Harrington keeps Tiger at bay
Padraig Harrington, with million-dollar memories of the last time he played with Tiger Woods, was enjoying the experience again today.
The Irishman, who captured the only seven-figure cheque of his career when he beat Woods to the Target World Challenge title in California in December, went to the turn in 32 when the Deutsche Bank-SAP Open began in Hamburg.
Woods, winner of the trophy for the last two years and also in 1999, managed a two-under 34, but Harrington took the early honours thanks to four birdies in five holes from the 12th.
They took him into the joint lead with Scotland’s Andrew Coltart and lived up to Woods’ pre-tournament comment that “it seems every single week Paddy’s up there.”
Harrington, runner-up for the 19th time in his career in the Benson & Hedges International Open at The Belfry last Sunday, was off and running with a 25-foot putt on his third hole of the day.
Untroubled, it appeared, by the Fusarium patch disease which has affected all 18 greens at Gut Kaden, he converted further chances on the 13th, 15th and 16th and then saved par with a six-footer after driving into sand at the 468-yard 18th.
Coltart had four birdies in five holes himself from 15th, while Woods birdied the 14th and long 15th.
The world number one got up and down from sand there and did the same to salvage his four on the 18th.
One behind were French pair Christian Cevaer and Raphael Jacquelin and also Denmark’s Anders Hansen, who next week defends his Volvo PGA title at Wentworth.
Colin Montgomerie, beaten in a play-off by Woods in Heidelberg last year, was two under, but Lee Westwood – twice a winner on the course, but without a top-10 finish for approaching two years – bogeyed the 16th, 18th and first to drop to three over.
Playing partner Ian Woosnam birdied the first, but slipped back to one over, whereas Darren Clarke fought back from an opening bogey to be one under at the turn.
