O'Hair, Harrington start strong, but they'll need help

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Either Padraig Harrington (left) or Sean O'Hair could win the FedExCup if they win THE TOUR Championship.

Sep. 24, 2009
By Mike McAllister, PGATOUR.COM Managing Editor

ATLANTA -- Padraig Harrington was born in Ireland. Sean O'Hair wasn't, but his last name certainly suggests a bit of the blarney might run through his veins.

"You've got to think it's in there somewhere, all right," Harrington said, then joked, "Maybe he's a cousin."

Certainly the two must feel like they're on the same side of the family feud this week at THE TOUR Championship presented by Coca-Cola.

On one side is the Big Five -- the five players at the top of the FedExCup points list who control their own destiny. If any of the top five wins at East Lake this week, then he wins the FedExCup title, no matter what anyone else does.

Meanwhile, Harrington and O'Hair lead the other side, the group of 25 players who need various degrees of help to win the $10 million bonus.

Fortunately for the Irish cousins, they need the least amount of help, Harrington being the sixth seed and O'Hair the seventh. Unlike some of the other 25 players who essentially require a Hail Mary, if either Harrington or O'Hair wins THE TOUR Championship, it's likely he will also win the FedExCup.

Perhaps that explains their big push in Thursday's opening round. O'Hair has the lead after a 4-under 66, with Harrington in a three-way tie for second, just one stroke behind. For those two, the FedExCup title is not a pipe dream. It's a real opportunity -- and certainly in Harrington's case, it's an opportunity to salvage a winless, and until the past couple of months, disappointing 2009 season.

"I obviously didn't perform for the first seven months of the year," said Harrington, who went through some swing changes after winning the last two majors and the Player of the Year title in 2008. "My focus was elsewhere. And since the FedExCup has started, I've been keen to salvage something out of this year.

"So the FedExCup is possibly going to give me that salvation in terms of if I win this week, I'll have a great 2009."

O'Hair doesn't need such salvation. This season has been the finest of his career, with a win at the Quail Hollow Championship and a near-miss at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by MasterCard.

FedExCup Scenarios

To win the FedExCup

If Sean O'Hair wins THE TOUR Championship this week, he will also win the FedExCup title if Tiger Woods and Steve Stricker finish third or worse.

To win the FedExCup

If Padraig Harrington wins THE TOUR Championship this week, he will also win the FedExCup title if Tiger Woods finishes third or worse.

That doesn't mean he isn't pushing as hard as Harrington. And in fact, his biggest obstacle to winning the FedExCup -- top-seed Tiger Woods -- may have supplied the necessary ingredient the day before the tournament with a putting tip concerning O'Hair's backswing. Tiger made the suggestion to O'Hair on the back nine during practice.

"I tend to deloft the putter and take it a little too square going back," O'Hair explained, "so he just was kind of trying to get me to almost add loft to the putter so I can release it through."

The results were amazingly quick. O'Hair came into the tournament ranked 116th on the PGA TOUR in putting average, but he led the 30-man field in that category Thursday.

The fact that Woods was willing to help a competitor on the eve of the Playoffs finale speaks volumes about the gentlemanly nature of golf. And about Woods.

"We all know how ... great of a player he is, but I think the thing that impresses me more is the quality of guy he is," O'Hair said. "I'm his competition, so for him to help me out like he did was very classy."

Said Woods: "It's very simple -- you always help your friends. Sean is a friend of mine, and like all my friends, you always try to make their life better somehow. ... Sean has been struggling a little bit on the greens this year and I thought I could offer a little bit of help and insight to how he could change that."

Despite Tiger's help, you need not worry -- he's not going soft after 71 TOUR wins. Upon hearing that O'Hair drained a 56-foot birdie putt on one hole and a 17-footer on another, Tiger joked, "I'm going to go chew him out right now."

Actually, Woods already made himself heard with his performance on the back nine Thursday. At one point, O'Hair was 5 under and Woods was even par. But Tiger did what he usually does, staying in striking distance with a bogey-free 3-under 32 on the back to vault into a tie with Harrington and Stewart Cink for second.

Tiger's already provided one helpful hint, but O'Hair and Harrington both need Woods to show a little more generosity this weekend. Along with taking care of their own business, it's the only way either one has a chance to win the FedExCup.

"You're not going to play average golf against him and do anything worthwhile," O'Hair said.

And most of the time, better-than-average isn't good enough either. For now, O'Hair and Harrington each hope just to win THE TOUR Championship and pray that the chips fall in their favor.