Harrington confirms higher status in world golf

BY Bruce Young | US PGA Tour | 2002 Target World Challenge | Wrap | 09 Dec 2002

It may not have been exactly the politically correct thing to do to upstage the host of a party but for Irishman Padraig Harrington I’m not sure that he is bothered.

His two shot win over Tiger Woods in the host’s charity event, the Target World Challenge, further emphasises the great strides he has made over the last eighteen months and, while this will not count towards his world ranking points, it is certainly a psychological victory for Harrington to take into 2003. Not to mention of course the unofficial $US1,000,000 that he pockets for his efforts this week.

Harrington had started the last round six ahead of Woods but by the time they reached the back nine, Tiger was closing fast. The difference was just one when they reached the par five sixteenth but a wild second from Tiger saw him lucky to save par and Harrington’s birdie almost sealed the deal. There was one last fling from Tiger when he birdied the seventeenth to reduce the gap to one, but what appears to have been a miscalculation on the par four eighteenth saw Harrington extend his lead to two and win by that margin.

For Harrington it ends a brilliant year. He was runner up to Goosen on the Volvo Order of Merit, won the Dunhill Links event and recently the BMW Asian Open. He had top tens at the Masters, The US Open and the British Open and was 17th at the PGA. At 31 he is just peaking it would seem and may well be in line for a major before long.

Woods again gave of his best and the $US500,000 he won goes direct to the Tiger Woods Foundation Charity.

Davis Love III was third two shots further back, with Colin Montgomerie and Bernhard Langer tied in fourth place.

Michael Campbell was the only Australasian in the sixteen man field finishing 12th but will still pick up a cheque for around $US130,000.