Ireland's Padraig Harrington dominated the ISPS Handa Senior Open, one of the majors for "over-50s," finishing with a 264 (67, 65, 65, 67, -16) on the par-70 Sunningdale GC course, in the town from which the course takes its name, England.
Padraig Harrington, results
In the tournament organized jointly by the Legends Tour and the PGA Tour Champions, Harrington took the lead in the second round and then controlled the situation, preventing his opponents from coming back. He finished with a 67 (-3, one eagle, three birdies, two bogeys), prevailing by three shots over American Justin Leonard and Denmark's Thomas Bjorn, who finished second with 267 (-13).
Australian Scott Hend finished fourth with a 268 (-12), South African Ernie Els and Australian Cameron Percy in fifth with a 269 (-11), and New Zealander Steven Alker, who had led in the opening round, finished seventh with a 270 (-10). Emanuele Canonica, who finished 110th with a 146 (72 74, +6), made the cut after two rounds.
Padraig Harrington, 53, from Dublin, won his third Major title in his category (his second this year after the U.S. Senior Open) and his 11th on the PGA Tour Champions, where he currently plays. Before joining the "over-50" ranks, he won three career Majors, and, excluding those, three PGA Tour events and 12 European Tour (now the DP World Tour). His list of victories also includes one on the Japan Golf Tour, two on the Asian Tour (plus two combined with the European circuit), one World Cup (with Paul McGinley, 1997), and ten others around the world. For his achievement, he received a check for €381,190 out of a prize pool of approximately €2,427,000 (officially $2,850,000).
Pádraig Harrington, born August 31, 1971 in Ballyroan, is an Irish golfer who turned professional in 1995. His greatest achievement was a victory at the 2007 British Open at Carnoustie in Scotland. He retained his title a year later at the Royal Birkdale Golf Club in England. At the 2008 PGA Championship, he edged Sergio Garcia and Ben Curtis by two strokes to win the tournament for the first time in his career and his third Grand Slam title.
