Pádraig Harrington’s players lanyard is littered with numbers and letters. He has 1 to 6 as part of his access areas and underneath are a series of letters – there must be around 30 – that also get you into some exclusive parts of Royal Birkdale.
Unfortunately, none of them grant permission to skip the queue for the ice cream van.
Harrington knows a little about everything especially when it comes to ice cream, specifically 99s. It turns out Harrington hasn’t just been teeing it up in Open Championships over the years, he’s been conducting research. Which golf course has the best 99 on the Open rota?
The answer: Royal Portrush.
At Royal Birkdale, Harrington’s desire for a 99 has gone unfulfilled. Being Pádraig Harrington, being a three-time major winner, being a two-time Open champion one of which was here in Birkdale in 2008 does not allow you to skip the queue. No, it’s line up with the rest of the peasants PH.
Harrington was quite downbeat about his chances of a third Claret Jug this week. He lamented that his driving has fallen below the standard he believes is required to contend around the Southport links. But maybe it was because he was just peeved off that his dairy needs weren’t being met.
“Very disappointedly we have lost our run of ice creams. Yes, didn’t have one. There was a queue of about 25 people. There will be a small bollicking given to somebody today at the lack of ice cream,” he says in the usual Irish dominated media huddle.
“No ice cream. Sunday evening… actually… maybe tonight during the match!” he says as he leans in with a grin.
Harrington boarded a Ryanair flight from Dublin to Scotland for last week’s Scottish Open and it would not surprise me if he told whoever he was sitting beside how a plane works. The man is a walking encyclopaedia, especially when it comes to the important stuff.
Anyone know the difference between Coke and Diet Coke? He does and now, so do I.
It’s a scorcher of an evening at the annual Association of Golf Writers dinner. Jacket and ties should be illegal in this type of weather. Five Irishmen are gathered outside the dining room and huddle around the air conditioning vent. Harrington joins with a glass of Diet Coke with ice.
The shitetalking is flowing and we approach the main topic of the evening. How to tell the difference between two glasses of Coke and Diet Coke.
“Coke melts the ice quicker.” So if you ever leave two glasses lying idle on the counter top and aren’t sure which is which, there you go now.
I can’t remember what award Harrington was picking up on the night, but given that exchange you would imagine it was an award for just being Pádraig Harrington.
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