As one of golf’s great characters, three-time major champ Padraig Harrington never lacks for interest, on or off the golf course. Just in the last couple of months, he spoke to Golf Digest at length about the golf ball rollback and taught our colleague, Christopher Powers, how to gain a bunch of speed with the driver. The guy is a wealth of knowledge and entertainment.
During the first round of the Texas Children’s Houston Open on Thursday, the Irish golfer showcased a remarkable shot that could potentially warrant a dedicated video tutorial.
At the dogleg right, par-4 16th hole at Memorial Park, Harrington found himself in a challenging position after hooking his drive into the trees. Despite the obstacle of a thick pine tree directly in front of his ball, Harrington remained composed. He opted for a wood club, knelt down, and carefully lined up his shot, much to the amusement of the Golf Channel commentators.
He made par btw https://t.co/jzexvhThMo pic.twitter.com/0EDpvYgi1B
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 28, 2024
Brandel Chamblee mentioned that Harrington consistently practices hitting the ball off his knees. Chamblee further highlighted Harrington’s impressive ability to drive the ball 280 yards even from this challenging position.
Subsequently, Chamblee acknowledged the difficulty of the shot, emphasizing that many golfers would hesitate due to the potential of hitting the ball too high or getting it caught in the surrounding trees. The crucial aspect of this shot is the sensation of having to swing over the top of the ball to execute it successfully.
Certainly, Harrington successfully executed it, striking the shot from under the tree onto the fairway, approximately 120 yards away, as per ShotLink data. It landed not too far from where Tony Finau’s drive ended up. Following that, Harrington’s approach fell short of the green, but he skillfully recovered with his putter to secure an exciting par.
Both Steve Sands and Brad Faxon made a point of mentioning during the broadcast that shots like the one we just witnessed will bring back memories of Craig Stadler’s tree incident in 1987. In the third round of the 1987 tournament at Torrey Pines, Stadler found himself in a tricky situation on the 14th hole of Torrey Pines South. To protect his knees from getting wet, he kneeled down and used a towel. However, it wasn’t until Sunday morning, when a replay was shown and viewers started calling in, that it was discovered that Stadler had actually violated the rules by “building a stance.” This infraction resulted in a two-stroke penalty, and since Stadler had signed an incorrect scorecard, he was ultimately disqualified from the tournament.
Eight years later, as part of a promotional event for the San Diego tournament, Stadler used a power saw to remove a branch from the decaying tree. “It has been eight years,” Stadler remarked. “It is now time to lay it to rest.”
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