Harrington rules himself out but says Langer’s seniors win tally will be broken eventually
Pádraig Harrington at The Ally Challenge
Padraig Harrington doesn’t think he can do it but he does believe Bernhard Langer’s record of 48 PGA Tour Champions wins will eventually come under threat.
Bidding for his ninth win as a senior in The Ally Challenge in Michigan this week, the Dubliner all but ruled himself out.
“No,” said Harrington, who turns 53 on August 31. “I've tried to do the math on it as you would say, the maths as I would say.
“Yeah, no, it doesn't look possible or likely, but the reality is it mightn't be me, but all records are broken; that's just the way it is.
“When somebody sets a record, it's a goal for somebody else, and they'll chase it down eventually.
“Certainly, for myself, it would seem like an incredibly tall order. He's 67, still playing great, which is amazing and an inspiration to us all, but to get to his amount of wins, I think, is a step too far for me.”
After finishing tied for seventh in the Rogers Charity Classic in Canada on Sunday, Harrington is upbeat about claiming his third win of the season this week.
“I'm excited to be back,” Harrington said. “I love when we come to some of the old-style golf courses because we're old-style players, I suppose.
“Yeah, last time I played it wasn't too far away, I remember on Sunday. The course definitely is OK for me, it suits me. All the old-school ones are good.
“First hole is out of bounds, tight down the left. I was eating my lunch today and I only remembered it then; I said oh, yeah, I'm happy when I get off that first tee and get going.”
The Dubliner is ninth in the Charles Schwab Cup money list with just over $1 million in winnings from ten starts.
“Yeah, it's been an interesting year,” he said. “I've been putting well, which I think has really helped, and the rest of the game has been pretty similar to other years.
“So I'm in nice form and just trying to get my head in the right place for the week as usual. You get the mental game going, you should be -- if you're sharp, hopefully, we'll be there or thereabouts come Sunday afternoon.”
He added: “It’s a good set-up for me, so that's a good start. You just want to make the right decisions at the right time, that's really it.
“Whatever those decisions are, whether it's attacking the right pin, being aggressive at the right time.
“You probably need a few breaks, too; it's just never easy. It's never a burden to carry
a bit of good luck; you need a few things to go your way.
“But again, it's about preparing right so that if you're in the hunt on Sunday, you're fresh and ready to go.”
Harrington has fond memories of Detroit after winning a Ryder Cup and a PGA Championship at Oakland Hills, only an hour’s drive from Warwick Hills.
“Of course I do, yeah, absolutely,” he said. “Just up the road, my major win and the Ryder Cup win in 2004, it's a happy hunting ground.
“I like the grass here; the conditions suit me well. I like tree-lined golf courses.
“Yeah, there's no doubt coming here there's a similarity in conditions that obviously suit me.”
Harrington teamed up with Paul McGinley to beat Davis Love and Tiger Woods in that 2004 Ryder Cup and asked how he’d encourage 15-time major winner Wood to play senior golf after he turns 50 in December next year, he had no doubts.
“You get to live some of your past glories; it's fun out here; you hit shots with people watching under pressure,” Harrington said.
“You know, you mess up sometimes, you hit some great shots, and realistically, you know you're getting to relive some of your glory.”
