjoy the last hole."
And yet, as recently as Wednesday, Harrington was concerned enough about his wrist to say very publicly that he thought it was "50-50" that he'd actually be able to play all 72 holes in defense of his title. But Harrington had a talk that night with his Charlottesville-based psychologist, Bob Rotella, about how to get through the opening round the next day.
"He says, 'Look, pain is there, but you can play through that,' " Harrington said. "Wednesday evening, I was comfortable I could give it a go. I was delighted through the course of the week that I didn't have any more problems, just a couple of twinges warming up Thursday morning.
"It was a great distraction for me. It pushed everything about coming back to defend to the side. It took a lot of pressure off me, a lot of stress. The other plus was I only played nine holes of practice. The fact I didn't play three practice rounds like normal was a big bonus. I was very fresh going into the weekend, and [the last] 36 holes was a real battle. The wrist injury was a real saver for me, really."
On Sunday, when virtually every man in the field sported sweaters and several layers to ward off the chilly wind blowing in off the Irish Sea, Harrington showed up at the first tee wearing a short-sleeve shirt and never did cover up. He admitted he felt a tad chilly.
"I definitely needed to put a sweater on. It was cold at times, but you know you never change anything when it's working okay. I was going to stick with what I had. It was going nicely, and that was the way it was."
