Irish Eye on the Tiger

Every player who gets off to a good start on Thursday will be wondering how Tiger Woods is doing, says Padraig Harrington. The Irishman hopes he's a contender, too, but isn't sure what to expect as he comes back from his father's recent death.

SPRINGFIELD, N.J. (PA) -- Padraig Harrington reckons that one thought will quickly come into the mind of anybody making a good start in the PGA Championship on Thursday.

How's Tiger doing?

"Every player, if they're going well, will have a quick look to see where Tiger Woods is," said Harrington. "He definitely has a slight mark on the rest of the field, that's for sure. Everybody looks at how Tiger is doing. It's a natural reaction."

Woods, of course, is the hot favorite at Baltusrol. How could it be otherwise after finishes of first, second and first in the first three majors of the season?

While the world No. 1 was leading from start to finish at St. Andrews a month ago, Harrington was back in Ireland, his father having died on the Monday night of Open Championship week.

The 33-year-old Dubliner played in Germany the following week, but came in only 40th. And he admits that the final major of the year feels like a new start for him rather than the end of something.

"It doesn't give me great hope for the week because I feel like I've kind of been out of things for a while," he added. "Normally when you go to play at a major, you want to have some competitive edge going into it and I'm sort of missing that at the moment.

"But emotionally I'm reasonable comfortable about it all. I feel like I want to go and play," he explained. "If I get into the tournament and get into contention, obviously there's a bit of an adrenaline rush and that helps things.

"But I don't know what to expect. I'm doing everything I can, trying not to overdo things, and then it's a little bit of hope really," he said. "It's not like I can predict anything. I just have to go with the flow and see what happens."

Harrington was among those encouraged by the way Woods lost his aura of invincibility following the 2000 season. But the way he has performed in the biggest weeks this season has got everybody worried again.

"When he first came on the scene, he was only a kid with lots of talent," said Harrington. "In 2000 he was a phenomenal player that nobody could touch. I think he's still a great player, but he's probably not as untouchable as he was.

"In 2000 he was unbeatable because he probably believed he was unbeatable," he added. "Now he's an experienced pro. He's had some highs and lows and obviously some of that confidence is gone, but he's more experienced and doesn't need it."

Asked if he felt intimidated by Woods, Harrington replied: "I'm intimidated by myself.

"If I'm ever in contention with anybody it's me I'm worried about, not the other guy. That's all I can deal with."

Right from the time his father was diagnosed with inoperable cancer of the esophagus in March, Harrington has been aware that he would have tough times coping emotionally on the course, especially when in the hunt for a title.

He has earned a pair of PGA Tour victories already this year, but coming down the closing stretch trying to land a first major would obviously be a greater test.

"I can't predict what's going to happen," he said. "When I'm on the course I'll be trying to focus, but if I'm in contention maybe there will be an emotional element to it because it's been such an emotional year."

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