Harrington Goes Back-to-Back

Last night while sitting at this computer I was anticipating writing a piece today about a triumphant return to the winner's circle for a 50+ year old golfer. What a story it would be for a man who has not won a PGA event since 1996, a man who has not even participated in a major in three years, to win The Open Championship, one of golf's toughest tests. It would have been a great story. Padraig Harrington however had other ideas.

Harrington fired a one under 69 including two birdies and an eagle on the back nine en route to a four stroke victory over Englishmen Luke Donald. Harrington was brilliant throughout, paring the first six holes while the rest of the field was falling victim to the 35+mph winds. He then came back to the rest of the pack at the midway point of the round before really turning it on for the back nine and cruising to victory.

The victory for Harrington, his second consecutive Open Championship title, is even more impressive given that a day before the tournament he was not even sure if he would be able to play this week. He suffered a wrist injury during a practice round prior to the event. In a week that lacked the biggest name in all of sports, it was a Tiger-esk victory, overcoming a serious injury to win, that me be the most overlooked story of the weekend.

The story that would have been, Greg Norman, bogeyed four of the first six holes and never really could seem to find that comfort level that he thrived in the previous three days. He finished at +9, good for third place, some six shots behind Harrington. Norman, who has been known more for his chokes than his successes over the course of his career, once again came up short handed in the final round.

It is tough to see a guy like Norman, someone who you can't help but root for, struggle and fail to pull off what seemed imminent. I hope for his sake that this is not the last we see of Greg Norman on a leaderboard. He deserves to go out on top. But at the age of 56 one can only wonder how many many oppertunities he will have.