• Spaniard hit a three under par 68 in Open's third round
• Harrington has described himself as García's antithesis
It has so far been a year to forget for Sergio García, and the Spaniard's heart must have sunk when the pairings were made for the third round of this year's Open. García, involved in a racism controversy in May after insulting Tiger Woods, was paired with Padraig Harrington for Saturday's third round at Muirfield, a person with whom cordial relations have rarely been shared.
Harrington's fallout with José María Olazábal at the Seve Trophy in 2003, when the Irishman questioned Olazábal's decision to repair a mark in the green that was in the line of his putt, was never likely to endear him to García.
Though the duo have never clashed in major terms, their relationship is frosty. They rarely spoke during Saturday's 18 holes, never walking side-by-side, although García produced his best golf of the tournament so far to card a three under par 68, sitting three over in total.
Harrington once described himself as the "antithesis" of García. "We have zero in common, bar the fact that we both play golf," Harrington said. "I have had plenty of run-ins with people and we would be friends but [with García] it is just, well, we are just so much the opposite of each other."
García stated ahead of the 2012 Ryder Cup, for which Olazábal was Europe's captain, that Harrington "wouldn't be a sure pick for me".
Both players put their differences aside during the first of two rounds that they will share on these links, but despite starting the day on the same score, Harrington went backwards while García excelled.
The Irishman struggled to find the tight fairways but García's game came together brilliantly. The only negatives were three-putts on the eighth and a bogey on the 13th, although on the latter he was desperately unlucky, as a fine wedge from a green-side bunker hit the flagstick and deflected further from the cup.
"I finally felt like I knew what I was doing out there, and it wasn't easy," García said. "It was definitely breezier than it was yesterday, but I finally was able to hit some good shots and was able to trust my shots a little bit better."
The pair were put on the clock on the 12th and 13th for slow play, but García refused to blame Harrington, despite admitting that he found it difficult at times to keep his rhythm.
"I think it's difficult when you're on the clock," he said. "It's difficult with anybody that is struggling, because it's always going to take a little bit more time. It feels like you have to make up for that time a little bit, so I think we tried as hard as we could, both of us. I think it was on the 14th so, you know, the last four or five holes were a little bit better.
"I felt like I was rushing quite a lot. I even played out of position probably when it wasn't my turn, probably two or three times to try to catch up. But it's difficult when it's this breezy."
Asked about his relationship with Harrington, García said: "Good, normal. I think we both respect each other. We seemed to be a little bit slow out there today, but other than that it was fine."
Harrington remarked: "He played very well. You've got to think he was quite unlucky to only shoot three under par."
They will reconvene on Sunday for the final round and García still has an outside chance of making a late impact on the leaderboard. The 33-year-old finally appears able to focus on his game after a tumultuous few months for a player still in search of his first major title.
"As an individual tournament, this is definitely my favourite," García said. "It would be nice [to win]. But hopefully it won't be the only one." Reported by guardian.co.uk 1 hour ago.
• Harrington has described himself as García's antithesis
It has so far been a year to forget for Sergio García, and the Spaniard's heart must have sunk when the pairings were made for the third round of this year's Open. García, involved in a racism controversy in May after insulting Tiger Woods, was paired with Padraig Harrington for Saturday's third round at Muirfield, a person with whom cordial relations have rarely been shared.
Harrington's fallout with José María Olazábal at the Seve Trophy in 2003, when the Irishman questioned Olazábal's decision to repair a mark in the green that was in the line of his putt, was never likely to endear him to García.
Though the duo have never clashed in major terms, their relationship is frosty. They rarely spoke during Saturday's 18 holes, never walking side-by-side, although García produced his best golf of the tournament so far to card a three under par 68, sitting three over in total.
Harrington once described himself as the "antithesis" of García. "We have zero in common, bar the fact that we both play golf," Harrington said. "I have had plenty of run-ins with people and we would be friends but [with García] it is just, well, we are just so much the opposite of each other."
García stated ahead of the 2012 Ryder Cup, for which Olazábal was Europe's captain, that Harrington "wouldn't be a sure pick for me".
Both players put their differences aside during the first of two rounds that they will share on these links, but despite starting the day on the same score, Harrington went backwards while García excelled.
The Irishman struggled to find the tight fairways but García's game came together brilliantly. The only negatives were three-putts on the eighth and a bogey on the 13th, although on the latter he was desperately unlucky, as a fine wedge from a green-side bunker hit the flagstick and deflected further from the cup.
"I finally felt like I knew what I was doing out there, and it wasn't easy," García said. "It was definitely breezier than it was yesterday, but I finally was able to hit some good shots and was able to trust my shots a little bit better."
The pair were put on the clock on the 12th and 13th for slow play, but García refused to blame Harrington, despite admitting that he found it difficult at times to keep his rhythm.
"I think it's difficult when you're on the clock," he said. "It's difficult with anybody that is struggling, because it's always going to take a little bit more time. It feels like you have to make up for that time a little bit, so I think we tried as hard as we could, both of us. I think it was on the 14th so, you know, the last four or five holes were a little bit better.
"I felt like I was rushing quite a lot. I even played out of position probably when it wasn't my turn, probably two or three times to try to catch up. But it's difficult when it's this breezy."
Asked about his relationship with Harrington, García said: "Good, normal. I think we both respect each other. We seemed to be a little bit slow out there today, but other than that it was fine."
Harrington remarked: "He played very well. You've got to think he was quite unlucky to only shoot three under par."
They will reconvene on Sunday for the final round and García still has an outside chance of making a late impact on the leaderboard. The 33-year-old finally appears able to focus on his game after a tumultuous few months for a player still in search of his first major title.
"As an individual tournament, this is definitely my favourite," García said. "It would be nice [to win]. But hopefully it won't be the only one." Reported by guardian.co.uk 1 hour ago.