Padraig Harrington reflects on mixed season

Padraig Harrington isn't sure what to make of his year on the PGA Tour. He missed the cut in all three majors he played and had only four top 10s -- but two of those were victories, at the Honda Classic in a playoff and at the Barclays Classic with an 80-foot eagle on the last hole.

Sure, he was disappointed in his inconsistency. But considering he has finished runner-up 20 times in Europe, he wouldn't trade the trophies.

"Life is a lot easier when you play badly and then all of a sudden you get in contention and win one," Harrington said. "No one gets on your back. When you finish runner-up seven times, everyone is asking, 'Why aren't you winning?' It's much more fun when you jump into a win out of the blue. It's a much tougher game when you play consistently well."

Harrington mentioned Jim Furyk, who lost twice in playoffs this year at the Wachovia Championship and in Las Vegas. Furyk now is 1-6 in playoffs, losing his last six.

"I'm sure they're jumping on Jim's back for not winning all those playoffs," Harrington said. "But how good is he playing to get into them? Only that he's in so many playoffs does he have a bad record. The better you play, the more you're going to lose. Because you're going to be there more often."

The Irishman was asked if he would rather have two victories and no other chances to win, or one victory and six second-place finishes.

Give him the titles.

"Runner-up is only for cash," he said. "I'm looking for wins, and nothing else. That's what you get judged on."

November 16, 2005

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