OKAY, I KNOW what you’re thinking. And yes, these columns are usually framed by glass to be broken in case of emergency, or else are dusted off in the aftermath of a crowning triumph. The Simmons Bank Championship on the PGA Tour Champions is nobody’s idea of a crowning triumph and, yet, to to watch Pádraig Harrington awkwardly hoist another of those golf-patented cumbersome trophies on Sunday night was to experience a great moment of clarity.
Harrington’s the best we have ever had, isn’t he? Let’s begin with the basic sporting case. At 53, he is still out there and competing on the senior circuit: Sunday was his ninth win in 48 starts on the Epilogue Tour. Harrington is now fourth on the overall points list and will contend next month for the order of merit title.
His competitive spirit has not been quarantined on the champions tour, either. He finished in a tie for 22nd place in brutal conditions at this year’s Open Championship, and made the cut in all three of his major appearances last year. His form was such that he changed his schedule in an ultimately forlorn bid to play his way onto the European Ryder Cup team.
Any claimant to be our greatest-ever sportsperson must have won the biggest prizes against a global field of talent. This rules out GAA and rugby players, but draws in footballers, tennis players, golfers, boxers, swimmers and track and field athletes. There are few sporting competitions on earth as difficult to win as golf majors, and Harrington.
