Harrington has title sponsor ‘up sleeve’
The Dubliner, 41, shrugged off his nightmare 80 in the Travelers Championship at TPC River Highlands last Sunday as a “one-off“, blaming his shocking reverse on a bad day on the greens and possible tiredness.
The three-time major winner is certainly not pushing any panic buttons and believes is simply a matter of pulling all the strands of his game together before he wins big again.
But whatever about his temporary concerns about his game, he’s confident about the future of the Irish Open as he works tirelessly on his own account to come up with a big money backer for an event that has been without a title sponsor since communications firm 3 pulled out after the 2010 edition in Killarney.
“I’ve worked behind the scenes to try to find a sponsor and I’ve got one up my sleeve that hopefully might follow through next year,” Harrington said.
“It has a lot of potential so let’s see can we get that over the line. Personally, I think the Irish Open is probably the best sponsorship on the Tour. You’re getting a tournament that gets massive coverage around the world. A tournament that is getting a huge gallery that turns up.
“You’re getting a championship that’s being played with great heritage for a number of years. You’re guaranteed four of the current Major winners in golf — well, you’re certainly guaranteed me anyway.”
The Irish Open relies on the European Tour, gate receipts and a €1.5 million investment by Fáilte Ireland for survival.
It’s come through some tough years but despite all that, Harrington knows that it’s crucial that the event finds a title sponsor soon to avoid any nasty surprises.
He said: “I think we have survived a few bad years and the future looks bright. But, I’m sure we do need a title sponsor to come on, there’s no doubt about it.
“Who wouldn’t want their name going up around the world on a beautiful, scenic-looking event like this is going to be?”
Harrington remained tight-lipped over the identity of his potential sponsor but he makes no secret of the fact that a big result this week could be as important to his career as his Irish Open win at Adare Manor in 2007.
He said: “The win in 2007 was quite pivotal in moving me forward in my career and I think at this moment, I’m looking for that upswing again.
“Momentum is very important and it does go in ebbs and flows, so I’m looking for that kick start, and a win this week could be that again.”
Dismissing last weekend’s closing 80 as a blip, he said: “I put it down to a tough day on the greens. The putting broke down and I struggled to read the greens.
“The greens were very yellow, really yellow and it was really, really difficult to pick up the line and I struggled to find the intermediate targets. I just lost my perception and was getting all distracted by it.
“There’s no doubt that happens all the time and you work through it. I would have said it was happening two out of three every week last year and it’s happened to me two or three times this year. So I’m not as worried about it as I was last year.
Meanwhile, the R&A has once again been forced to shoot down speculation that the Open Championship is heading for Royal Portrush in 2018 or 2019.
Following reports on ESPN overnight, a spokesman for the R&A said in a statement: “The R&A continues to examine the possibility of The Open returning to Royal Portrush. However, reports that The Open is to return there later this decade are without foundation.”
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