Ireland's Padraig Harrington, who missed out on a Ryder Cup debut by two shots
two years ago, dramatically came through the same harrowing ordeal to leap into Europe's side for Boston next month.
The 27-year-old Dubliner stood on the final tee of the final qualifying event,
the BMW International Open in Munich, needing a bogey six to knock Swede Robert
Karlsson out of an automatic spot on Mark James' team.
In normal circumstances that might have been an easy task, but these were not
normal circumstances. It was the most important hole of Harrington's career.
At the time he thought he might have to make a five to secure the second place
he needed and the tension could hardly have been greater as he tried to make
amends for 1997, when he had to eagle the very same hole and failed.
While playing partner Colin Montgomerie was cruising to a three-stroke victory
- his fifth of the season and one which made Europe's six-time number one the
first man to win over £1million in one year on the Order of Merit - Harrington
knew that all eyes were on him.
The former Walker Cup amateur chose an iron for safety off the tee, but pushed
that into deep rough. He had to lay up short of the ditch crossing the fairway
and then pulled his third into the crowd.
But from there he pitched to 10 feet and, with his wife Caroline crossing her
fingers at the side of the green, bravely sank the putt for his five.
Only afterwards was Harrington told he could have two-putted.
"It's a great feeling," he said. "But making the Ryder Cup won't sink in
tonight. I'll be on a high and won't sleep at all."
Montgomerie's closing 70 gave him the £141,657 first prize with a 20 under par
total of 268 - the same as when he triumphed by nine strokes in Sweden just two
weeks ago.
A jubilant Harrington was runner-up just as he was at the West of Ireland
Classic last Sunday, recovering from a dreadful, nerve-ridden start to record a
72 and 17 under aggregate.
Australian Jarrod Moseley was a stroke further back and Midlander John
Bickerton, who had to win to make the Ryder Cup and at one point was only two
behind Montgomerie, was fourth.
Open runner-up Jean Van de Velde clinched the other top 10 spot despite
finishing only 62nd.
Harrington was 16th in the points standings two weeks ago, went to 14th in
Ireland while all the stars were at the United States PGA championship and with
his performance finished just over £31,000 ahead of Karlsson.
That was bad enough for Karlsson, but then to be told by captain Mark James
that it was 12th-placed Andrew Coltart whom he was picking along with Jesper
Parnevik was a double blow for the Swede.
James himself had to finish third to qualify for his own side - he later
finally revealed that he would have played and given the captaincy to Ken Brown
- but slipped back to joint fifth with Coltart.
Harrington does not have to wait a month to start feeling the benefits of
making the Ryder Cup.
On Monday he flies to Ohio to compete in the NEC world championship tournament,
where first prize is a million dollars and even the player finishing last
receives 25,000 dollars (£15,625). And he gets to play in the same event last
year.
He now has the chance to win the Walker Cup, World Cup and Ryder Cup. His
Walker Cup success was against an American side featuring Tiger Woods at
Porthcawl four years ago and the World Cup was for Ireland with Paul McGinley in
South Carolina two years ago.
Montgomerie, who had thought about missing Munich to stay in America, decided
to play to honour a commitment he made after missing the cut last year.
Harrington was one behind with a round to play, but was bunkered at the
second, distracted by a nearby combine harvester on the third and then added a
double bogey to those two bogeys by pitching into water on the next.
Collated final-round scores(Gbr and Irl unless stated, par 72):
268 C Montgomerie 69 64 65 70 (£141,657)
271 P Harrington 66 67 66 72 (£94,436)
272 J Moseley (Aus) 67 68 71 66 (£53,214)
274 J Bickerton 67 69 69 69 (£42,500)
275 D Howell 67 70 72 66, A Coltart 70 68 71 66, G Orr 70 68 69 68, M James 70
69 66 70
276 R Karlsson (Swe) 70 71 70 65, P Baker 67 71 71 67, P Broadhurst 69 73 66
68, M Gronberg (Swe) 72 68 67 69, J-F Remesy (Fra) 69 69 66 72
277 D Robertson 70 71 71 65
278 A McLardy (Rsa) 70 72 68 68, B Langer (Ger) 69 68 72 69, S Field 67 73 69
69, D Hospital (Spa) 66 71 67 74, I Woosnam 70 66 68 74, P Price 67 69 68 74
279 N Faldo 67 73 72 67, S Luna (Spa) 71 69 71 68, T Johnstone (Zim) 68 69 73
69, S Kjeldsen (Den) 73 69 68 69, D Edlund (Swe) 66 71 72 70, A Beal 71 69 69 70
280 P Lawrie 69 73 70 68, M Tunnicliff 67 73 71 69, S Struver (Ger) 73 69 69
69, G Owen 72 71 67 70, W Riley (Aus) 72 63 73 72, F Cea (Spa) 70 68 70 72, M
Mouland 69 70 68 73
281 B Lane 74 68 71 68, P O'Malley (Aus) 73 70 70 68, D Carter 74 67 71 69, M
Long (Nzl) 73 69 70 69, H Bjornstad (Nor) 73 70 69 69, T Bjorn (Den) 70 70 70
71, R Davis (Aus) 73 70 64 74
282 D Gilford 73 69 71 69, V Phillips 70 73 69 70, A Raitt 70 70 71 71, T
Gogele (Ger) 70 69 71 72, J Spence 72 65 72 73
283 M McNulty (Zim) 69 68 74 72, R Wessels (Rsa) 73 70 68 72, J Mellor 71 69
70 73, P Fowler (Aus) 71 70 67 75
284 C Rodiles (Spa) 72 71 72 69, I Garrido (Spa) 73 65 76 70, E Canonica (Ita)
70 69 74 71, J Lomas 70 69 72 73, P Quirici (Swi) 70 68 73 73
285 T Immelman (Rsa) 70 72 74 69, S Grappasonni (Ita) 70 71 73 71, P-U
Johansson (Swe) 71 72 71 71, R Goosen (Rsa) 70 69 74 72, J Robinson 72 69 70 74,
N O'Hern (Aus) 67 74 70 74, P Mitchell 69 70 70 76
286 J Van de Velde (Fra) 68 73 73 72, W Bennett 73 67 73 73
287 F Tarnaud (Fra) 74 69 73 71, P Haugsrud (Nor) 68 74 73 72, S Hansen (Den)
72 69 72 74, D Cooper 71 70 71 75, D Park 62 72 73 80
288 S Henderson 70 71 75 72, P McGinley 69 72 74 73, K Tomori (Jpn) 70 72 73
73, A Sherborne 72 71 71 74
289 R Claydon 74 68 73 74
291 M Farry (Fra) 69 73 78 71, P Walton 73 70 71 77
295 A Binaghi (Ita) 72 71 70 82
298 S Dodd 69 74 75 80.
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