Padraig Harrington wants to repay Captain Colin Montgomerie’s generosity in wild card picks
Europe’s Ryder Cup Captain Colin Montgomerie favoured Padraig Harrington for a wild card pick who now aims to give the favour back to the captain at Celtic Manor.
The countdown has begun and the clock is ticking away as only 7 days are left before the Ryder Cup begin in Wales. The course at the Celtic Manor Resort has been specifically designed to host this biennial event with over 100 million spectators
across the globe getting ready to witness the event unfold.
Colin Montgomerie is confident that the European team will win this year as many of his team members have won tournaments in the recent past. Martin Kaymer has won twice including the KLM Open and the USPGA Championship 2010. Ross Fisher
claimed a two stroke victory in the 3 Irish Open. Miguel Angel Jimenez seized the Omega European Masters, Edoardo Molinari won the Johnnie Walker Championship and in the end, Peter Hanson won the Czech Open. With European team players in such good form, one
can only deduce that the European team is in excellent form and the Americans will find it difficult to win this time round.
Moreover, another key coordinate of the team, Lee Westwood is back in action after recovering from a calf injury. To prove his fitness, the world number three has made an appearance at a charity event for Leukaemia and breast cancer patients. He was declared
fit for the foursomes that will take place on the 1st of October, 2010. His fitness was a major threat to the team and Monty along with his vice-captain was worried regarding this issue. In fact, he was considering the possibility of keeping a reserve
in the team in case Lee Westwood fails to fulfil the expectations.
Apart from these accomplishments, Monty still has a card that is quite unstable and unpredicted. That card is Padraig Harrington. The 39-year-old is winless over last two years, but this time round, he is looking for an opportunity that can end this drought.
Therefore, he has made an appearance at Golf de Joyenval for the Vivendi Cup taking place in Paris. This inaugural tournament is a pro-am session in which Padraig along with brother Fergal will be seen in action on the greens at the Retz and Marley course.
According to media reports, Padraig Harrington added this event to his schedule, after being dropped out of the FedEx playoffs in America. Although, he did not demonstrate a spectacular record at the Vivendi Cup in the last few years, Harrington failed to
win the cup game in 2008 at Louisville when his team lost in 2006 when the team claimed the victory at the K Club.
However, according to Padraig, the history won’t repeat itself again. He explained back in 2008 that he was way too flat after winning the USPGA and The Open in a row. Therefore, he was tired and winning the Vivendi Cup did not hold a very strong position
in his career. However, times have changed and winning this title is the primary goal of the player.
Moreover, he said that it was time to pay back the captain for his generous behaviour. Monty chose Harrington for his experience with the Ryder cup as he has played in 21 matches, which is quite a record. Therefore, now it was Harrington’s responsibility
to do justice. In this context, Harrington said that he was looking forward for the Ryder Cup and therefore he wanted to perform in the upcoming Vivendi Cup.
Apart from Harrington, the Czech Open winner Peter Hanson and the Austrian Open winner Jose Manuel Lara will be teeing off this week. This signifies that three of Monty’s boys will be on their feet before the Ryder Cup. Although the captain has suggested
him to rest before the big day but who is going to explain this to the Jimenez and Hanson that the captain is always right!
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