Harrington takes note of overall problems

Padraig Harrington had important handwritten notes to occupy his mind on the flight to Atlanta yesterday, where he is competing in the $6 million WGC-American Express Championship at the Capital City Club.

What he termed "essential reading" for the trip were the notes of Dr Bob Rotella, his sports psychologist, which the Dubliner felt must infiltrate his brain if he is to turnabout what is threatening to be a poor season by his own standards.

"Golf seems very difficult at the moment," admitted Harrington, before setting out on the flight. "I just don't seem to be picking the right options at the moment. When you look at a putt and you don't see the line, and then you start questioning it . . . it is frustrating and it is hard to be upbeat and to enjoy it. That happens. When it is all going well, it is easy. On every putt you see the line, every club is right, (the ball) lands pin high. I'm just not getting away with anything and not doing enough.

"When you feel things aren't going with you, it is time to stand back from it. It's time to take the good with the bad and, to be honest, when you do that, you're probably not as bad as you think and all of a sudden you turn the corner. It's a question of being patient."

Harrington has slipped one place in the world rankings, to 10th, which still makes him the leading European. However, as has been evident of his play in recent months (he hasn't had a top-10 finish since the US Open in June and his last win came in the TPC of Europe back in May), Harrington is not firing on all cylinders and, now, he believes that is down to neglecting the mental side of his game. And that is why the Rotella notes became the most important part of his reading material for his journey.

"Basically, I got a little bit bogged down on the wrong track (this season) and was not focused on the mental side of the game during the year. I hope to recover in the next couple of months, but earlier in the season I wasn't focused on that kind of thing and it has caught up with me.

"Over the years, you're always going to have periods like this. You have good years and you have average years. It's looking like a bit of an average year at the moment but a couple of wins wouldn't do any harm in changing that."

Harrington, in his eighth year as a professional, insists it is still possible to learn.

"If I continue in this state of form for the rest of the season, it will be a very good note in the diary for the end of the year," he claimed. "Swing-wise, I'm not far from where I want to be. Undoubtedly, I have been working on my swing a lot this year. It was something I wanted to do. Funnily, I have been happier with my golf swing this year than any other year. There's a lesson to be learned in that. I don't know what it is yet."

Now down to fifth in the Order of Merit, and with substantial ground to make up on leader Ernie Els, Harrington's schedule over the coming weeks will see him play in the AmEx followed by a couple of weeks hiatus before contesting the Madrid Open and then the European Tour season-ending Volvo Masters. After that, his itinerary will see him remain in Spain for the Seve Trophy after which his globetrotting will see him contest the Nedbank Challenge in Sun City and defend the Williams World Challenge in America.

For Darren Clarke - who remains 13th in the world - the next fortnight will see him compete in the US, at this week's AmEx and next week's Las Vegas Invitational. His next scheduled appearance in Europe is the Volvo Masters but the Ulster man may consider adding on the previous week's Madrid Open if he feels he has a chance to overtake Els in the money list.

Currently, he trails by €771,940. It could well take following up on his WGC-NEC Invitational win by repeating the act in Atlanta this week to make that chase a successful one.

The man with the closest view of Clarke's woes on the greens at St Andrews last week was the financier Dermot Desmond, and he insisted the golfer would be returning to the winner's enclosure again by the time the season is out.

"Darren missed putts by no more than an eighth of an inch on numerous times. He could have had a 62 (in the final round) rather a 70 and I'd say he has got more victories in him before the end of this year," insisted Desmond.

And, given Clarke's recent form which has seen him contend in every event since his win in the NEC, the expectation would be that he will be there or thereabouts again this week.

Lee Westwood's win enabled him to achieve one of his stated ambitions of returning to the top 100 in the world. The Englishman's success in the Dunhill Links moved him up 50 places in the rankings to 61st. Westwood is now top of the European Ryder Cup points list and the European World Ryder Cup points list.