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THE 145TH OPEN

July 16, 2016

Padraig Harrington

Troon, South Ayrshire, Scotland

PADRAIG HARRINGTON: It was really tough out there. There was a strong wind blowing early on. I just putted average, unfortunately. It's one of those days with that wind it's not like -- you're going to have to hole a few putts if you're going to make some birdies, which I played very, very nicely. Just needed to hole a few more putts in the wind and I needed the wind to stay up.

Q. (Inaudible).
PADRAIG HARRINGTON: I don't know what the forecast was. It was quite windy. I thought if it was going to get windier than what we were experiencing, it certainly would have not to cut the greens in that sense. No doubt it was blowing pretty strong for quite a bit of that round, and then it just calmed down when we kind of turned around maybe. 11 onwards it started to calm down.

So for sure it was one of those days that if it got up a bit more -- it looked like I was going to be shooting a level-par round all the way around. Obviously if the wind was a little bit stronger, it wouldn't have been too bad a round.

Q. Was it a (inaudible)?
PADRAIG HARRINGTON: I just hit average putts. I didn't hit brilliant putts. I didn't hit perfect putts. I hit average putts. They were going in yesterday. They weren't going in today.

Q. (Inaudible).
PADRAIG HARRINGTON: Look, I hit average putts. Another day those same putts, I hit a few putts. The ball didn't seem to break much, I've got to say. I seemed to miss a lot of putts just on the high side. I'd love to say that if I had made a perfect putt would they have broken, but I hit a few average putts that were trickling down the high side and just didn't fall in type of thing. I'm certainly not saying I hit the perfect putt every time out there. But another day, you know -- like I made bogey on 9, 10, 13, without hitting a bad shot on any of them.

Came up short on 9, I just got it wrong in my own head. 10, I hit the bank in front of me, and 13, I hit the bank in front of me with good shots and missed -- three-putt 9 and 10 from way off the green, and missed about an 8-footer up the hill on 13. Another day those sort of things would have all gone in.

Q. (Inaudible).
PADRAIG HARRINGTON: Yeah, it would have been quite different for sure. It was nice to hole the two putts on the last two greens, especially the one on 17 was missing. But outside of that, I created a lot of chances and didn't really -- I holed no putt. I didn't hole any par putt. It's not a recipe for shooting a low score, that's for sure. Maybe if it keeps raining I might not have the worst of the day, but it seems like it's a bit of a --

Q. How would you make (Inaudible).
PADRAIG HARRINGTON: Well, obviously the tournament's gone. I still have FedExCup points to win, which I'm only playing two more events after this, so it would be -- I need a good performance in those three events. So hopefully that will -- hopefully I'll play and have a good round tomorrow.

Q. Does that give you motivation?
PADRAIG HARRINGTON: Oh, there's lots of motivation. Plus I would have said I had it there for a long time today, and then when I realised I had it, it got harder (laughing). I was really good when I was working with Bob. And I said, God, this is it. Once I realised it was it, it only got harder after that (laughing).

So, yeah, my first nine holes that's as good as I've seen in an awful long time. But then the realization that it was that good, it wasn't so good afterwards. It was okay.

Q. What happened (inaudible) on the 7th?
PADRAIG HARRINGTON: I drove it into the bunker. I had a nice lie on the bunker, but it was 48-yard bunker shot. I expected to get it up and down, but in the end of it I just went a bit safe with the bunker shot, as you tend to do when it's that sort of length. Yeah.

Q. (Inaudible).
PADRAIG HARRINGTON: Yeah, and I didn't hit a good chip down, and I hit a good putt that stayed up high.

Q. (Inaudible).
PADRAIG HARRINGTON: Yeah, well, I hit a good drive, a good, aggressive drive down there. I knew it was tight to the edge of the bunker. It needed to kick or move another yard or two as it only just crept in the left edge of it. But then missing on 8 after hitting a nice tee shot in there, and then hitting two lovely shots off 9, just completely in my own head misjudged the second shot and it took three to get down. I three-putted it from well off the green. But you've got to hole those six-footers to keep it going.

Same on 10. Again, missing another six-footer off the hills.

Yeah, it was one of those days. Certainly I look back on it, there were lots of putts missed. Not thinking I was off or anything. They were just average putts that didn't go in.

Q. (Inaudible) is that a realisation that you have it, is there any moment that you do not realise it?
PADRAIG HARRINGTON: Obviously, in a perfect world the worst thing you can do is try to hang onto something. But it's nice that I did have it for a while. I was very happy about that. I spent more time trying to figure it out with Bob. At least I realised I had it and I realised I was trying too hard to have it.

Q. Can you talk about how difficult it is to putt on greens that are running about 9 on the scale?
PADRAIG HARRINGTON: 9.5. We were given that. Everybody got texts: They were 9.11 yesterday and 39.5 today. So not ridiculous. But I did leave every putt short early on, and then you really had -- I think the worst part of it they had just gone one bit too -- like if they were 10, you wouldn't have to think about it. You wouldn't be surprised. But once you get down to that sort of 9.5, even over an 8-footer, you have to say, don't forget to hit it. Whereas somebody who is putting very well, whether they're putting uphill or downhill, they're not thinking about what pace. They've already got that locked in. And there's no doubt the last hole from a lot of putts, make sure you're up. That's not a good thought to have if you're trying to hole a putt not trying to be up.

So, yeah, it is a little bit of troublesome when you're standing over an eight-footer uphill and you're thinking, oh, I better hit this.

Q. Steve Stricker said it wasn't a comfortable feeling.
PADRAIG HARRINGTON: Yeah, well, that's what I'm saying. Like your ideal situation when you're standing over an eight-footer is you're not thinking about the pace of it. You're thinking about just hitting a good putt. Whereas here you're just, oh, yeah, I better hit this. It's a little bit of a distraction.

Q. There's a chance that Rory McIlroy (inaudible) do you have any thought on that?
PADRAIG HARRINGTON: No idea.

Q. (Inaudible).
PADRAIG HARRINGTON: Me?

Q. No, him.
PADRAIG HARRINGTON: I have no idea. I haven't seen anything he's doing or anything. I have no idea.

Q. (Inaudible).
PADRAIG HARRINGTON: Look, look, this is a great opportunity for Henrik, because himself and Phil are moving away from the field, it might come down to one or the other tomorrow. Obviously Phil is very tough to beat head to head. He loves that sort of thing. But if the two of them are six shots ahead going into tomorrow, it's between them. It's not far off of a 50-50 chance.

Q. (Inaudible).
PADRAIG HARRINGTON: Yeah, but you've got to understand it's only a two-horse race. I think that would help Henrik a lot if he's going out there tomorrow and they're far enough ahead of third place that they're not worried about anybody else. Then it's just a straight match. If the two of them come back to the field and they're a shot or two ahead of three or four guys, I think that would help Phil more in the sense that Phil has been there and done it whereas Henrik has more to think about. It would certainly clear up his mind tomorrow if they're, as I saw at the end there, six shots ahead. He just needs to look at the guy he's playing with and nobody else.

Q. What makes Phil so good?
PADRAIG HARRINGTON: Phil likes it. That's what he likes about golf. He loves head to head, he loves playing a match on a Tuesday of every tournament week. He just loves that. He's very good head to head. Plus when you've got that great short game and you can get up and down from places, it does have a bearing in a match if you can get up and down. When a guy thinks he's got the hole won because he's sitting over a 15-footer and you're in trouble, and you get up and down and all of a sudden he's got a three-footer for a half, even if he holes it, it's still wearing. Phil has got that ability to hit the great shots which does help in match play.

Q. Have you ever played any of those Tuesday matches?
PADRAIG HARRINGTON: I played the odd game with him outside out in California when I've been out there. I've gone out and played. Spent some time out there at TPI, and usually when I'm out there, I'd have a game with him, yeah.

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