‘Loyalty’ has brought Padraig Harrington back to this week’s European Tour flagship BMW PGA Championship.

While the triple Major winner has done well on Wentworth’s West course in autumn he’s never performed to the best of his ability in the spring.

This is evident with the Dubliner finishing no higher than fifth in both 2002 and 2008 whereas in 2001 he was runner-up to Ian Woosnam in the World Match -Play Championship.

“I’m only here purely because it’s the flagship event on the European Tour,” he said.

“It doesn’t suit my schedule and I find the golf course very difficult.  So there’s a lot of reasons not to be here and there’s one big reason to be here – loyalty.

“I come back, basically every second year, Ryder Cup years, for the European Tour and I come back optimistic that it’s all going to change around and I’ll love the place and have a great year.”

Harrington spent two days earlier this week inspecting the Walton Heath course, and where on Monday he will seek to qualify for next month’s US Open.

It is the first time in Harrington’s career he has had to enter qualifying for the US Open and comes in a season where he found himself not exempt into last month’s Masters and also last fortnight’s Players Championship.

“That’s the way I go about it but in terms of ease of playing, of course it would be easier to drive up the road an hour instead of… well, of course, I’ve obviously had to play Monday and Tuesday, practice rounds at Walton Heath,” he said.