Padraig gearing up for Augusta, but is he just crying wolf?
In 2008, Tiger Woods won the U.S. Open in marvelous fashion. After that, however, he left the game, and with that a huge hole. It was the quirky Irishman with an excellent accent and even better putting stroke that jumped in Tiger's driver seat, winning two majors in a row, making it three of the last six, and showing that others can dominate when Tiger wasn't around.
The interesting part of the Padraig experiment was that it showed us exactly the opposite of that. At times golfers can get hot, but when it comes to consistently winning, there is only one Tiger.
Again Woods has been out of the game, away for reasons people still have a hard time grasping, but Harrington hasn't been the same. He has yet to claim a trophy both on the PGA or European Tour since his back-to-back majors and has found himself constantly in contention come Sunday only to blow up with a big number when he needs it the least.
This week, at the Transitions Championship, Harrington is again at the top of the leaderboard heading into the weekend. The story is pretty familiar. Woods is away, Harrington is getting himself right where he needs to be come Augusta National, and it all comes down to if Padraig can close or not.
He hasn't been able to as of late. If this week turns out different, however, and he can break through in 2010, he might just be the popular pick to claim green at Augusta.
Honestly, could you think of a guy better suited to wear the color?
