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Padraig Harrington is intent on going with the flow as he prepares for this week’s Dubai Duty Free Irish Open at the K Club.
“This is a tough week for all the Irish guys,” he said. “There’s a lot going on. The key here is that you’ve got to embrace what’s going on and not fight against it.
“You can’t do your regular stuff, you can’t do your regular routines, your preparation isn’t going to be the same this week as it is any other week.
“You have to embrace that and accept it. I certainly fought against that for years and I really found this the toughest event. Now, I just accept I won’t be able to do everything right.
“There aren’t enough hours in the day to get everything done in an Irish Open week, and by trying to fit everything in, you’ll actually fail miserably.”
One area where players shouldn’t have too many causes for concern is on the actual course, which has come in for praise.
“The guys are giving it a very positive appraisal,” the 44-year-old revealed. “I haven’t managed to get a practice round in, I’ve been too busy!
“I play the pro-am tomorrow (Wednesday) and I’ll see the golf course. I assume my past knowledge of it will be good enough to get myself around it.
“But I’m looking forward to it. I hear it’s in good condition. The two weeks of good weather in the last two weeks really brought it on.”
The lure of a big pot has attracted a stellar field and Harrington confirmed: “A €4million event has basically ensured that all the European players play.
“It counts for so much when it comes to making the Ryder Cup team and the Race To Dubai itself.
“If you talk about changing the date, next week is the BMW Championship in the UK, which is one of the biggest events.
“So players see it as a natural sequence of a couple of events.
“It has got a good time at the moment - it is a good slot on the European schedule.”
The Dubliner also revealed the influence Christy O’Connor Sr had on his career on the day the legendary golfer was laid to rest.
“It was very sad news,” he said.“I went out and saw the family today.
“I was reminded of a little story. My dad only took up golf because of Christy O'Connor Sr. So I wouldn’t be playing golf, only for Christy O'Connor Sr.”
