Pádraig reveals his Cup hopes
PÁDRAIG Harrington revealed he hasn’t given up on a Ryder Cup return after carding a 65, his lowest round of the year, to shoot into contention at the $7m Turkish Airlines Open in Antayla yesterday.
Harrington produced his best golf of the year to sit fourth on six under, having foregone the luxuries of the modern golfer by arriving via a budget airline and paying £45 to bring his clubs.
‘The reason I’m here is because if you win one of these two events (he plays the Nedbank Challenge next week), it puts you right there for the Ryder Cup,’ the three-time major winner said.
‘It would kind of be in your hands if you got a good start like that.’
At 46, the Dubliner is the senior competitor in the restricted 78strong field but he made the most of a sponsor’s invite to trail co-leaders Nicolas Colsaerts, Joost Luiten and Hyadn Porteus by a stroke.
‘If I drive it well, I can score. I drove it well. I gave myself lots of chances, just kept it nicely in play all day. A nice number of chances, converted a few of them, and it was a pretty easy six under par. I wish they were all like that,’ he said.
Harrington is a cert to be one of Thomas Bjorn’s vice- captains in 2018 in Paris if he doesn’t qualify for the European team.
‘Thomas has been very polite in not coming to me and talking to me like a vice-captain. He’s leading me to believe I’m still a player which is nice. In a few months’ time, maybe that will start changing.’
Shane Lowry, who is eager to nail down qualification for the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai in a fortnight, opened with a 68, despite a closing bogey on the 18th. Paul Dunne, a winner already this year, signed for a tidy 67, the same mark as in-form Tyrell Hatton.
Ian Poulter, meanwhile, declared he would give his left arm to play in the Ryder Cup’ next year after shooting five under.
It says plenty about Poulter’s change in fortunes in the past six months that he can even think about making the European Team.
It was only in April that he thought he had lost his PGA Tour card after cascading all the way to 207 in the world, before being told it was a clerical error and he was still in.
That reprieve jolted his form and at world No 54 he is looking his old self again, particularly here in Antalya, after an impressive round of 66.
Poulter clocked five birdies and no bogeys before discussing the wider issue of whether a strong finish to this season could get him back in the Cup reckoning, considering he missed out last year and is still some way down the order for the next one in France next September.
He said: ‘I do want to be there next year. And I might have said that in a slightly understated fashion. I would give literally my left arm to play. I’d love to be there.
‘I was 207 in the world so it’s been quite a move since late April. I didn’t know how long it would take to get back in but good golf always, always moves you back up the board.
‘I guess I just need to learn how to win again.’
Tommy Fleetwood, who is leading the Race to Dubai, is 42nd after shooting level par, while Justin Rose, his closest rival in the overall standings, is two shots better off after a 69.
Meanwhile, Gavin Moynihan slipped back in the Challenge Tour finale in Oman with a second round 73. That left him tied for 26th on one under par, 10 shots off the lead.
Moynihan lay 18th on the order of merit heading into the event — the top 15 players in the rankings after tomorrow’s finish graduate to the European Tour.