GOLF: He is, according to Padraig Harrington, "the best person to treat sports injuries I have ever come across."

Not that you'd have thought that to see the Dubliner's pained expression on Saturday during the third round of the US PGA at Hazeltine, when it seemed to us as if Dale Richardson had missed out on his true vocation, one that probably would have been better served in an earlier life as part of the Spanish Inquisition.

As Richardson, an Australian who offers a comprehensive sports therapy programme to a select number of golfers on the tour, grabbed Harrington in a "choker hold" on the first fairway and simultaneously manipulated his back, the world number eight's face was contorted in pain.

Richardson, though, has healing hands. And the proof of it all was that Harrington - who had locked up on the range shortly before he was due to play - actually got to finish his third round, and was back yesterday to complete his championship.

The SOS call to Richardson went out shortly before the Irishman teed-off and, after playing his first drive, he called for a medical break.

He was treated for 10 minutes and sporadically during the round, and was back on the treatment table rather than his golf bag prior to yesterday's final round.

How do you describe this man?

In his own words, he is a "professional golf sports practitioner", and his multi-disciplinary team offers a range of services that includes chiropractory, physiotherapy, acupuncture, massage, nutrition and diet.

He travels to about 30 tournaments worldwide a year - originally teaming up with Nick Faldo - and now includes such as Harrington, Michael Campbell, Brad Faxon, Paul Azinger and, most recently, Lee Westwood among his 25 or so clients.

"Most of the time, it is about sub-tissue techniques after a round to help them loosen up again, to get their realignment right.

"I like the analogy of Formula One when the car comes in at the end of the night and they pull it apart totally and put it back together after balancing everything because a car goes around the track in one direction and the stresses are uneven.

"It is pretty much the same that I do. These guys break down totally to a tee, you know exactly how they are going to break down because the stress accumulates very slowly over time and then they go."

Most of what Richardson offers to his clients is preventative treatment, aimed at stopping these golfing injuries occur.

"This is the first time any of my clients, who are regular clients, have had anything sudden come up," said Richardson, from Melbourne.

"Padraig did something the night before and destabilised his midback and neck region. He went to an arcade and played a game.

"I can't say it was just that, but they are tuned to do something and when they do something else they are just not ready for it.

"Padraig has had this particular problem for a number of years and it has cropped up a couple of times.

"We've managed to keep it from being very frequent at all, and this is the first time it has showed up in a year to a year and a half. He has a predisposition to it," explained Richardson.

In fact, Harrington had a similar injury - "only worse," he said - during the PGA two years ago but he was told that playing on here, uncomfortable as it was, would not aggravate the injury.

"It might be better if I was lying in bed at home, or a little better if I could stop, but it is not going to make too much difference."

Thanks to the manipulative hands of Richardson, however, he at least got to compete over the weekend (Harrington was two over through the 16th) in the season's final major - and the pair will be reacquainted again next week for the NEC Invitational in Seattle as golf life, injuries or no, moves on.

Padraig Harrington gets the full treatment from "professional golf sports practitioner" Dale Richardson.