Pádraig Harrington has now emulated Gary Player after winning as many major titles on the senior tour as he did at the peak of his powers, with the Irishman clinching the Senior Open Championship at Sunningdale earlier this month.
Pádraig Harrington won his second and third majors in quick succession back in 2008. Of course, he retained his Open Championship crown at Royal Birkdale. And he followed that by clinching the PGA Championship at Oakland Hills after a battle with Sergio García.
And it seems that history has somewhat repeated itself 17 years later.
Harrington won the US Senior Open for a second time at The Broadmoor back in June, with Stewart Cink the player who lost out by one.
Pádraig Harrington suggests what was strange about his Senior Open Championship victory
And he went on to clinch the Senior Open Championship in Berkshire on Sunday. The 2021 European Ryder Cup captain finished three shots clear of his predecessor Thomas Bjorn and Justin Leonard.
Despite the recent success, it seems that there were very few similarities between the two performances. Speaking on the Sky Sports Golf Podcast, Harrington explained how he seemed to be struggling with a completely different part of his game.
“It was strange. I won the US Open and I was very comfortable with my ball-striking and I had a real torrid time on the greens. Now I’m sure I got the ball in the hole, but I felt terrible,” he said.
“This time around, I felt really poor, out of control with my swing. I was hitting a particularly bad shot, I was hitting a big hook at times and I didn’t know why I was hitting it. So I felt very uncomfortable off the tee and with some of my iron shots. But very comfortable around the greens and on the greens.
“They were the exact opposite. I’m sure they looked the same on TV. I will say on Sunday, because I wasn’t sure why I was hitting that particular bad shot, I ended up just purely being getting the job done into my focus. I wasn’t standing there trying to do any swing technique or anything like that.”
Why Senior Open Championship victory was particularly special for Padraig Harrington
Harrington’s longevity has been remarkable. The 53-year-old had a top 25 finish at The Open Championship as recently as 2024, nearly three decades after his first win on the European Tour.
But that does not mean that Harrington does not still have plenty of goals left. In fact, he suggested that he is determined to make the most of the opportunity when he gets the chance to play at some of the best courses around.
“It was very special because at my age, I’m often chatting with my caddie Ronan, I didn’t have regrets during my career, but when I look back at a venue where I finished runner-up, if it’s an iconic venue, I’m actually very disappointed now,” he said.
“I never won at Wentworth. I lost the match play there in a final. But I’d dearly love to have won at Wentworth. I’d dearly love to have won at Crans-Montana, any of the iconic venues on the European Tour. So winning at Sunningdale, it’s an age thing, these things are very important as you get older. You’re running out of time. And you couldn’t find a better golf course, a better venue, especially to play a Champions Tour event.”
Interestingly, one of those runner-up finishes came at Gleneagles in 2022 when it hosted the Senior Open Championship.
So Harrington will surely be delighted that the event is returning to the Scottish course next year – when he will be looking to defend his title.
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