Padraig Harrington has enjoyed a dynamic stretch on the PGA Tour Champions, winning twice this season — most recently at the Dick’s Sporting Goods Open in Binghamton, New York, where he edged Mike Weir by a stroke to capture the title.
That followed a 2023 season that saw him bag a pair of wins, and a debut year on the tour in which the Irishman posted four victories.
But as Harrington prepared for this week’s Ally Challenge at Warwick Hills Golf and Country Club outside Flint, Michigan, he was asked whether he thought the Champions record of 46 victories, held by Bernhard Langer, was within reach.
The answer was short and sweet.
“No,” he said, bluntly. “I’ve tried to do the math on it as you would say, the maths as I would say. It doesn’t look possible or likely, but the reality is it mightn’t be me but all records are broken, that’s just the way it is.”
Langer’s 46th victory, which came at the 2023 U.S. Senior Open, eclipsed the mark set by Hale Irwin in 2007. But no other player has more than 30 wins, with Lee Trevino’s 29 victories placing him third on the all-time list of winners. Harrington, now 52, would need a lengthy stretch of success on the senior circuit to even give Trevino’s mark a run.
Still, he feels someone will do so. Eventually.
“When somebody sets a record, it’s a goal for somebody else and they’ll chase it down eventually. Certainly for myself, it would seem like an incredibly tall order,” Harrington said. “Yeah, he’s 67, still playing great, which is amazing and an inspiration to us all, but to get to his amount of wins I think is a step too far for me.”
Of course, the three-time major champion has plenty of pride and he’ll strive to stockpile as many wins as possible. His recent form would seem to indicate that he’s due for another good showing this week at a golf course where he’s played well once before. At the 2001 Buick Open, back when the PGA Tour had this course on its schedule, Harrington finished sixth with four rounds in the 60s.
And with his putter rolling well this season, it’s very conceivable he could be in the mix come Sunday.
“It’s been an interesting year. Yeah, I’ve been putting well, which I think has really helped, and the rest of the game has been pretty similar to other years. Yeah, so I’m in nice form and just trying to get my head in the right place for the week as usual. You get the mental game going, you should be, if you’re sharp, hopefully, we’ll be there or thereabouts come Sunday afternoon.”
