Els: Don’t rule out Harrington

Nearly five years have passed since Pádraig Harrington captured his third major title.

But having waited more than a decade to win his fourth, two-time US Open winner Ernie Els does not rule out seeing the Dubliner end his major drought at a soggy Merion.

A move to the belly putter just four weeks ago may have come too late to make Harrington one of the favourites to lift the 113th US Open. But Els is a big admirer of the 41-year old Irishman and having wielded the belly putter en route to victory in the British Open at Royal Lytham and St Annes last July, he’s not ruling Harrington out of the running.