Neck and neck for Pádraig

FIRST IMPRESSIONS can actually be quite informative; and, for sure, this was not one of Pádraig Harrington's better days.

It was easy to imagine Homer - the cartoon guy who consumes beer and doughnuts, not the philosopher - assessing the lightly bearded, stiff-necked golfer who appeared yesterday at The London Club in the Kent countryside on the eve of the latest enactment of the European Open and simply saying, "Uh-oh!"

It wasn't the beard as much as the delicately positioned neck that set the alarm bells ringing. It's not what you want a day or two before a big tournament (there's €506,000 to the winner here), and definitely not what the doctor would order a couple of weeks before the defence of your British Open title.

To be sure, the return of Harrington's neck trouble at this important time of the season is worrying. The injury, an old one, recurred on Tuesday and was so bad he could not even manage a practice round or any work on the range. Yesterday he at least managed to play in the pro-am, though he strongly considered bypassing it; he participated only on the basis it "could save me a shot or two going into the tournament (on an unfamiliar course). I felt it worth the risk".

Back in January, while playing in the Abu Dhabi Championship, Harrington required treatment during his third round when the problem flared up. At the time, he remarked, "Once or twice a year it breaks down. I just hope it doesn't happen on a big week. Close to 75 per cent of my gym work is based on my shoulders to protect the neck. If you have a disk bulge there is nothing you can do about it; you have it for life."

Ironically, this latest occurrence of an injury that dates back to the USPGA at Hazeltine in 2002 followed a work-out in the gym.

"It came from the fact that I had a couple of weeks off, doing some practice and gym work and maybe not having as much physiotherapy (as on tour). But it is always good to happen on a Tuesday rather than a Wednesday because I couldn't play golf yesterday. But I'm intending to play."

The neck injury is one concern for Harrington, albeit one he has grown to accept and with which he learned how to live.

The other concerns are golf-related: firstly, his quest to win again - he is without a win in 11 months and one week, since his British Open win at Carnoustie; and, secondly, his ongoing quest to claim an automatic place on the Ryder Cup team for Valhalla in September.

In many ways, Harrington's failure to win and the fact he currently lies outside an automatic place on Nick Faldo's team are linked in that one, a victory, would surely look after the other.

By now he's itching to win again.

"My performances this season have just come shy of winning and, you know, it's important to win out there," he says. "There's been plenty of top-10s and top-fives to keep me going, but the wins are definitely the most important part.

"There's some incentive on for me to get a few wins . . . we're halfway through the calendar year and running out of time to have multiple wins in a season. I am here to win tournaments, and I'm certainly working hard on playing for the moment and trying to win in any given week I'm out here."

Of his Ryder Cup position, Harrington observed he will have his "week or two where I go out and win or get close enough to get the big points to push me over the edge. I know if I play my golf it should take care of itself . . .

"I'm in the situation where I have to play well to qualify. I'm just hoping that turns around over the next two months."

Harrington has been paired for the opening two rounds with Darren Clarke - seeking to overturn a poor run of form, especially now that his only possible routes into the British Open in a fortnight's time are here and at next week's Scottish Open; he requires a top-five finish at either venue.

The other Irishmen in the field are Graeme McDowell, Paul McGinley, Peter Lawrie, Gary Murphy, Damien McGrane and Rory McIlroy.

The fact the European Open - now shed of Smurfit's sponsorship, which had the tournament at The K Club for the past 13 years as part of its build-up to the 2006 Ryder Cup and for just a solitary year after that shindig - has moved to the London Club means Harrington, like everyone else, is unfamiliar with the course, designed by Jack Nicklaus.

From what he has seen, Harrington believes the scoring could be excellent, estimating the winning total could be 16 or 17 under par: "I reckon a strong hitter is going to do well, because they'll be able to cut a lot of corners (on the doglegs) and shorten the course quite a bit."

The important thing for Harrington, two weeks ahead of his defence of the Claret Jug at Royal Birkdale, is to get the adrenalin rush that only being in contention can bring.

"I'm quite interested in short-term goals at the moment . . . and winning here is where the focus is at," said Harrington, playing for the first time since his 36th-place finish in the US Open.

Indeed, he wondered aloud yesterday why that finish should have been greeted like a disaster among many of his supporters at home.

"I remember one guy calling to my house, and saying, 'what happened to you? It really wasn't a very good week for you'. Well, 36th position at the US Open is not what you want, but it doesn't mean everything's falling apart . . . there's no reason to change any tactics or anything in my game at all. It comes down to being patient and letting it happen."

Now, if only that neck would behave itself!