Padraig Harrington was somewhat of a late bloomer in the world of professional golf.
Harrington has admitted himself that he was far from the most talented of junior golfers but what he did possess was an exceptionally strong work ethic and an unrivalled tunnel-visioned mindset.
The Irishman was determined to reach the pinnacle of the game, whatever it took. He worked on his game day and night, hitting balls on the driving range until his fingers bled.
He also practiced his chipping and putting relentlessly in order to reach a level whereby he could compete with the very best junior golfers in the game.
He was never a great ball-striker, but he had more determination and hunger than most, and, most importantly, he possessed the ability to get the ball in the hole by hook or by crook.
Harrington won the West of Ireland Amateur Championship in 1994 before reigning supreme at the Irish Amateur Open Championship in 1995.
The now 54-year-old turned pro after the Walker Cup in 1995.
Harrington finally got his rewards for all the hard work he put in when he won the Peugeot Spanish Open in 1996, but he only became a consistent winner at the turn of the century as he reeled off 11 victories from 2000-2006.
However, bigger and better things were lying in wait for Harrington.
How Padraig Harrington silenced the doubters to win the 2007 Open Championship
Harrington actually entered the 2007 Open Championship at Carnoustie as one of the favourites to win.
He wasn’t up there with the likes of Tiger Woods, Sergio Garcia and Ernie Els, but he was definitely being tipped to have a successful week.
Harrington’s week got off to a solid start, as the Irishman posted a round of two-under par 69 and he trailed the leader, Sergio Garcia, by four strokes.
However, he followed that up with a hugely disappointing 73 on day two and was six shots back of the lead heading into the weekend at Carnoustie.
The man from Dublin ramped things up during his third round, firing a three-under par 68, but his score was matched by Garcia.
Harrington was six back of the Spaniard heading into the final round, and that’s where things really got interesting.
The 54-year-old reached nine-under par for the tournament after 14 holes of round four after a scintillating display of golf.
However, a disastrous double bogey on the 18th hole saw him drop back to seven-under for the championship. He found the Barry Burn TWICE, and a six was actually a very good score in the end, after he got up and down from around 40 yards for his double bogey.
It was a fine round of 67 from Harrington in the end, but one that seemingly wouldn’t quite be enough.
He was given another chance, though, after Garcia bogeyed two of his final four holes to slip back to seven-under par, and the two players headed back to the 1st tee for a four-hole playoff.
At Carnoustie, holes one, 16, 17 and 18 were used for playoffs at The Open back in the day. That has, of course, now changed, with a sudden-death decider now in play.
Harrington got the better of Garcia by one shot after he finished at even-par for the four holes played, and his dream was finally realised.
The once journeyman pro became a big-name player overnight, but none of it would have been possible without his unrivalled commitment to making it at the top.
Harrington went on to defend his Open trophy the following year at Birkdale and he won the PGA Championship just one month later.
It was a golden era for Harrington and the three major championships he won in that two-year period from 2007 to 2008 proved a lot of the people who doubted him as a youngster wrong.
Padraig Harrington’s career record
The 54-year-old won three majors during his incredibly successful career, and he has added three senior major championships to his résumé after turning 50 four years ago.
He has an impressive 43 professional wins to his name including six PGA Tour titles and 15 DP World Tour victories.
Harrington has played on four winning Ryder Cup teams, and six in total.
He is one of the most highly-respected players in the game among both his peers and the fans.
The Irishman is one of the most intelligent professional golfers in the game. The former accountant has sometimes been accused of making the game too complicated with his weird and wonderful driving range routines.
However, thinking outside the box is what energizes Harrington. He has never stuck to the blueprint of what is needed to succeed in professional golf.
And that is brilliant for professional golf. We could do with more characters like Harrington in the game, if truth be known.