Pádraig Harrington holds a share of fifth place as after the first round of the ISPS HANDA Senior Open at Sunningdale Old as he bids for a second successive Senior Major Championship after landing the U.S. Senior Open for the second time last month.
The Dubliner two of his first three holes but found himself back on level-par after the sixth and remained that way until the ninth on what is typically the easier of the two nines. He managed to find another birdie to close out the front side, but gave that shot back on 12 before catching fire and reeling off four birdies in a five-hole stretch afterwards.
He was a little disappointed to bogey the last, and is hoping to tidy up his driving over the next three days.
“Look, I played lovely at the start and struggled to score well,” he explained. “I had a really bad three-putt early on and took three from the edge of the green. Then on the back nine, I didn’t play so well and scored great. I chipped in on 13. Holed a nice putt on the two par 3s.
“Yeah, disappointing to three-putt the last but I’ve been really struggling with my uphill drives. I hit a hook on 16 and hit a hook on the last. It’s hurting me a lot on the tee. I have no confidence. I am okay when I’m going down but not so good when I’m going up.
“Yeah, I need to get rid of that over the next three days. I need to get a little bit more aggressive or more confident off the tee so that I can be more aggressive off the tee.”
Earlier in the week, Harrington had been unsure whether the golf course would play to his strengths despite his love for it, but he’s happy with the slightly softer conditions.
“It’s perfect at the moment,” he enthused. “A little greener is perfect. I thought I was going to come and it would be very firm and fast, and that means everybody playing to the same spot. With it being a little bit greener I can take on some of those par 4s that are drivable. If it’s really firm on those greens, you pitch five yards left of the green, you might go 40 yards long. Whereas with it being soft, nice and soft to run. It’s very nice at the moment.
“I’ve got to say, every player, every caddie here, this is probably the best golf course we’ve set foot on. You just couldn’t improve on this. If anybody would ever think of changing anything here, this is as good as it gets.”
Darren Clarke is next best of the Irish at level-par after trading four bogeys with four birdies including one on the last, and he occupies a tie for 42nd, while Paul McGinley, making just his second start of 2025, carded a two-over 72 and shares 87th with the top 70 and ties advancing to the weekend rounds.
Steven Alker carded a seven-under round to take the lead as he bids for a second Senior Major Championship.
The New Zealander, who won PGA TOUR Champions’ season-long Charles Schwab Cup for a second time last year, carded six birdies and an eagle in his round of 63 to sit one stroke ahead of Australia’s Mark Hensby.
Alker has won nine times on PGA TOUR Champions, most recently at the Cologuard Classic in March, and is seeking a second Senior Major success to add to his 2022 KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship victory.
Hensby, who beat John E. Morgan in a play-off to win the PGA TOUR’s John Deere Classic in 2004, required just 29 strokes on the front nine as he carded six birdies before the turn. He then recovered from a bogey at the par four 12th with another gain on the 14th as he signed for his six under par round of 64.
In a share of third are defending champion K.J. Choi, who made history last year as the first South Korean to win a Senior Major Championship, and five-time PGA TOUR Champions winner Joe Durant after carding four under par rounds of 66.
Nine players sit in fifth place on three under, including Major Champions Ernie Els, fellow South African Retief Goosen and Harrington, as well as 2018 Senior Open winner Miguel Angel Jiménez.
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