Padraig Harrington paid tribute to the “incredible” Matteo Manassero as he bids to win the BMW PGA Championship and return to the big time less than four years after crashing to 1,804th in the world.

The 31-year-old fired a nine-under 63 to take a three-shot lead over Rory McIlroy and Billy Horschel into the final round at Wentworth.

If he wins, it would be a remarkable victory for the Verona man, who won at Wentworth in 2013 before a downturn in form saw him lose his playing rights five years later and step away from the game for a few months before returning on the Alps Tour.

Manassero worked his way through to the European Challenge Tour and regained his DP World Tour card for the current campaign, winning his fourth title at this level at the Jonsson Workwear Open in March.

He’s now on the brink of winning a PGA Tour card for 2025 and Harrington is blown away by his resilience.

“Incredible, because you won't see it. Literally,” Harrington told Meridian Media after firing a bogey-free 66 of his own to move up to 21st on eight-under. 

“Never happens. You know, nearly every player gets to a stage where they'll have a peak in their career. It's normally 18 months, two years, two seasons, and they're never as good again. And some of them can hide it, and they'll continue on, and they'll keep their card. 

“With Matteo, it was a big fall. He went from being one of the leading lights on the tour, he started chasing distance, and it really messed him up. And, you know, once his game was gone, fair play to him for going out to those mini-tours and pulling his own bag in some of them. 

“He really was at the very bottom. Remember, it's one thing to be there with the hope of going forward, but when you've already been at the top and now you're down the bottom, and everybody's looking at you and everybody's talking about you and questioning that is seriously impressive

“His attitude must be seriously impressive and it's great to see him come back, as I said there. And it's interesting because he's come back and he's played well and he's won, but we’ve kind of seen that before the odd time. 

“He was a long way down, so even that was incredible. But if he comes back and wins this one now, he's right back at the top of the game of golf. If he's winning here, that's astonishing.”

Manassero became the youngest male golfer to break into the world’s top 30, rising as high as 25th in 2013.

He’s now hauled himself back to 101st, and after shooting the lowest 54-hole score in BMW Championship history, he could make the world’s top 60 with a win.

“I think if you've been at the top of the game, and you're you're prepared to go out to the smallest of mini tour events and struggle along, pulling your own bag, you don't suffer from pride and embarrassment and things like that,” Harrington said. 

“He is obviously a very, very strong character and doesn't care what anybody else thinks, which says a lot. That's quite impressive because that's the hardest thing in life, and it's the hardest thing in golf - to be self-confident and not worry about why everybody else thinks you.”

As for his own game, Harrington (53) is not tempted to test himself more often against the young guns.

“No, I'm doing what I want to do at the moment,” he said. “So I'm playing tournaments I want to play.

“I've no interest in chasing around the European Tour or even the PGA Tour. I'd have no interest in playing regularly week to week. The standard is so good, it's so hard, it's a lot of work. 

“It's very, very deep, but I still like going to the nice venues and the places that I'm comfortable with and like. 

“So yeah, I'm going to continue to play those events that I like, but, you know, I'm never chasing again. It's to be too much for me to do that. 

“You know, I have the luxury of going back to the Champions Tour, which is a real joy. You can play more tournaments and not physically feel like it's taking over.

“I'm not hitting shots this evening because I'm tired, and I know if I go and hit them, I'll be even tireder tomorrow. 

“Whereas at a Champions Tour event, I've played in a cart, I can go and hit some shots and work away at things. But if I kept playing events like these, it would definitely be a step too far.”