Triple Major winning Padraig Harrington has set himself an 21-month goal of representing Ireland in the 2016 Olympic Games.
Harrington revealed his Olympic dream after he shot a six under par 66 to be sharing second place with fellow Irishman Shane Lowry and just two shots behind England’s Oliver Wilson on the opening day of the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship.
Golf is returning to the 2016 Olympics for a first time since 1924 and if Harrington, who will then be 45 years of age, is to become an Olympian he will need to be among the top-two World Ranking Irish-born players.
At present, Harrington is ranked a lowly 324th in the world after a career high of No. 3 in 2009.
Padraig Harrington has set himself a 21-month goal of qualifying for the 2016 Olympics. (Photo – kenneth e. dennis/kendennisphoto.com.
“I don’t normally tell you my goals but my goal is to get back to top-15 in the world in 2006 and to qualify for the Olympics,” he said.
“That’s where I am focused so I’ve got nearly two years to achieve that goal, and it makes no difference where I am in the world now and I have 21 months of results counting towards achieving that.
“So I am starting at ‘ground zero’ and working my way up to becoming an Olympic athlete. That would be very special because I know if I do get back into the top-15 I would have done other good things between now and then.”
And while Harrington has been mooted as a future European Ryder Cup captain he is already considering following the path of Paul McGinley and that could mean seeking the captaincy of the next European EurAsia Cup team or GB & I Seve Trophy side.
“I would rather be captain of the EurAsia Cup as it provides that separation between the Seve Trophy that is between GB & I and Europe,” said Harrington.
“But then either of them would be fine as I learnt a lot last week and the Ryder Cup is such a big week and you have to be ready for it if I get the opportunity.
“I just loved being a vice-captain last week but it’s much harder than you think. I’ve got to say that I’d like to captain in a Seve Trophy before I go all the way to the Ryder Cup.
“I have pages of notes from last week to remind myself in the future and I’d like to try it out at the Seve Trophy or the EurAsia Cup.
And when asked if McGinley had put that idea into Harrington’s head, Harrington smiled saying: “Maybe he did. Maybe he did.”
However a more pressing concern for Harrington was his golf shoes that he’d left in his Old Course Hotel room at St. Andrews, and bizarrely it was Golden Globe winning actor, Bill Murray, who was playing in the group behind Harrington, who came to Harrington’s rescue.
“I was just about to get in my car and we got this emergency call ‘Mr. Harrington has forgotten his golf shoes’,” said Murray.
“So we went up and broke into room, and I got to try on some of his clothes and then I grabbed his shoes.
“But the good thing was we then got to drive faster to Carnoustie which was good.”
