SATURDAY'S PLAY ROUND-UP:THE MAN walking back up to the 16th green was on a mission. Walkie-talkie in hand, Paul McGinley - three times a player in this unique team competition - stopped talking to whoever it was, Monty we assume, in midstream and let a wide smile cross his features. "Now you can write that Pádraig Harrington is back as a Ryder Cup player," said McGinley.
Relief in his voice? Delight? Conviction? The tone was one that combined many emotions, but mainly that Harrington was again talking with his clubs.
On Saturday, in the six foursomes which put all 24 players from either team out onto the course, Harrington - without a win in the Ryder Cup since his stellar performance in Oakland Hills in 2004 - finally broke the drought. In partnering Ross Fisher to a 3 and 2 win over Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson, the tension, so clearly apparent in his gaunt face, was broken and the player of old, the one with the focused stare, had returned.
Oh goodness how Harrington had waited for this time. It didn't matter that he'd won three Majors since those days at Oakland Hills when Molly Malone reverberated around the course. He was on a winning team at The K Club in 2006, but only contributed half a point. In 2008 at Valhalla, he was on a losing team and only contributed half a point.
Here, his partnership with Fisher - almost borne out of desperation it would seem by Colin Montgomerie after both failed to ignite in the first session of fourballs, Harrington with Luke Donald and Fisher with Ian Poulter - had a sparkle and a connectivity which reached out across the ropes to the galleries. The two high-fived and fist-pumped and at times Harrington was brought in by his new partner to read the lines and then duly dispatched putts into the tin cup.
For sure, it was a partnership that bloomed as the day progressed. From a horrible start where Harrington attempted a long-iron recovery from a fairway bunker which clipped the lip and returned to his feet in running up a double bogey, the Anglo-Irish combination went on to reap dividends that had a misfiring Mickelson and out-of-sorts Johnson unable to break them up.
After losing that first hole, Harrington and Fisher levelled matters on the third and, having turned all square, hit the Americans with a run of birdie-par-birdie from the 10th to take a three-hole lead which remained intact until it came time for handshakes on the 16th, where Fisher rolled in a 12-footer for a par to halt any possibility of a late fightback.
Unsurprisingly, Harrington's return to the winning enclosure and Fisher's breakthrough Ryder Cup point was greeted with emotional scenes. "Playing with Paddy has been absolutely fantastic . . . we just want to get the crowd really, really behind us - the crowd factor has been huge," said Fisher.
Of the decision to pair the two of them, one only taken on Friday night and one of those inspired plays that sometimes come out of the blue, Harrington said: "Monty made a great decisions. He asked me to go with Ross and basically instructed me to look after Ross and take him under my wing. He gave me a lot of responsibility. While it helped Ross's game, it certainly helped my own game as well," remarked Harrington.
He added: "Monty was inspirational for me and Ross, just telling us how important it was, that we needed a big session . . . and bringing Ollie (Jose Maria Olazabal) in, as well, who is probably the second-most passionate golfer (behind Seve Ballesteros) who has ever played in the Ryder Cup, was great."
Maybe Montgomerie will go down as an inspired captain, for apart from pairing Harrington with Fisher in the second session foursomes, the resulting match-up of Poulter and Donald - who beat Bubba Watson and Jeff Overton - also triumphed.
The other half point in a session that finished 2½ points apiece was collected by Lee Westwood and Martin Kaymer with Jim Furyk and Rickie Fowler.
But the most significant factor of all was Harrington's return to winning ways in the Ryder Cup. A man reborn?
Saturday's results
FOURBALLS
Lee Westwood & Martin Kaymer bt Phil Mickelson & Dustin Johnson 3 & 2; Rory McIlroy & Graeme McDowell v Stewart Cink & Matt Kuchar, match halved; Luke Donald & Padraig Harrington lost to Bubba Watson & Jeff Overton 3 & 2; Ian Poulter & Ross Fisher lost to Steve Stricker & Tiger Woods 2 up.
Europe 1½ USA 2½
FOURSOMES
Edoardo Molinari & Francesco Molinari lost to Johnson Zach & Mahan Hunter 2 up; Padraig Harrington & Ross Fisher bt Phil Mickelson & Dustin Johnson 3 & 2; Miguel Angel Jimenez & Peter Hanson lost to Tiger Woods & Steve Stricker 4 & 3; Lee Westwood & Martin Kaymer v Jim Furyk & Rickie Fowler, match halved;
Ian Poulter & Luke Donald bt Bubba Watson & Jeff Overton 2 & 1; Graeme McDowell & Rory Mcilroy lost to Stewart Cink & Matt Kuchar 1 up.
Europe 4 USA 6
