GOLF TOUR NEWS: IN ANNEXING his two major titles this past season, Pádraig Harrington required a total of 560 shots: 283 to conquer Royal Birkdale and retain the claret jug as British Open champion, and 277 to make it back-to-back majors when he claimed the Wanamaker Trophy as US PGA champion at Oakland Hills.

But, of all the shots played, one was more outstanding than the rest. Yesterday, Harrington's five-wood approach to the par five 17th hole at Birkdale in the final round of the British Open was adjudged the PGA European Tour's "shot of the year" for 2008.

Indeed, it proved to be an Irish one-two-three.

Apart from taking the top accolade with his British Open-sealing five-wood approach that set up an eagle to assure his victory at Birkdale, Harrington also took third place for his tee-shot on the penultimate hole in the final round of the US PGA.

There, Harrington's tee-shot to the par three finished eight feet from the hole, and he sank the putt as he went on to claim a two-stroke win over Sergio Garcia and Ben Curtis.

Graeme McDowell took second place for his seven-iron approach at the third play-off hole in the Ballantines championship, which gave him victory over Jeev Milkha Singh.

It's the second successive year McDowell has finished runner-up, as his albatross on the 17th during last year's Volvo Masters at Valderrama lost out to US Open champion Angel Cabrera.

Of his winning shot, Harrington recalled: "I'd got 220 yards to the front (of the green), 249 to the pin. My caddie (Ronan Flood) said to me, 'you know, if you want to think of laying up . . .', and I asked him the situation. He said, 'you're two ahead'. I just felt - I knew I could make birdie if I hit five-wood. I knew that was going to make me (the champion).

"I was anxious that Greg (Norman) could make eagle going down there, and if I made lay-up and I make par, all of a sudden I've got a one-shot lead . . . I wasn't so much worried about the guy who was two shots behind me and finished being Ian Poulter, it was more I was worried if I laid up and made par I was giving Greg a great chance to get within one shot of me, and one shot is not comfortable in any shape or form going down 18.

"So I wanted to take it on. The downslope, I convinced myself, as you can when you're winning tournaments, was a help to me. My ball was on quite a hanging lie and I said, 'this is great, it is going to come out low so I can't get it in the air'.

"The only thing I knew was a problem was if I put the ball up in the air for a long time. It could obviously find its way into the trouble on the right, or I could maybe get it into the trouble on the left.

"But a low shot, I felt, was always going to be an advantage. So the downslope, I used it in my favour. It came out nice and low. Once I hit it, it was perfect. It's one of the few times I think I've ever heard my caddie say 'good shot' before the ball is finished . . . it was a real bonus, obviously, to finish three feet away.

"You know, you can't have enough shots in the lead going down 18. I proved that last year (at Carnoustie).

"So I was making sure to hole that (eagle putt) and take my four-shot lead, and it helped me enjoy the last hole."

Back on the course, world number two Garcia returns to action in the Nedbank Challenge in Sun City, South Africa, this week in a tournament which is confined to just 12 invited players.

Garcia, who won in 2001 and 2003, is joined in the field by US Masters champion Trevor Immelman and Sweden's World Cup-winning duo Robert Karlsson and Henrik Stenson.

Stenson is no stranger to Gary Player's green monster, having made two appearances, in which he finished second and fourth, while he also has the benefit of Fanny Sunneson, who probably knows the yardages out of her head, on his bag.

But Karlsson will be making his debut. And the last time a debutant won the NGC was Mark McNulty in 1986.

2008 monthly winners

JanuaryRichard Sterne (South Africa)

FebruaryMark Brown (New Zealand)

MarchGraeme McDowell (N Ireland)

AprilDarren Clarke (N Ireland)

MayRichard Finch (England)

JuneMartin Kaymer (Germany)

JulyPádraig Harrington (Ireland)

AugustPádraig Harrington (Ireland)

SeptemberGonzalo Fernandez-Castano (Spain)

OctoberSergio Garcia (Spain)