World opens up to US-bound Harrington

Padraig Harrington's enhanced status after being chosen as a Ryder Cup player became more obvious yesterday. Instead of conducting a planned corporate day in Finland, Harrington flew out to the United States for this week's NEC World Golf Championship event at the Firestone Country Club in Akron where only the world's elite players compete. There is no cut, and the last placed player pockets $25,000.

And, yet, nowadays, pure monetary gains are not what motivates Harrington. "We're in a very lucky situation. Once you get to this level, you don't think about the money," he said, without the slightest hint of conceit.

Rather, it is all about achieving career goals and, for a player who sets out his targets on a personal computer at the start of the year and ticks them off as they are reached, Harrington admitted that making the Ryder Cup team was "right at the top of the tree".

Securing his place in Europe's team for the match with the United States at Brookline next month will force Harrington to make some changes to his plans. But he is a man not unaccustomed to change.

Indeed, a series of decisions taken by the Dubliner over the past 12 months enabled him to get to the point where he managed to secure his place on Mark James's team in pressurised circumstances in Munich on Sunday. He switched to Bob Torrance as his coach at the tail end of last season and, also, changed caddies. Dave McNeilly, a former caddie to Nick Faldo and Nick Price, took over his bag from John O'Reilly.

As if to confirm the role that caddies play in the modern game, Harrington made a point of complimenting his sidekick. "Dave's tremendous. He is so experienced that I have complete trust in him, and he was fantastic on Sunday the way he kept my spirits up when things weren't going my way."

Also, on a personal note, Harrington has worked hard not just on his game but on his body in the past year. He has lost over a stone in weight but, perhaps more importantly, has toned up substantially and, in fact, Harrington was in the gym of his hotel until after eight o'clock on Saturday night, the eve of earning a place on Europe's team.

His promotion to Ryder Cup status will bring inevitable rewards. Most immediately, it has earned him a place in the NEC - and, a measure of how focused he was on the task at hand on Sunday is that he had to enquire exactly where Akron was when he finished his round. Informed it was in Ohio, he appeared none the wiser.

So, instead of a week's rest, Harrington headed out to America for what will be his eighth tournament Stateside. On Sunday, Montgomerie stated that Harrington's putting would be a decided asset to the European team but wondered about his lack of tournament experience in the USA. "He hasn't played much over there," claimed Monty.

Not surprisingly, Harrington was quick to retort that he is well acquainted with American courses. And so he is. He has played in two US Opens, a US PGA, the Bayhill Invitational and two Sarazen Opens as well as famously partnering Paul McGinley to World Cup team success at Kiawah Island in 1997. His best performance in an American major was at the US Open in 1998 at the Olympic Club when he finished in a tie for 32nd position.

But his success in making the Ryder Cup team means his planned schedule has been thrown up in the air. Ideally, he would like to take next week off - but, as a Canon player, he is contracted to play in the European Masters at Crans, which means that the British Masters at Woburn the following week, an event he was anticipating with some relish, may become the casualty.

"I really wanted to play there, Woburn is a course that I believe will suit my game tremendously," said Harrington. And then, the next week (which precedes the Ryder Cup) is the Lancome Trophy. He added: "I just don't know what my plans will be now, I really haven't got a clue. But I do know that I badly need to take a rest somewhere along the line, and I also have to spend time with Bob (Torrance), that's essential."

In his attempt to make the team, Harrington actually played in eight of the last nine weeks (his only rest week was after the British Open at Carnoustie when he decided to bypass the Dutch Open) and, by Switzerland next week, he will have played 10 out of 11.

And, although insisting that the honour of making the Ryder Cup team is sufficient satisfaction, a large number of doors will open for the Mount Juliet-attached touring professional.

In fact, his status as a Ryder Cup player will get him into all the World Golf Championship events for the next two years - apart from the matchplay, for which he would need to be in the world's top 64 (he is currently ranked 83rd).

His earnings in Munich also lifted him to ninth place in the European Order of Merit with prize-money to date of £337,316. Should he maintain that position, or at least remain in the top 15, then this, too, should bear fruit because it will get him into the British Open, US Open and US PGA next season and, intriguingly, sets him up for a likely invitation to play in the US Masters.

So, it was an extra spring in his step that Harrington boarded the flight at Heathrow yesterday bound for the United States. "I've always watched the Ryder Cup on television. It is a huge event, and it is something I always dreamed about playing in.

"Irish players have played valiantly under pressure in the event down the years. It is tremendous to make the team. As an amateur I played in every team possible with the exception of the Eisenhower Trophy. This was the last one I had to get into, and I have."

Harrington was congratulated yesterday by Jim McDaid, the Minister for Tourism, Sport and Recreation. "It is a marvellous achievement by Padraig coming on top of his achievement in winning, with Paul McGinley, the World Cup," he said.