Harrington unconcerned about proving Torrance wrong
Back in the good old days. Harrington and Torrance at home on the range. Picture courtesy Richard Boyle.When Padraig Harrington sacked longtime coach Bob Torrance in Killarney 11 months ago, bringing a 15-year father-son style relationship to a shuddering halt, he tried to explain why.
Harrington "doesn't want to know"
Padraig Harrington uses the Flightscope under the watchful eye of his caddie and a representative of Wilson Golf at Firestone. Picture by Fran Caffrey/www.golffile.ieIf a change is as good as a rest then Padraig Harrington can expect to mount a challenge for the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone Country Club exactly two years after he finished second to Tiger Woods in a thrilling finish.
That said, the Dubliner has no intention of heeding the grave warnings pronounced by his currently estranged coach Bob Torrance following their decision to “take a break” in their 14-year relationship at last week’s Irish Open.
Once Harrington made the split public when asked about it on the driving range in Killarney last week, Torrance explained exactly why the pair have not seen eye to eye for some time.
“He has been going down one road that I think is the wrong one and he is determined to go down that road,” Torrance said. “I said to him, if you go down too far, you won’t come back.”
McDowell understands Harrington's frustration: "The game drives us absolutely bananas"
Graeme McDowell knows what it’s like to suffer on the golf course. Picture Fran Caffrey/www.golffile.ieGraeme McDowell understands Padraig Harrington’s frustrations, insisting: “You’ve got to be nuts to play this game well.”
Hearing that Harrington had parted with long-time coach Bob Torrance, the Ulsterman confessed that change is sometimes the only way to stay sane.
Tied 25th after a closing 70, McDowell said: “Something had to break really with Pádraig. He’s been working too hard to not get any results.
“I can’t think of anyone other than maybe Vijay who grinds like Pádraig does. At some point you just need to hear something different.”
Torrance: “You cannot make changes at 40 in golf"
Padraig Harrington and caddie Ronan Flood in Killarney. Who will be next to go in Harrington’s back-room team? Photo Fran Caffrey/www.golffile.ieBob Torrance reckons Padraig Harrington is on a road to nowhere and won’t win again until he turns back.
The veteran Scot, 79, insists that the Dubliner is “crazy” to make changes in his swing as he prepares to turn 40 at the end of this month.
“Disappointed” that Harrington has decided to “take a break” in their 15-year partnership, Torrance said: “He has been going down one road that I think is the wrong one and he is determined to go down that road.
“I said to him, if you go down too far, you won’t come back.
“You cannot make changes at 40 in golf. You can make them when you are in your 20’s, but once you get to 40, it is too late.
Harrington and Bob Torrance part company
Harrington and Torrance work on his swing at Turnberry in 2009. They didn’t see eye to eye then and still don’t.A desperate Padraig Harrington made one of the toughest decisions of his career in Killarney yesterday when he decided to part company with veteran coach Bob Torrance.
The frustrated three-time major winner, 39, has slumped from third to 64th in the world since his US PGA win three years ago, suffering his sixth missed cut of the season in this week’s Irish Open.
He admitted on Friday that he needed to make changes but ruled out sacking members of his back up team. But within 24 hours the architect of his success was out in the cold - Harrington says temporarily - and wondering what had just happened.
Harrington facing FedEx delivery failure
Rory McIlroy 64, Padraig Harrington 74. Yes, Harrington had to put up with some rain squalls on the opening day of the Deutsche Bank Championship in Boston but he couldn’t use that as an excuse on a day when only 16 players in the 99-man field, including Tiger Woods, failed to break par.
McGinley has sixth knee operation
Paul McGinley is facing up to two months out of the game after undergoing yet another operation on his left knee.The 42-year old Dubliner had surgery to clean out damaged cartilage in his troublesome left knee - the sixth operation he has undergone on the same knee since he broke his knee cap playing gaelic football when he was 19.
"I don't know what the situation is in the long term but my knee is disintegrating at a rate," said McGinley, who finished 104th in the Race to Dubai for his worst ranking in 18 years on tour.
Harrington taking Torrance to TPI
Goods news for Harrington fans still recovering from this season's swing change slump. Padraig Harrington is bringing Bob Torrance to the Titleist Performance Institute in December.
While the Dubliner claims that he doesn't need or want to see Bob Torrance while he is at tournaments, his long absence from Europe at the start of the season and his confusion over the side effects brought about by a swing change run wild, culminated in his worst run of form for 13 years.
Turnberry 2009One of the most revealing moments of the season came at the Open in July, when Torrance and Harrington spent hours doing remedial work on the range. It was effectively the start of a new season. Harrington honed his neglected short game, cleared his mind of swing change confusion and the results have been stunning.
So what the hell happened from December to late July?
Under doctor's orders
Bob Torrance with Harrington at Turnberry, 2009The Dubliner will take on Tiger Woods at the Tour Championship in Atlanta knowing that his first win for over a year could earn him a whopping $11.35m (€7.7m) jackpot.And he’s taken steps to make sure he’s firing on all cylinders by spending two days with veteran coach Torrance last week.
Bothered by some wild driving in recent weeks, Harrington said: "It's just a question of trusting it a little bit more.”
Harrington taking his medicine
With his coach Bob Torrance insisting he must take his medicine “one sip at a time”, the Dubliner knows he simply can’t find his ‘A’ game with just two days to go before the off.
TurnberryHoping he can use his mental strength to win the day, Harrington confessed: “If somebody could push The Open back a couple of weeks, I’d be delighted. But I don’t have that option. We’ll go with whatever we have on Thursday afternoon.“I am really optimistic about my swing going forward. Do I believe it is going to be ready this Thursday? Experience tells me not.”