Padraig Harrington Poised to Win WGC and Defend at the PGA Championship

Two months ago, in early June, Padraig Harrington was looking ahead to the last three majors of the 2009 PGA TOUR season.

"It really is now starting to get into the beef of the season. Any player really wants to play well from now on to the end of August. My goal is to peak through these three months. I haven't had such a great start to the year. I've been kind of focused on other things. Now I've got to get down to business, and hopefully through the U.S. Open, the Open, and the PGA, I'll be back to my top performances."

It did not happen at the U.S. Open, where a pair of 76s led to an early exit at Bethpage Black.

At the Open at Turnberry, it was an early Sunday T65 finish, receiving polite applause from a sparse crowd at the 18th green well before Stewart Cink and Tom Watson even teed off at the nearby first tee.

Now one week before "glory's last stand," Harrington has found his form, starting 64-69 at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational.

"I have found what I was looking for in my swing, so I've now put more attention onto the other parts of my game, the short game and things like that, that provide scores like this."

Can the lucky Irishman come all the way back in time to win this week at Firestone CC and defend his PGA title at Hazeltine next week?

Since winning at Oakland Hills last August, Padraig is now 0-for-3 in majors, including a T35 at the Masters after winning three out of six majors.

Padraig's first major victory came at Carnoustie in the 2007 Open, where he beat Sergio Garcia in a four-hole playoff for the Claret Jug.

He followed that with a T32 finish at Southern Hills in the 2007 PGA Championship, with the last three rounds in the low 70s.

After a Sunday 72, he tied for fifth place at the 2008 Masters.

Then came a T36 finish at the U.S. Open last year at Torrey Pines after an opening 78 and a Saturday 77.

Then came his back-to-back major wins at the Open at Royal Birkdale and the PGA at Oakland Hills.

Then came the major slump.

In America, his best finish since last year's PGA Championship is a T11 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. On the European Tour, it was a T5 at the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship in early January.

He did win the Irish PGA Championship this year for the sixth time (five of last six years) the week before the Open at Turnberry, though it was a weak field against the European Tour at Loch Lomond in Scotland and the John Deere Classic in the States.

Though still ranked No. 17 in the world, Padraig has slipped to 84th on Order of Merit, No. 134th on the Money List, and 142nd in the FedEx Cup points race to East Lake.

"Over the last couple years I've been trying to get to the bottom of my swing. Since I won the two majors last year, I got a little bit deeper into it, trying to figure something out, been very much concentrating on that for the last eight months.

"The results have been quite lean certainly in the last five months. I've got to get back to working on my scoring."

There are those of us that wish Padraig would stop tinkering with his swing and do a reality check when he makes comments like the following:

"I think I'm in a far better position than I was this time last year, or even this time at the end of August last year. I just won two majors. I think I'm a far better player now than I was then."

The reality is this man did recently win three of six majors, and he likely knows what he is doing.

"I just have got to be patient and let it happen and wait for the results, which ultimately are the judge to turn around."

Maybe the real "Paddy Slam" starts at Hazeltine next week?

"I do like the idea of the majors. They do seem to be easier to win in some ways. They're a bit like playing—they feel like you're in a marathon rather than a sprint. A regular event, it feels like a quick dash. If you don't get off to a good start, you feel you're a little bit behind.

"Whereas in a major championship, you know it's going to come down to the last nine holes on Sunday. It's all about getting yourself in position."

Is there more pressure for Harrington being the defending PGA Champion?

"There's definitely more pressure the year you're defending. There's more focus on you. There's more questions being asked. There's a little bit more expectations. Even though you've done it before, can you do it again? Yeah, it brings more pressure.

"Hazeltine itself, fantastic golf course. It is a golf course that's there in front of you, with plenty of options. In major golf nowadays the best majors are played on golf courses that have options. When you have a bigger, stronger golf course, you can settle for a big golf course, a tough course, but you can set a very fair course."

Harrington is doing the Irish jig thinking about next week's final major of 2009.

"What I keep hearing about Hazeltine is music to my ears. It's sounding like we're going to have a big, strong test, but nothing that's going to be tricky."

Yes, there is more pressure being the defending champion, especially at a major.

Having successfully defended his Open title at Royal Birkdale last year, Harrington knows how to do it.

"It's a good place to be. Like we all know, when you're under pressure, it means you care a little bit. You're exactly where you want to be in life if you're under pressure. You kind of embrace it."

Bet on the Irishman winning at Firestone CC this week, and don't count him out for Hazeltine next week.

"I think winning majors makes it easier to win majors in the long term because you've done it before."

He may just successfully defend his PGA Championship earned last year at Oakland Hills CC, lift that 44-pound Wannamaker trophy, keep it, and silence his critics.

Andy Reistetter is a freelance golf writer. He follows the PGA TOUR, volunteering for the tournaments and working part-time for NBC Sports, CBS Sports, and The Golf Channel.

He resides in Jacksonville Beach, Florida near the PGA TOUR headquarters and home of The PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach. He enjoys pursuing his passion for the game of golf and everything associated with it. He can be reached through his website www.MrHickoryGolf.net or by e-mailing [e-mail].