Philip Reidfinds the reigning British Open and PGA champion in philosophical mood despite his recent woes

IT’S AS if he has been given a jigsaw puzzle, and every time Pádraig Harrington puts it together someone comes along and breaks it up. After an ignominious exit from the 109th US Open on Saturday – which, would you believe, even included a section of boozed-up spectators offering some boos after a poorly played chip by the eighth green, his penultimate hole – the Dubliner again headed for home attempting to pick up the pieces.

The stark facts?

This was his fifth missed cut in his last six tournaments. And with the clock ticking down on his quest to make it three British Opens in a row at Turnberry next month, Harrington will reappear at next week’s French Open in Paris wondering when or if his grand swing change will fall into place.

As it is, he doesn’t know whether shots will go left or right.

Back in 2006, Harrington had a runner-up finish in the French Open but the Paris National course hasn’t featured on his itinerary since then. Quite simply, it is not one that fits his eye. It is not the place to be taking an out-of-sorts game, or to be looking for confidence.

“I find it very difficult,” confessed Harrington. “As much as it is a great golf course, it would be a long way down the list of courses I would chose to be competitive on.”

The thing is, Harrington needs to be competitive again. And quickly. The only other tournament he has pencilled into his diary ahead of the British Open in Scotland is on far more familiar terrain, the Ladbrokes Irish PGA Championship at the European Club.

It is a tournament he has used as preparation for the British Open for the past two years, winning each time. Of that challenge, over a course he knows like the back of his hand, he observed with a smile: “I know how to get it around there.”

Unfortunately for Harrington, Bethpage Black – and getting the wrong end of the stick with the draw – proved to be beyond him.

“It’s a pity I couldn’t get it back,” remarked Harrington, after finishing his interest here with a run-in that had more bogeys than pars. He added a second consecutive 76, for 152, eight shots outside the cut mark.

“Obviously, I have had a bad run for the last four months but I have improved a few elements of my game that have been annoying me for the last couple of years. I just have to wait and let it come back . . . it’s hard to take anything positive out of this.”

He insisted the swing changes are finished. “I am actually not rebuilding. I have done that, and I am happy with the stuff I did. The last four months have been quite productive and I am happy going forward that I just have to find a bit of form and put it all together. I just need to wait for it all to come to fruition.

“It can come round in a day. This game is fickle in that way. It can come around in four weeks; by the time I tee it up in the Open I will be ready. I suppose with my current form there is more hope than expectation but I’ll do the same preparation for the Open as I did last year. That’s all I can do.”

Harrington plans on seeing his coach Bob Torrance over the next week. “It will be more going over stuff, not too much detail. It’s a catch 22 for me. It’s not about more work, it’s about less in some ways . . . but I’ve never been the type of person that hits one good shot and thinks it is all okay. Also, I have never been the type of person that worries about results in the short term.”

The problem for Harrington is that the run of poor results is stretching beyond a short term. He hasn’t had a top-10 finish since the Abu Dhabi championship in January, and has missed the cut in six of 12 tournaments on the US Tour this season.

As if to rub salt into his wounds, Harrington was booed by a small section of fans on the eighth green on Saturday. It is the first time since the 1999 Ryder Cup at Brookline – when he insisted on walking up to the 17th green to assess his approach shot in the singles with Mark O’Meara – that he was on the wrong end of a US crowd. However, Harrington insisted he never heard the heckling. “I don’t remember, it didn’t happen . . . the crowds were really good. I had a lot of good support.”

Such ribbing is the least of his worries. Getting his new fade to work is a far more serious situation. Next week’s excursion to Paris should be interesting.