2005 Irish PGA Championship

Brian Keogh

It was a case of mission accomplished for Padraig Harrington as he retained his PGA Irish Professional Championship title after a thrilling three-way play-off with Stephen Hamill and Damien McGrane at Palmerstown House.

The Dubliner was an 11th hour entry to the €140,000 event and he gave plenty of value for money as he shrugged off a poor putting display to take the title for the third time with a par-four at the first extra hole.

McGrane and Hamill were initially disappointed to walk away as losers after watching Harrington drop two strokes to par over the closing holes.

But on reflection, both men admitted that the Dubliner deserved to win, if only for the quality of his three-wood tee shot and six-iron approach to the 448-yard 18th in extra time.

The trio had finished level on three under par with Harrington posting a final round 73 to a 74 for McGrane and Hamill’s excellent 71.

But in the play-off Harrington’s class proved to be the difference in the end as he split the fairway, found the green and two putted from 25 feet for a facile par four and victory.

McGrane and Hamill had hung their four-iron approaches out to the right and left themselves with difficult recoveries.

Hamill found the right hand bunker while McGrane finished on the fringe and had a tricky tier between his ball and the hole.

Neither man could get up and down for par with McGrane coming up 18 feet short in three and Hamill’s bunker shot running six feet past the hole.

And while Harrington admitted that he has had better days on the greens, he was delighted to iron out some of the kinks in his game at the much-lauded Christy O’Connor Jnr designed course near Naas.

“I’m delighted because I played great and couldn’t have asked to hit the ball any better,” Harrington said. “Obviously now there will be a lot of work to be done on my putting. But if you had asked me if I had wanted to win in tight situation this week playing well and putting poorly I would have taken it rather than playing poorly and putting well.

“I drove it particularly well the last two days. I only missed out fairway with my driver in the last two rounds, which is something that has been letting me down.”

One behind McGrane starting the day, Harrington bogeyed three of the last four holes to card a closing 73 and finish on three under par.

A birdie at the par five 16th - where he rifled a six iron to four feet and two putted - left Harrington one clear of Hamill with two to play.

But he three putted the 17th from 15 feet and then bunkered his approach at the last to drop another stroke allow McGrane and Hamill to force a play-off.

Hamill hit four birdies in five holes in mid-round to grab the outright lead on five under par but bogeyed the 11th and 18th to post the clubhouse target of three under par.

McGrane, meanwhile, was always chasing after three bogeys in his first five holes and was philosophical in defeat.

He said: “I came here with high expectations - a win or nothing. It was close but at the end of the day Padraig played a super shot into the last.

“Padraig gave us all a chance today and I didn’t capitalise on it. I hit some good shots today and didn’t really get rewarded. But over 72 or 73 holes the best man won - that’s my policy and Padraig is certainly the best man.

Former tour player Hamill was disappointed to finish as runner up for the second time after losing out to Paul McGinley at Fota Island in 1997.

He said: “I am a wee bit disappointed to make five from the middle of the fairway in the play-off but overall I am delighted.

“I’ll probably not get a chance like that again. That’s a couple of times now I have had a little sneak at it. I played a good bunker shot as well but I am delighted to make a play off because I am not playing much golf.”