Final round sparkle from Harrington

"I SPENT much of the day trying to break 80", commented Padraig Harrington who avoided that ignominy by producing a sparkling finish to his final round of the US Open at Shinnecock Hills yesterday.

As the scoring sunshine and strong wind dried out the course still further and caused just about everyone to struggle, Harrington stood eight over par for 14 holes before discovering the magic that had eluded him throughout the previous 68.

He birdied the 15th, 16th and 17th to finish with a relatively respectable round of 75 that included a back nine of even par.

You can only imagine how much money the leaders later in the day would have paid for such a homeward run.

Having shot 76 on Saturday, the Irishman was out in the fourth match yesterday and was already three over when he reached the treacherous par three 7th.

It was then that the USGA decided to water the putting surface - or "syringe" it as they put it - and Harrington had to wait fifteen minutes or so before playing his tee shot.

As it happened he hit his six iron tee shot to fifteen feet and very nearly holed for a two. However, he was far from off the hook. Bogeys at 8 and 9 saw him to the turn in 40 and a five at the 12th and a double bogey six at 13 made shooting 80 or more for the first time in a major championship a dangerously live possibility.

A drive into the left rough at 15 didn't augur very well but from there he played a smashing iron to fifteen feet and holed for his first birdie in 48 holes. He got up and down from sand at the long 16th for another and rang up the hat-trick courtesy of a pin splitting iron into the short 17th. Hugely popular in the New York area, Padraig received a huge ovation coming down the 18th and duly closed out with a solid par four.

He shot rounds of 70, 73, 71 and 75 for a fifteen over par total of 295 and a share of 32nd place.

Harrington insisted that he "swung the club better and hit the ball much better than last week but I struggled with the blade. I didn't make enough birdies to gain any momentum and that's what killed me out there. I had gone 48 holes without a birdie before that big finish. You know you will make some bogeys out there so you've got to have the birdies to compensate."

Having failed to break 30 putts in any of the four rounds, the Irishman has a valid claim there.

He averaged 31.3 for 72 holes although he hit only 55. 4% of the fairways and averaged a disappointing 56. So he will be off to see his coach, Bob Torrance, in Scotland before returning in the Smurfit European Open starting at The K-Club Smurfit Course on Thursday week.