Harrington defends at Adare Manor
IN: News | European PGA | Irish Open (2008) | Preview | by Bruce Young | 13 May 2008
The European Tour has finally reached Great Britain and Ireland and this week’s Irish Open at the Robert Trent Jones Sr designed Adare Manor Hotel and Golf Resort in Country Limerick in the west of Ireland gets underway a series of three events before the Tour heads to Continental Europe.
The tournament is being played at this venue for the second year. Padraig Harrington won his national open for the first occasion with his playoff victory over Bradley Dredge last year and became the first Irish golfer since John O’Leary 25 years earlier to win the event.
Harrington would go on two months later to win the Open Championship putting together two of the titles he most wanted to win in world golf.
The 36-year-old is back to defend after a perhaps surprising missed cut last week at the Players Championship. His form prior was very good however, in fact better than it had been in the lead up to last year’s event, and he has every reason to claim favouritism for the event.
Harrington’s playoff victim last year, Bradley Dredge, has been on the verge of a very good week in recent starts. He has not missed a cut in nine starts in 2008 and has been regularly finishing mid-field. It is not too much of a stretch to believe he can step up this week.
The tournament is an interesting mix of several established stars and two or three European Tour players looking to make their mark on the Tour – Germany’s Martin Kaymer and England’s Oliver Wilson are exactly that.
Kaymer, who won earlier in the season in Dubai has been a bit of a mixture in his last few starts but he followed up a missed cut at the Masters with a 7th place in Shanghai. His last round of 68 in this event last year was the equal best of the day on a cool drizzly day. Last year he was of course a rookie while now he enjoys almost star status on the European Tour and could do well.
Wilson is still looking for his first win on the European Tour but given the brilliant form he is in at present there is a chance it could be this week. He was runner up last week in Italy three weeks after a similar placing in Beijing. He finished 21st in this event last year and is a much improved golfer now.
Robert Karlsson appeared to have the Italian Open to himself last week before eventually finishing 3rd. Perhaps an even better guide to his chances is that he finished 8th at Augusta in his previous start. He did not play at Adare Manor last year but must be given a chance to continue his good vein of form this week.
Darren Clarke, buoyed by his victory in Shanghai, will enjoy the prospect of returning to this event after so nearly winning two years ago. Clarke led by two shots during the final round in 2006 before finishing two behind Thomas Bjorn.
The leading Australian in the field is Richard Green who, although a little out of sorts with his form at present, has a fourth place finish in this event twelve months ago to get him back on track. He will need to turn around some rather ordinary golf produced in the USA during a brief campaign there.
Scott Strange, Peter O’Malley, Gareth Paddison, Matthew Millar and Peter Fowler make up the rest of the players from Australasia.
