As befits a man who ranks The European Tour Order of Merit just behind a Major Championship, Ireland’s Padraig Harrington has submitted himself to a Spanish inquisition on the sunshine island of Majorca this week in a bold bid to wrest the leadership of the money list from Paul Casey in the Mallorca Classic at Pula Golf Club.
The Mallorca Classic is the penultimate counting event towards the destination of the Harry Vardon Trophy in 2006 and with Englishman Casey chilling out at his Arizona home and third placed David Howell trying to shake off a shoulder injury, it falls on second placed Harrington and Robert Karlsson, in fourth, to make inroads at the top of the Order of Merit.
It is a mathematical minefield, as four players who have never enjoyed the sweet taste of an Order of Merit crown battle it out for one of the year’s most prestigious prizes. In essence, Harrington can supplant Casey as the new Number One by winning the €291,660 first prize, while would propel him to €2,482,717 to Casey’s €2,409,242.
Howell won’t add to the €2,166,366 already safely stashed away in the vault, but Karlsson can make significant progress by becoming the first non-Spanish winner of the Mallorca Classic. The Ryder Cup rookie from The K Club would overhaul Howell with €2,255,703 should he claim the first prize on Sunday night.
With a winner’s cheque for €666,660 awaiting the winner of the season-ending Volvo Masters at Club de Golfe Valderrama the following week, it is transparently obvious that there is everything to play for this week.
Harrington, who declared his intention to play in Spain within minutes of capturing the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, remarked: “Even if I could get a top ten out of Valderrama that would still not bridge the gap, so I probably need the aid of a good week in Majorca as well. Obviously there are four people in contention and any of us can go out and have a good week at Valderrama.
“It would be a big deal to me to win the Order of Merit. You know, once you hit September, you really start thinking about the Order of Merit if you're in with a chance of it. Certainly I've been using it as a motivation after The Ryder Cup to get focused and to get out on the golf course and push on. I think if I was further back, I would have found it harder to come out last week and this week and play good golf. but the Order of Merit being such a big deal - certainly something you want to have in your C.V. – and keeps you pushing on.
“The Order of Merit is directly behind the Majors. At the end of the day, you can win whatever tournaments you like, but you're going to be judged at the end of your career on how many tournament wins you have, and then how many Majors and after that you're going to be judged on did you win Order of Merit and maybe your World Ranking. That's hopefully in 20 years time, looking back. But definitely, I would like to have an Order of Merit on my C.V.”
A total of five of Europe’s victorious 2006 Ryder Cup Team are in the field with Sergio Garcia, Harrington, Karlsson, Paul McGinley and defending champion, José Maria Olazábal, who collected his 23rd title on The European Tour International Schedule – and his first for almost four years - when he won at Pula Golf Club last year.
In the process, he extended the Spanish dominance of the Mallorca Classic, won in the inaugural year of 2004 by Miguel Angel Jiménez and 12 months later by Garcia. All three winners are in the field again.
Ireland’s McGinley completes the quintet of European Ryder Cup players teeing it up at Pula Golf Club along with a host of players chasing a place in the top 115 on The European Tour Order of Merit to secure their cards for 2007 while others have their sights placed on the top 60, which gain automatic entry into the Volvo Masters. In other words, it’s all to play for with two weeks to go!
