Watch out Tiger Woods - Ireland's golfing giants have their sights set on your Masters jacket.

World-beaters Darren Clarke and Padraig Harrington are gearing up for next week's Masters Tournament, determined to win that elusive first Major.

To do it, they have to stop Woods from creating history by becoming he first player to win three Masters titles in a row.

And while Ulster kingpin Clarke was eighth in 1998 and Dubliner Harrington came fifth last year, both men a looking better than ever as they head for Magnolia Lane.

Europe's top ranked player after his runner-up finish in the so-called fifth Major last weekend - the Players Championship - Harrington knows that he has the game to prevent Woods from winning his fourth green jacket.

And rejuvenated Clarke - with a new caddie, new clubs and new attitude - appears to be swinging the club better than ever.

They are superstars in the European game but like Colin Montgomerie, they have yet to make the step up to join the immortals.

European raiders Seve Ballesteros, Bernhard Langer, Sandy Lyle, Nick Faldo, Ian Woosnam and Jose Maria Olazábal took eleven titles between 1980 and 1999.

But no European has come close to pulling on one of those green blazers since Olazábal beat Davis Love III by two shots four years ago.

And while Harrington shone briefly last year, he eventually faded from the top of the leaderboard as his short game deserted him.

However, his recent form and his record of never having missed the cut in three appearances - he has finished 19th, 27th and fifth since his debut in 2000 - marks him out as one to watch.

He said: "In all areas of my game, I would suggest I am ahead of where I was this time last year. My short game, putting, my mental game, my swing. That's nice and comforting."

"But it doesn't always mean you are going to stay improved throughout the year and have better results," he added cautiously.

"At this stage of the year, when you've gone through your mental preparation and you're out playing again, all you can ask for is that you've improved."

Harrington's wins in the Dunhill Links Championship at St Andrews, the Asian Open in Singapore and his head to head defeat of Woods in the Target Challenge last year, have shown that he is a proven winner who is ready to challenge at Augusta.

A top twenty finisher in all the Majors last year with fifth place finishes in the Masters and the British Open, Harrington is on an upward curve.

Second place at Sawgrass moved him to eighth in the world rankings and although he was seventh for a short time last year, he is aiming to rise far higher.

Despite leap-frogging the struggling Sergio Garcia in the rankings to become Europe's highest ranking player, Harrington won't be happy until he is snapping at the heels of the world number one.

"It is nice to be the top European player in the world but, to be honest, I would like to be the top European player at a higher ranking than this," he said this week. "That's what I want.

"The past few months have been tough watching the world rankings and I've been dripping points. It's good to be moving in the right direction again."

There is a similar feel-good factor coming from the Clarke camp as he appears to have left the disappointments of 2002 far behind.

Despite a win in the English Open the big man slumped from 10th to 26th in the world rankings.

After a period of winter reflection about his goals the 34 year old has come flying out his corner this season with new determination.

Former amateur sparring partner JP Fitzgerald now carries his bag which contains a new driver and ball that have added yards to his game.

He has also ditched some mental baggage taken some pointers from mental guru Dr Bob Rotella on board.

"I'm moving in the right way," Clarke confessed. "My swing is getting better, my ball-striking is getting better and I am definitely going in the right way. I've been hitting the ball really well and I just want to continue doing what I have been doing and, hopefully, the results will come."

Contrary to popular belief, Clarke has always practised hard but with the result that he has found it difficult to relax even when he has taken a week off.

"The Open will remain Darren's principal target for the year, but I think Augusta may well see the best of him this year," said his agent Chubby Chandler.

"He will not be spending as much time preparing and while away from tournament play he will also spend fewer hours on his game and more re-charging."

A quarter-finalist in the WGC Accenture World Matchplay at La Costa, and sixth at Sawgrass, Clarke flew back to London this week to be with his family.

Chandler added: "I said before the start of the season that this was going to be a big season for Darren and I am convinced my prediction will be correct."

Clarke heads for Augusta tomorrow, knowing that he has the short game to cope with torturous greens and the extra power off the tee to deal with the lengthened course.

"Things are going well for me at the moment and if I can get just a little more luck with my putter then I will be looking for a very good week at The Masters," he said.

Augusta National underwent significant changes before last year's Masters with over 300 yards added to the card.

According to Augusta, constant rain prevented the players from experiencing the course as it was meant to be played when Tom Fazio redesigned and lengthened several holes.

The only revision to the course for this year's Masters is on the par-four fifth, where the tee has been moved back and to the side and bunkers have been re-located to create a dogleg effect requiring a 315-yard carry for those who want to avoid the sand.

The course now measures 7,290 yards and organisers are delighted with the changes made to the hole.

"This improvement continues our commitment to accuracy off the tee," said Augusta chairman Hootie Johnson. "Recently, the fairway bunkers did not come into play. This change should once again make the bunkers an integral part of the hole."

Either way, Harrington is delighted to return to one of his favourite courses.

"I love Augusta. As a kid, my brothers and I would always look forward to turning on the telly in the evenings. The Masters was always marked the start of the golf season. The evenings are getting longer and you can get out and play a lot more.

He said: "If I had to choose this would be one of the courses I'd choose to play for the rest of my life.

"It's a punishing course and you can hit good shots out there and still end up being punished for them.

"So it really tests much more your mental side, your patience and your discipline out there more than any other golf course because of the swirling winds.

"Any guy can stand up and hit a perfect shot at the 12th and go in the water or go in the bushes. So you are there for 72 holes and if you don't take one hole in isolation it's a fantastic place to play.

"That's what I like about it. It tests everything. It really does. It's probably more of a mental test or a short game test than any other golf course."

The examination starts on Thursday and if Woods isn't top the class, Ireland has two men ready to fill his boots.

(Harrington on Augusta)

Padraig Harrington has come under the spotlight of the American press - for his view on private clubs and men-only Augusta National.

But the canny Dubliner dodged the issue of women's rights with some diplomatic answers.

As a member of police golf club Stackstown in Dublin where he has no voting privileges and cannot join a committee because he is not a member of the force, Harrington knows all about private members clubs.

"I realized that when I joined the club, and I'm happy with that situation," Harrington said. "It's great if in time it would happen that everybody can play on the same course or whatever, but you have to have articles of an association that decide what the members want."

(Joey Harrington)
Padraig Harrington's second cousin, Detroit Lions quarter back Joey Harrington, is hoping for a happy family reunion at Augusta.

The 6'2", 17 stone giant was the third choice in the draft for the Motor City club and has contract worth over $40 million over six years.

The two hope to meet up at the Masters after a bad round by Harrington prevented them form meeting last year.

Quarterback Harrington followed his Irish cousin in the third round but abandoned plans to say hello to the Dubliner when he ran up an ugly double bogey on the 18th that scuppered his chances.

"I figured he wouldn't be in chat mode after that," said Joey.

"He was a good judge," said Padraig, who hopes to get the chance to say hello this time around if his football playing relative makes it to Augusta.

The Lions' play-maker is in the close season now having won just three of 16 games last year and undergone an operation to fix the accelerated heart beat.

"It wasn't the greatest of seasons," said Joey. "But Padraig beat Tiger so that was a great thrill for me."

(Swede)
Ireland's best face a Scandinavian invasion at the Standard Life sponsored West of Ireland Championship over the Easter weekend.

The 13-strong Swedish amateur side has been entered en masse for the 81st edition of the event.

The highest handicap in the field is 1.3 with 72 players off scratch or better.

Holder Stuart Paul of Tandragee is aiming to become the first player since Niall Goulding in 1991 to retain the trophy.

(Ulster)
The Ulster Boys are heading for a showdown with Surrey County Union. The first leg of this match will be played at Walton Heath Golf Club on the 25 April.

A return fixture has been arranged which will be played at Royal Belfast Golf Club on the 12 August.

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© Brian Keogh 2003

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