Harrington on Tiger’s tail

PADRAIG HARRINGTON hung on grimly to finish just a shot behind Tiger Woods as the Tour Championship reached the halfway stage in Georgia last night.

Harrington and Woods had turned the event into a two-horse race until America’s world number one unleashed a laser of a five-wood from the 15th fairway at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta to put daylight between himself and the Irishman.

Woods, however, bogeyed the last to finish just a shot clear of Harrington at five under par after 36 holes, the Dubliner a shot ahead of South Africa’s Ernie Els, who had emerged from the 30-man field into contention with a second-round, four-under-par 66.

Kenny Perry also shot a 66 and was tied for fourth at two under with fellow Americans Jerry Kelly and first-round leader Sean O’Hair.

There was only one show in town, though, and going head-to-head for the eighth time this year, Woods duelled with Harrington with high stakes on the line yet again, both targetting the FedEx Cup title that comes with a $10 million bonus in addition to the $1.35m winner’s cheque.

On those previous seven occasions when they teed off together Harrington had seen Woods get the better of him six times.

Then, it took a major meltdown for Harrington at the 16th to separate the pair and while there was nothing of the sort last night it was instead a moment of brilliance at the par-five 15th from Woods that gave him the edge.

Woods, with a one-shot lead over his rival at five over par, had found the left fairway off the tee after Harrington went wider into the rough. The American took out his five wood from 246 yards out and drilled his ball onto the green as it released on impact and rolled to five feet from the hole.

Harrington managed to save par from there but Woods had an eagle opportunity to pull three shots clear and the Irishman will have been mightily relieved to see the short putt dribble left of the hole.

Still, Woods had a two-shot lead and it could have been bigger but for another miss from five feet, this time for birdie at the 16th as Harrington ground out another par, still just two shots in arrears.

Harrington then missed a 10-footer for birdie on 17 to close the gap.

It had been much more nip and tuck earlier in the round as Harrington fired the opening salvo with a birdie at the par-four fourth to move into a share of the lead with O'Hair at four under.

Then Woods three-putted the par-four fifth for bogey and slipped two to two under par only for parity to be restored at the par-four seventh when the Irishman overshot the green on the way to a bogey and the FedEx Cup points leader nailed his approach shot to seven feet from the hole and birdied from there.

Both men birdied the par-four eighth while behind them Open champion Stewart Cink, who had started the day alongside Woods and Harrington at three under, birdied the seventh as O'Hair bogeyed the same hole and briefly the three chasers had swapped places with the overnight leader.

Then, at the par-five ninth, as Harrington could only take par from the easiest hole on the course, Woods sunk a mid-range birdie putt to move into the outright lead at five under.

Cink's challenge disappeared with a quadruple bogey at the par-four 10th while Harrington bogeyed the 14th after missing from inside nine feet after splashing out of a greenside bunker.