Padraig Harrington Is a Winner Again

For anyone who couldn’t find a way to hide out in the bathroom or manipulate your office desktop to watch the Monday finish at the Honda Classic, you missed a heck of a show. It had a little bit of everything; major winners, Ryder Cup legends, young guns, and a whole lot of water. At the end of the day the Irish Eyes are smiling down at Padraig Harrington who outlasted Daniel Burger on the second playoff hole for his first win on tour since 2008.

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Monday finishes on the PGA Tour tend to be anti-climactic. They’re early in the morning, there’s less fans on the course, and it’s usually just a few holes to get out of the way. Today was four hours of heartache, excitement and a redemption story. Ian Poulter and Paul Casey started the day tied for the lead at seven under. One in front of the golf’s bull dog Patrick Reed and a few more ahead of Phil Mickelson and Harrington.

Patrick Reed was solid all week. He was six under par after playing in a wind tunnel on Thursday and a deluge on Friday. Of late he’s been the tour’s Tiger Woods, and not because he dresses like him. The guy knows how to win and tends to come up with big shots at the right times. After a birdie on the 14^th to run his score to -7 he shockingly found the water on the 15th and never recovered finishing three shots out of the playoff.

Harrington had a front row seat to Reed’s late collapse. Going into Sunday’s marathon day at PGA National he was the 54 hole leader before shooting a one over par 71 and continued to struggle into the fourth round. Thankfully for him the horn sounded he was left with a Monday sprint to try and chase down the leaders.

"“It was a big break for me” Harrington said. “When I came back out all I was thinking was it hasn’t gone great for me but now I’m chasing. I’m a better player when I’m attacking from behind. There’s so much trouble out here if you’re trying to protect something, it’s better if your chasing.”"

He was right about a few things. Four straight birdies on the back nine showed it’s much easier to chase rather than protect. Poulter wasn’t able to protect the lead, but he did a good job in finding all the water on the golf course. The 2012 Ryder Cup folk hero’s hopes were completely washed away. The 54 hole hit five balls in the water over the final eighteen holes.

"“It’s just bitterly disappointing to put myself in the position I have and to play as well I have played, it’s just a few loose shots that have cost me this tournament,” Poulter said. “It’s a shame to hand tournaments away. You don’t mind being beaten but ya know I’ve handed one away this week.”"

Say what you want about Poulter’s success worldwide and his Ryder Cup prowess, the guy is just an average player on the PGA Tour. He likes to talk, especially on twitter. There’s times when he unleashes those famous “Poulter Eyes” and plenty of other times where he plays like he did on Monday. To think about how much of a household name he is without winning a stroke play tournament on the PGA Tour can almost be absurd. He’s got that reputation of being golf’s “Bad Boy” and someone who plays his best under pressure. On Monday at the Honda he was more out of place than the alligators in the bunkers after Saturday’s monsoon.

For Harrington this was a Monday to remember. There’s no better story then a guy who climbs out of the abyss to find the light again. It’s almost hard to remember that Paddy has three majors. Lately he’s resembled more of a Saturday morning club pro then someone who drank from the Claret Jug twice. Battles with the driver and short game yips and a resolve for all of us to admire, he’s fought his way back and he’s now a winner again on the PGA Tour.

"“Ya know, I was pretty keen on my own form but I wasn’t delivering,” Harrington said. “It was tough after that (yips) but last week I found something in the mental game and it worked time to time this week. You kind of go from the penthouse to still pretty nice hotels, there’s no doubt that on the way back down it’s a little different. I think I found that mental edge that I had been lacking over the past few years.”"

Harrington’s resolve wasn’t just his six year climb back to relevancy. Leading late on Monday he dunked his tee shot on the par 3 17^th in the water. You felt for him as the anguish on his face was as obvious as the South Florida sun. It was almost like the Guinness truck was pulling in and the tire popped. Harrington got the jack out of the trunk pop off the lug nuts fixed the tire and then birdied the 18^th to force a playoff with Berger. He would get his revenge on the 17^th with a laser tee shot that put the pressure on Berger who found the same watery fate he did forty-five minutes earlier. It was just one last sign that the best things to come take a lot of work to achieve. Tap that Guinness keg folks, St Paddy’s day is here again!

All quotes from GolfChannel.com

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