TOUR NEWS:TIGER WOODS isn't the only player on tour who is looking for a "W" - the lexicon he uses for a win - these days, as Pádraig Harrington's seemingly miserable year has been transformed and the Dubliner has moved up the east coast of the United States, from New York to Boston, for this week's Deutsche Bank Championship with heightened expectations.
Harrington's runner-up finish in the Barclays championship on Sunday - where he was part of a logjam that also featured Woods, Ernie Els and Steve Stricker behind surprise champion Heath Slocum - enabled him to make giant strides in the FedEx Cup, moving him from 66th to 14th in the rankings for the US Tour's play-off series, and which also saw him jump back into the world's top-10, moving up two places from 11th to ninth.
"I know wins will come along," remarked Harrington after his second place finish in the Barclays, which gave him a second runner-up finish in his last three tournaments (along with the Bridgestone Invitational last month). It certainly gave further credence to Harrington's assertion in his mid-season crisis when he racked up five missed cuts in a row that he would have the "last laugh" on those who questioned his decision to undergo swing changes.
In fact, this metamorphosis in form has had more to do with changing his mindset. As he admitted, "I've been very happy with my mental side, the change in my mindset has helped me turn my form around. By getting myself more into my routines and target, I felt so much better on the course . . . being in contention at the Bridgestone and the US PGA reminded me of what I'd been missing for the first half of the year."
As evidenced by the huge leap made by Slocum in the FedEx Cup rankings, moving from 124th to third as a consequence of his win, the revised formula being used by the USPGA Tour has given an added incentive - beyond prize money - to players to perform well at the play-off tournaments, with the result that Woods has now committed to playing all three remaining tournaments in the play-off series, including this week's Deutsche Bank (which finishes on Monday, which is a national holiday in the US), the following week's BMW championship in Cog Hill, Chicago; and the Tour Championship at East Lake in Atlanta.
Harrington, too, can now expect to be at all three remaining play-off venues. From a situation a number of weeks ago - prior to regaining form in the Bridgestone, which secured his place in the FedEx Cup series - where he was seriously considering altering his schedule to take in more events in Europe, Harrington has now reset his sights to include the possibility of "winning the FedEx Cup."
He said: "The first six months (of the season), was frustrating . . . (now) I'm happy enough to be pushing along. I know wins will come along. It's nice to be in contention. It's nice to play better as I've got more in contention. That's always a good sign. My focus is better."
The contrast in Harrington's form underlines the fickleness of golf. From the Players Championship in May, the Irishman went on the worst run of form of his professional career that saw him miss five cuts in a row at the Memorial tournament, the St Jude Classic, the 3 Irish Open, the US Open and the French Open. Since then, he has had a run of 65th (British Open), second (Bridgestone), 10th (US PGA) and second (Barclays tournament).
Harrington, in 14th, is the leading European left in the FedEx Cup standings. Ian Poulter (21st), Luke Donald (25th), Paul Casey (27th), Fredrik Jacobsen (48th), Brian Davis (52nd), Greg Owen (66th), Sergio Garcia (71st), Justin Rose (80th), Richard S Johnson (85th) and Daniel Chopra (100th) have also made it into the Deutsche Bank, the second of four tournaments in the series.
Only the top 70 players after the tournament in Boston (starting on Friday) will make it into the following week's BMW in Chicago, where there is no cut, after which only the top 30 players will advance to the Tour Championship.
Woods, who remained on top of the FedEx Cup standings after his runner-up finish in the Barclays has committed to playing in all three remaining tournaments and, in fact, has won on all three courses - TPC Boston, Cog Hill and East Lake - in the past. The world number one has also confirmed he will play two tournaments outside of the US later this season, one of which is believed to be the HSBC Champions tournament in Shanghai in October.
