Padraig Harrington tries to reign in his obsession with perfection

Off the back of a major win in Malaysia, Irish golfer Padraig Harrington sat down with a reporter from the Telegraph to talk about his life around golf and how he strikes a balance between it all. 

Harrington, 39, described himself as "obsessive."

He said one of the "keys to his game" is to try and get a good balance which is not always easy for him to do.

"If I didn't have a family, a wife and two kids, I'd be a basket case. I do need the distractions. If I don't have something that keeps me away from golf, I'll keep thinking about golf," said Harrington candidly.

Harrington speaks highly to the Telegraph of his brother in law and caddie, Ronan Flood, giving him credit for his success in the U.S.

"One of the reasons I've been so successful in the U.S. is that my friend caddies for me.

"So when we finish work in the evening, that's the end of the day.

"But if I were sitting in my hotel room, I'd be thinking about golf. I would literally practise all the time.

Even watching television doesn't serve as a distraction he said.

"I could just about watch "CSI" on TV: one hour. And even then, if there was an ad break, I'd struggle not to get up and swing a club.

"I would have to be wary.

Harrington said he tries to take eight weeks off during the winter but it never works out according to plan.

"In the first week I'll take my kids to school, come home for breakfast and find I can't sit there, doing nothing.

"To be a better golfer, I need to have a break. I have to make sure the game doesn't consume me."

He speaks about his family life and how it gives him the much needed balance he requires for a healthy life.

"They laugh at me. My wife, Caroline, has been very close to my golf for 21 years.

"She knows what it's all about.

He describes Caroline as his closest "confidante."

"She would be my closest confidante when it comes to talking about this.

"Two young children, too, are guaranteed to get you away from golf.

"I would be a better player if I could rest a bit more. I've completely overdone it at times. Most tournaments where I've finished second, I've lost because I have done too much work. For my first 10 years on tour, I didn't realize that you weren't meant to get up tired.

"Every morning I'd be drained by the amount of work I'd done the day before. The hardest thing for me in golf is to stop, on the Wednesday before an event starts, and say, 'I'm ready'. It's a lot easier to go to the practice ground and hit more balls."

 
 

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