Can Tiger-Paddy be golf's next rivalry?

Mike Dudurich

Posted 2009-08-10

Some kind of warmup for the PGA Championship, huh?

What went on Sunday afternoon in the World Golf Championships—Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone Country Club was entertaining at the least, spectacular at best and may well go down as historic as time goes on.

Sure, Tiger Woods joined Jack Nicklaus and Sam Snead as the only players to win 70 PGA Tour events. And sure, he won at Firestone for the seventh time, the first time a Tour pro won seven times on the same course.

Only time will tell just how historic any of that is, although right now it’s seems awfully darn special.

But for the first 15 holes on a hot, humid Ohio afternoon, we were privy to something that had not been previously seen on the PGA Tour: a guy who stepped onto the first tee, looked Woods in the eye and proceeded to battle the world’s No. 1 player shot-for-shot.

Padraig Harrington brought a pint-full of confidence to Akron last week, despite a 2009 record that would do anything to inspire confidence. He’s made just nine of 15 cuts, with only one top 10. And that one came yesterday.

Prior to that, the guy who won the 2007 British Open and the 2008 British Open and PGA Championship, Harrington had been wondering around like a ship lost in the fog of the Irish Sea.

A swing change, equipment change and a possible “three-major hangover” had definitely sidetracked Paddy’s marched to immortality.

In the other corner was Woods, he of the unparalled game and credentials, in the prime of a career that has thus far been devoid of serious challengers. So why did it all come together Sunday? Maybe the golf gods, aware that Woods and Harrington would be playing in the first two rounds of this week’s PGA Championship, decided that this would be a great time for some classic man-to-man.

The day began with Harrington holding a three-shot lead. That gap lasted less than two holes thanks to a 20-foot eagle putt that Woods drained on the second, while Harrington was lucky to get a par. Then another birdie putt on the fourth pulled Woods into a tie at 10-under par.

And then the slugfest began. Woods birdied the fifth and ninth and finished with a front nine of 30. By that time he had attained a two-shot lead and seemed to be ready to put his foot on Harrington’s neck in typical Tiger style.

But a Harrington birdie on the 11th and uncharacteristic bogeys by Woods on 13 (his first in 22 holes) and 14 put the Irishman back up by a shot as they headed into the final three holes.

The pair was surprised to learn when they got to the 16th tee that they had been put on the clock for falling behind the group ahead. That didn’t sit well with either of them and they responded by hitting one tee shot left, the other right. Woods hooked his tee shot into the left rough and had to lay up well short of the pond; Harrington pushed his tee shot into the trees.

Harrington tried to punch a 5-iron around a fairway bunker, but wound up in the collar on the back slope of the bunker. From there, his third shot sailed over the green. A difficult chip shot sailed into the water in front of the green and the next you know, Woods was writing an 8 for Harrington on the scorecard.

That arithmetic came after, however, another in a long line of spectacular shots from Woods. After his recovery shot from the rough, he had approximately 180 yards left to a green that players had been having trouble holding with wedges all day.

Woods, however, ripped an 8-iron that hit a few feet behind the hole and spun back to kick-in birdie range.

Woods polished off back-to-back 65s with a nice birdie on the 18th, giving him five wins for the year. That total does not include a major victory, something he can remedy this week at the PGA Championship at Hazeltine Country Club.

The irony his major-less slate in 2009 is that he’s won leading up to each major and, in the case of the PGA, he’s won the two weeks prior to the major.

"We locked horns pretty good," Woods said. "I made a couple of mistakes. Paddy was being consistent, grinding it out, doing all the right things. Unfortunately, 16 happened. But it was a great battle all day."

If Harrington-Woods is indeed the next great rivalry in golf, fans won’t have to wait long to see it again. The two are paired with another former PGA champion, Rich Beem for the first two rounds.

"Tiger did play particularly well," Harrington said. "I said to him afterward, 'We'll do battle many more times again.'"

And if the both play well this week, we could see four rounds of the battle.

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About Mike...
As a sports writer for over 35 years, Mike Dudurich has seen a lot of great things, covered spectacular events, but his passion is, and has been golf. He recently ended a 29-year career at the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review and will now be a frequent contributor on GolfGearReview.com. Mike hosts a weekly golf radio show on 1250 ESPN in Pittsburgh from the beginning of April through the end of August. The show airs Saturdays from 8-9 a.m. and can be heard online at http://stations.espn.go.com/stations/espnradio1250/show?showId=insidepghgolf - Listen to Mike Here!.

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