Padraig Harrington reckons a top-five finish in one of four upcoming tour events will be enough to secure him a spot in the US Open for the 14th consecutive year.
A missed cut at The Masters in Augusta earlier this month did the three-time major winner no favours in the world rankings and he is in the 80s, rather than the top 60 where he needs to be to automatically qualify.
However, in Thurles for the opening of the LIT campus Sportslab, the Dubliner was optimistic about his chances.
“Because my points are back-ended at the moment it actually means I only need a reasonable performance in my next four events,” he said. “A top five or something would probably do the job.”
The last of those four tournaments is Irish Open at Royal County Down at the end of May, but Harrington said he would have no problem going to England and down the pre-qualifying route for the US Open.
“An opportunity to get in, I don’t care how I have to get there. It wouldn’t bother me. “I’ve no pride,” he added with a laugh. “There’s no embarrassment in me!”
Part of Harrington’s backroom team in recent years has been Dr Liam Hennessy, one of the brains behind the new €3.7 million Sportslab at the LIT campus in Thurles and a man who’s worked with top international athletes and teams.
Harrington spoke of the key role played by strength and conditioning expert Hennessy in the latter years of his career.
“I’m stronger, more powerful than I was 18 years ago, than at any stage in my career, than 10 years ago. I’ve had less injuries in the last couple of years than I’ve had before.”
Because of the near year-round nature of their profession, golfers need to be more careful than many other athletes about getting the balance right between preparation, play and rest, he said.
“Liam is very much part of guiding me – when I should take breaks, what I should do during the week. The greatest thing about Liam, which is amazing, is always it’s about finding the minimum effect of dose. Less is more, at times.”
The distance learning centre founded by Hennessy, Setanta College, is working in partnership with Limerick Institute of Technology in delivering the programmes at the Sportslab, among which is a motion-study programme which can pinpoint potential injury issues using 32 cameras and special computer software but without the need for wires and sensors attached to the body.
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