Harrington hails focussed McGrane

Karl McGinty – PGA National

Sunday Independent 18^th September 2005-09-20

Damien McGrane took a hearty salute from Padraig Harrington as he leapfrogged the Irish superstar on the way to the top of the leader board in the Irish Professional Championship at PGA National yesterday. "Damien's an example to us all," said Harrington, who believes 34-year-old Meathman McGrane is so strong mentally he could even take next year's Ryder Cup at the K Club in his stride.

Harrington had a first hand view of the third round 69 which put McGrane one stroke ahead of him at the top of the leaderboard at Palmerstown House and he later rated his fellow Irishman as "one of the top 50 professionals in Europe - no problem."

"I would think he's even better than that, "the Dubliner enthused. "Damien was always a good amateur but, as a pro, he has really proven himself. His attitude is perfect - he plays his own game, does his own thing and I really like his determination.

"He's exactly the way you'd want to be out here, not looking around and worrying about what other people might be doing. Personally, I think he's capable of playing Ryder Cup golf - he's capable of doing anything in the game.

"We could all do well approaching the game the way he does. We all need to be able to do that every now and then," added Harrington, who will have McGrane's company once again this afternoon as he bids to retain his Irish Professional title.

Harrington was disappointed with his failure to come to terms with the pace of the greens at PGA National , yesterday, leading to three three-putts and several other misses from short range. Yet the Dubliner expressed delight with his general playas he went around this testing track in 71, including an eagle at the par five ninth.

"I'm happy enough," he said. "I did a lot better. I think I'd prefer to play the way I did today and miss putts rather than the other way around. Obviously, I don't want to do that in the final round - it'll be more important to hole the putts tomorrow."

Yet McGrane clearly has the momentum as this championship comes to a climax. After a disastrous start on Thursday, when he stumbled to two double-bogeys in the opening four holes, Damien has dropped only one shot in 50 holes since - when he missed a five-footer for par on the seventh yesterday.

"It'd be tremendous to win the Irish Professional title but it's all to play for," said McGrane, minutes after yesterday's intriguing head-to-head with Harrington. "It's always a great pleasure to play with Padraig. He's a great ambassador for Irish golf and I'm one of his biggest fans," said Damien, a club professional when he last played with Harrington in the Irish Championship at Powerscourt seven years ago.

"This is just like their amateur days, seeing Padraigplaying with Damien and Peter Lawrie and Gary Murphy in the groups ahead," said Harrington's mother Breda yesterday as she followed the action.

Harrington, like McGrane, is 34 and if they both came into professional golf relatively late, their career paths have diverged as widely as their respective modes of transport to Palmerstown House this week.

Ireland's world No 12 neatly avoided the M50, Mad Cow congestion and the N7 excavations by traveling daily by helicopter from his home in Kilmichael, while McGrane simply drove across country from his native Kells.

As Harrington steadily climbed the spiral staircase to superstardom on the international fairways, McGrane was learning his trade as a PGA professional at Portmarnock and then Headfort before landing a plum job as head pro at Wexford.

Yet Damien never abandoned his dream of one day playing with the world's elite and, propelled ever-upwards by his dogged spirit and a compact, low-maintenance swing, he won his European Tour credentials three years ago and made enough money in 2004 to give up 'the day job' in Wexford and go full-time this year.

At first appearances, giving up a steady job to head out on Tour might appear fanciful for a young married man with two children but McGrane's confidence in his own ability was well placed, as he has prove by climbing to 53rd in the Order of Merit as he deposited more than €370,000.

McGrane used the word 'bizarre' to describe how much his life has changed in recent times and his head-to-head with Harrington yesterday offered clear evidence of the giant steps he has taken.

Not that they were playing each other – Christy O’Connor Junior’s creation at Palmerstown House has played long and hard enough this week to demand the full attention of every professional in the field.

Given yesterday's benign weather conditions, it was a surprise when the PGA decided to allow preferred lies, a decision prompted by overnight rain and an especially heavy dew - meaning, of course, that the course record 67 shot by Francis Howley in the pro-am would stand for al least another 24 hours.

Nonetheless, the 68s posted by Royal Dublin's Neil Manchip and the Heritage touring professional Gary Murphy were stilI impressive, the latter landing two spectacular eagle threes-at nine, where he hit a Callaway rescue club 232 yards to inches, and 14, after a splendid three wood came to rest eight feet from the hole.

Murphy goes into the final round level with fellow Tour professional Peter Lawrie on even par, one stroke behind the big-hitting Howley and two in arrears of Lisburn club pro Stephen Hamill. Yet if McGrane continues to play as steadily, the Irish Professional title and a hugely significant scalp could be his this afternoon.