Padraig Harrington makes birdie putt to win Hoag Classic

Professional golfer Padraig Harrington has gained quite a following on YouTube with his “Paddy’s Golf Tips.”

While fundamentals are undoubtedly important for any golfer, the mental fortitude to overcome two double-bogeys in the final round of a tournament? That doesn’t necessarily come included.

Harrington did it Sunday at Newport Beach Country Club. He came into the final round ahead by a stroke, and he came out of it in the same position.

The Irishman holed an 8-foot birdie putt on No. 18 to win his first Hoag Classic in windy conditions.

Padraig Harrington hits from the green-side bunker and puts it close to the pin on the 18th hole during the final round of the Hoag Classic at the Newport Beach Country Club on Sunday.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

Harrington, 52, who won his seventh PGA Tour Champions event overall, finished at 14 under par. That was a stroke better than first-round leader Thongchai Jaidee of Thailand, with Miguel Angel Jimenez of Spain in third place at 12 under par.

Stephen Ames finished fourth at 11 under, with Jerry Kelly and KJ Choi tied for fifth at 10 under.

“If you said to me before going out there that I was going to make two double-bogeys, I would be thinking, ‘There’s no way I’m winning today,’” Harrington admitted. “[But] I think one of my best traits in golf is when my back’s to the wall, I’m pretty good at taking things on.”

Harrington, who shot a two under par round of 69 on Sunday and earned the $300,000 first-prize check, countered the two double bogeys with six birdies.

Padraig Harrington, right, is congratulated by playing partner Miguel Angel Jimenez after winning the Hoag Classic on Sunday.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

His tee shot on par-four No. 16 went way left and he ended up carding a six, which put him a shot behind both Jaidee and Jimenez at the time.

“A right-to-left dogleg on a left-to-right wind is never going to be easy,” Harrington said. “Maybe I should just have just accepted it and hit down into the right-hand rough. In hindsight, it would have been a lot better than where I hit it.”

He came back firing on No. 17, earning his third birdie of the tournament on the par-three by making a downhill birdie putt of about 15 feet. Meanwhile, Jimenez — who had made eagle on No. 16 — left his par putt short, and Jaidee made par.

Jaidee was the only player in the final group to find the fairway off the tee at the par-five No. 18, but his third shot went well past the hole to take away any realistic birdie chance. That set the stage for Harrington, who said he had mostly downhill birdie putts on the day, with the wind gusting to more than 30 miles per hour.

Thongchai Jaidee hits an approach shot to the 18th hole during the final round of the Hoag Classic at Newport Beach Country Club on Sunday.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

“It’s the first one I had all day uphill, and there wasn’t a crosswind,” said Harrington, who is set to be inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in June. “I was just like, ‘This is your chance, you have an opportunity.’”

The putt hit the left side of the cup and spun around before going in.

Harrington, who won back-to-back British Open championships in 2007 and ’08 as well as the 2008 PGA Championship, also still plays some PGA Tour events. Still, he relishes the chance to be on the PGA Tour Champions as well. With the victory, he moved to No. 5 in the Charles Schwab Cup standings.

A week after St. Patrick’s Day, it took more than luck to win this title.

“This is the great thing about the Champions Tour, it allows us to relive our past glories,” Harrington said. “We get to hit shots where we feel anxious, we feel nervous, we feel excited. And it doesn’t change, when you’ve got a putt to win or a shot to win, you don’t want to mess up in front of people.”

Padraig Harrington hits an approach shot in front of the gallery after hitting off the fairway during the final round of the Hoag Classic at Newport Beach Country Club on Sunday.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

Defending champion Ernie Els, bidding to become the first three-time winner of the Hoag Classic, finished tied for 33rd at three under par.

In his post-round remarks to the crowd, Harrington called the course at Newport Beach Country Club his favorite on the tour.

“Newport Beach has served as home to the Hoag Classic from its inception and remains a player favorite on the PGA Tour Champions,” said Scott Easton, first-year executive director of the Hoag Classic, in a statement. “A tremendous thanks to Hoag as title sponsor, our presenting partners City National Bank and McCarthy Building Companies, more than 200 other corporate partners and our tremendous volunteers who help make this event possible.”

Miguel Angel Jimenez hits a drive to the 17th hole during the final round of the Hoag Classic at Newport Beach Country Club on Sunday.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)