Padraig Harrington Desperate For Olympic Gold Medal To Cap Off Career

Amidst the indifference from so many of his peers, Padraig Harrington is among the major champions who are desperate to claim gold as golf returns at the Rio Olympics.

Golf’s return to one of the biggest events in world sport has not gone as smoothly as many would have initially hoped and anticipated.

Withdrawals from some of the biggest names in the game have meant that some of the allure has been lost for the return of golf to the Olympic stage for the first time since 1904, but that doesn’t mean that there aren’t many who still care.

Four of the world’s top 10 will be competing for gold at the Olympic Golf Course, Reserva de Marapendi, including current Open champion, Henrik Stenson, and the winner of this year’s Masters, Danny Willett. Other major champions in attendance include Bubba Watson, Justin Rose, Martin Kaymer and Ireland’s Padraig Harrington.

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For Harrington, in particular, it was no simple matter for him to end up with the opportunity to represent his country. Having tumbled down the world rankings in recent seasons, it took Rory McIlroy, Graeme McDowell and Shane Lowry all turning down the chance to play, for the Dubliner’s opportunity to arise.

At 44 years old, with three major victories and six Ryder Cup appearances under his belt, it would have been understandable if Harrington, battling with his game for a number of years, wasn’t filled with enthusiasm to compete in Rio, but that couldn’t be further from the case.

Having assured his legacy long ago, Harrington is excited for the chance to do something new. As he told The Irish Times:

"“It might be sacrilege in the golfing world but I think an Olympic medal would add more to my career at this moment than a fourth Major . . . an Olympic gold medal would be massive and very unique in the game. As it gets closer, I’m kind of getting more excited. I’ve always been geed up for it, excited about it, but was it gets closer I’m thinking ‘wow, this is great’.”"

Harrington has every right to be excited too, as if it wasn’t for his own contributions, the return of golf to the Games may not even have been a reality.

When the IGF and the R&A made their final proposals to the International Olympic Committee for golf to be reinstated back in October 2009, Harrington was one of the top pros in attendance fighting the game’s corner.

While Rory McIlroy may have been quite vocal in feeling that the responsibility to grow the game didn’t lie with him, Harrington has often taken the opposite approach. Harrington has often represented the game all over the world, as he did in front of the IOC in 2009, and as he has done as a Global Ambassador for the Special Olympics since 2010.

Therefore, it feels somewhat fitting that Harrington will be in Rio, even if on this occasion he’ll be hoping that his play makes the experience much more than another ambassadorial role.

There’s hope in that regard too.

Having always resembled something of a mad scientist when it comes to deconstructing both his swing and his mental state, Harrington’s endless tinkering has cost him any semblance of form for the best part of the last five years. Once ranked as high as third in the world rankings, Harrington now sits 128th, and that after having climbed back up from a lowly 371st in late 2014.

Although he’s mostly been quiet since a win at the Honda Classic last season, Harrington had his best major finish since 2012 with a tie for 12th at the PGA Championship at Baltusrol last month. It’s rare for Harrington to speak with confidence about his game, but that’s exactly what he did coming away from the PGA.

"“I’m not walking away from this with any (questions). I’m not second guessing anything. I’m very comfortable with the way I played. If I continue to play like this every day, there’s (going to be) good days ahead for me.I’m happy with my swing, getting a lot better with my putting, getting a lot better with my mental side.”"

In an attempt to further ramp up his preparations for Rio, Harrington decided to squeeze another week of play in at last week’s Travelers Championship at TPC River Highlands. A closing round of 75 took the Irishman right off the leaderboard, finishing in a tie for 64th, but rounds of 70,69 and 65 for the first three days provided even further evidence of his game falling into place.

With the wind already playing a factor in events like rowing in Rio, there’s a possibility that the conditions could be ideal for the links specialist when play eventually gets underway on Thursday morning.

Next: Olympic Golf: Top 5 Teams to Watch in the Men’s Competition

He may not seem like the most obvious contender for gold this week, but don’t put it past Harrington to roll back the years and deliver the gold that he wants so desperately.