Ankle injury threatens to derail Harrington
The Dubliner, who stood at one under par starting yesterday's second round, was severely hampered by the recurrence of ankle ligament damage that has bothered him for the best part of ten years. His inability to transfer his weight on to his left side meant that Harrington was spraying the ball all over the place and he did well to finish in 73 for an even par total of 144, six behind a quartet of pacesetters - Mark Calcavecchia (one of his playing partners), Justin Leonard, 2001 US Open champion Retief Goosen and the little-known American Rich Beem.
Calcavecchia and Leonard are former Open champions and quite clearly Goosen relishes the challenge of a 'major' in the States having also finished runner-up in this year's Masters. They certainly are nicely poised to challenge for the second major championship of their careers over the next couple of days, while one shouldn't rule out Beem who matched Leonard in setting a new course record of 66.
Ironically, Harrington's ankle problem only came to the fore after he visited a chiropractor on Tuesday evening. He did so in the belief that the injury must be eradicated for his long-term well-being, but even as he sat there he wondered if he was wise to be undergoing the treatment on the eve of a major championship.
The answer, sadly, turned out to be a resounding no, and it could well be that he has fatally harmed his chances of meaningfully challenging for the title through the weekend.
"The ankle is all strapped up but the damage has been done," he said. "It flared up again during the Dutch Open two weeks ago when I stepped on some uneven ground. But it dates back a whole lot longer than that. I'm not in any great pain but I couldn't trust myself to transfer my weight on to the left leg and it's not very easy to play golf on your right leg only."
"I was hoping to be a few shots better although I'm pleased at how I battled to keep my score at level par. When you have a problem like this, it's amazing how the putter can keep you going. I was hitting under the ball all the time and knocking it fifty yards left and right. I didn't just miss the fairways by small margins, I missed them by a long way, and you don't score around a course like Hazeltine playing like that. I'm just hoping for the problem to go away overnight but ankles don't heal all that quickly".
Although he bogeyed the treacherous 16th late on Thursday evening, Harrington had played himself into a nice position with an opening one under par 71. Starting this time at the 10th, he quickly moved to two under with a birdie at the long 11th and though he three-putted the short 17th from not much more than 20 ft above the hole, he got the shot back immediately with a smashing birdie at the 18th as he rattled in a 15-footer.
Harrington's discomfort became more and more apparent as he uncharacteristically failed to complete his swing and often seemed to quit on his shots. He had to get up and down from sand to salvage pars at the 1st and 3rd and then missed a golden opportunity of a two at the 4th by misjudging a seven-footer. That five-iron tee shot was one of the few bright moments of the homeward run and it came as little surprise when two wild drives at the 6th and 7th (a reachable par five) cost him back-to-back bogeys. And he then relied on his putter for salvation at his two closing holes where he sank a couple of ten-footers that just about kept him in the hunt.
The Championship has turned into an absolute disaster for Darren Clarke who knocked himself right out of contention with a ghastly 79 on Thursday. To his credit, he fought like a lion yesterday in an attempt to redeem himself and was very much on course to make the cut when he got to four under for his round and three over for the tournament with two to play.
But he finished in most disappointing fashion, taking four at the short 17th and another bogey at the 18th where he charged a 25-footer six feet past the hole in an all-out attempt for birdie and then missed the one back. He signed for 70 and a five over par aggregate of 149.
If that wasn't bad enough, Clarke's great friend Lee Westwood was in the horrors in a big way, soaring to an 83 that actually contained a couple of birdies but as many as four double bogeys and one triple at the 16th. His total of 158 can have nothing but a negative impact on the Englishman as desperately looks for a bit of form with the Ryder Cup looms ever closer.
Perhaps he should consider emulating Justin Leonard who has made many changes to his life and his golfing career in recent times. The game's most famous bachelor finally lost that status at age 30 and he also has a new caddy, a new coach and pretty much a new swing.
"The improvement in my fortunes really began with the swing changes," he said. "I was struggling too much; I'd have a few mediocre weeks, then play well for a week, but the following week I'd be back to the middle of the pack. Getting married is probably the smartest thing I've done and we're having a great time. That's certainly a change from where I was."
Leonard, who won the Ryder Cup for the US in hugely controversial circumstances in 1999, is not in their side this year. But Mark Calcavecchia will be at The Belfry and a repeat of the kind of striking that highlighted yesterday's 68 will make him a valuable member of the American team. He certainly impressed partner Padraig Harrington who commented: "Mark was attacking the flags all day. He's a very aggressive player and when he's playing well, he becomes even more aggressive".
Retief Goosen was also on top of his form and is full of confidence for the next few days: "Winning the US Open proved to me that I could play under pressure. I'm really looking forward to the week-end. I'm going to give it my best shot. I understand the weather is not going to be great so it's going to be tricky out there".
The third Irishman, Paul McGinley, was in the third last match on the course and facing a n uphill battle to survive as a consequence of his opening round 74. He began in style with a birdie three only to run up a potentially ruinous double bogey six at the 2nd.
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