GOLF:For elite tour players, there is always the immediate opportunity to bounce back. So Pádraig Harrington who, just days after losing his money title to Justin Rose and being replaced by the Englishman as the leading European player in the official world rankings, will tee up in this week's HSBC Champions tournament in Shanghai, where the 2008 PGA European Tour season gets under way.

Harrington, who has slipped to eighth in the world, one spot behind Rose, is the lone Irishman in the 89-man field for the Champions tournament which this year features a cut for the first time. With Rose absent, however, the Dubliner has an immediate opportunity to leapfrog back over him in the world rankings.

"I won't necessarily be prepared well and that's a big issue," said Harrington, who endured the trip to China yesterday still disappointed with happenings in his final round of the Volvo Masters.

"But I think this disappointment will only spur me on, to be honest, and I'll be trying harder rather than taking it easy over the next few weeks."

Harrington's schedule for the season is nearing an end. After Shanghai, he will defend his Dunlop Phoenix tournament title in Japan next week, before taking a break that coincides with the birth of his second child. At this stage, the Target World Challenge in California next month is still in his plans, but he won't reappear on the European Tour after Shanghai until the Adu Dhabi Open in mid-January.

As for Rose, he is looking to emulate Harrington's feat and follow-on from claiming the European Tour order of merit title by going on to win a major. Rose, who has put himself into pole position for a Ryder Cup debut in Valhalla next year, won't play again until the World Cup in China in just over a fortnight, but he is already looking forward to next year's majors.

"I have that dream of winning a major, it is what drives me on," said Rose. "I geared my season around the majors this year and, yeah, ultimately I want my career to include a major championship. Or more than one, hopefully. You know, I've won the Open championship a thousand times on the putting green at home, so it's something I've always dreamed about as a kid and hopefully will go on to do one day."

Harrington, in fact, can see quite a bit of himself in Rose. "I don't know if I should compare it with myself, but four or five years ago I had a period where I top-10ed in three of the majors or something in a year. I had a few decent majors, and Justin's progressed to that level and it will be interesting to see next year and the years after if he can continue on with the form."

Of Rose's game, Harrington observed: "I would consider his game similar enough to my own game. He wouldn't be relying on hitting every fairway, every green, but would have a good, strong mind and a very good short game. He works the ball well in terms of getting the best score out of any round of golf, and that's very important. He works very hard at his long game, but definitely it's his mental strength and his short game, just like myself, that is putting him right where he is."

For his part, Rose has set a goal of rising to number two in the world.

"My goal at the start of the season was to get inside the top-20. I've got to seven, so I haven't quite got my head around that just yet. But, certainly, before next year starts, I'll reset my goals. I think number two is a legitimate goal. I mean, I think number one is a fair way off right now. But for the rest of the normal guys, number two is a good goal."

While Harrington moves on to Shanghai, Paul McGinley, who finished the season in 74th position, his worst finish since his rookie season in 1992, intends to take a long, hard look at things over the winter.

Although he is committed to playing next week's Hong Kong Open, McGinley believes he needs to make some major changes.

"I'm not in control of my game. I need to introduce more quality back into my game. I have a lot of work to do over the winter. Some major steps will have to be taken, because I am very unhappy with my season. I'm committed to Hong Kong, but I'm done after that.

"There is no point in me going on. I need to step back to assess things and to take steps to change a few things and go forward again, because clearly its been a very disappointing year."

Elsewhere, there will be 15 Irish players, including World Cup pair Gareth Maybin and Michael Hoey, competing in the European Tour school second stage of qualifying at venues in Spain starting tomorrow.

Maybin is competing along with Chris Devlin, Michael McDermott, Glen Robinson and Philip Walton at Arcos Gardens; Hoey is playing at Ballena along with Damien Mooney; Mark Campbell, Gary Cullen, Noel Fox, Richard Kilpatrick and Simon Thornton are competing at Catalunya, while Michael McGeady, Alan Murray and Peter O'Keefe are playing in Jerez.

All are seeking places in next week's final stage, when full cards for 2008 will be up for grabs.