Padraig Harrington did what so few have done before when he successfully held on to his Open Championship crown at Royal Birkdale yesterday with a run to the line worthy of the great champion he has become.

When the Irishman, 36, turned for home he trailed Greg Norman - at 53 hoping to become the oldest winner of any of the four major championships - by one shot. But when Norman started to go backwards with a succession of bogeys, Harrington blew away his closest challengers with a stunning back nine of 32 that included two birdies and a spectacular eagle at the penultimate hole.

On a tough course in extreme, blustery conditions, Harrington came through with a round of 69 for a three-over-par total of 283 and victory by four shots over Ian Poulter, who briefly held the clubhouse lead, and six over Norman and Henrik Stenson, of Sweden. As a result he will move to No 3 in the world when the rankings are announced today, which is three places better than his previous highest, and has guaranteed his place in the Europe Ryder Cup team that will take on the United States at Valhalla, in Kentucky, in September. Poulter and Stenson have also considerably boosted their hopes of making the team.

It is a victory that would have been greeted with relief by Nick Faldo, the Europe captain, who at a dinner earlier in the week had jokingly pointed out that Harrington had yet to qualify for his team and should “pull his finger out”.

Expert View

If the battle of Waterloo was won on the playing fields of Eton, the Open was won on the practice ground at Largs

John Hopkins

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Background

• Harrington joins the list of Open greats

• Two strokes of genius, one happy man

• Champion shows mettle with defining shots

• Losing proves a habit for Norman

Background

• Harrington's Open battle won in Largs

• Poulter more than mouth and trousers

• No losers at windswept Birkdale

• Test of skills for which few were equipped

Background

• Westwood diverts blame for missed opportunity

• Wood emerges among the elite

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Multimedia

• Where the Open was won and lost

“When I won last year, I always said it was my first major,” Harrington, who is the sixteenth player to retain his title, said. “The majors are what it's all about for me now. I set my schedule out this year for the four majors and the Ryder Cup and was trying to peak for those five weeks.

“I got myself vaguely in contention at the Masters [he finished tied fifth]. It didn't happen at the US Open but at the Open, it happens. If I can get a 50 per cent hit rate, that's a pretty high rate for us mortals. I was confident it would happen again, but I didn't think it would be so quick.”

On the eve of the championship, Harrington was unable to practise because of a wrist injury that threatened his participation in the 137th Open. But he lived up to the adage that an injured golfer is a dangerous golfer. “I felt I should give it a go even if I felt pain,” he said. “As it was, I didn't have any problems throughout the week.”

At Carnoustie last year, Harrington had led by a shot coming down the last only to double-bogey the hole before going on to beat Sergio García in a four-hole play-off. This time he had a lead of four shots coming to the last. “You can't have enough shots going down 18 leading the Open,” he said. “I proved that last year. But once I hit my second [on the 72nd], I knew I had won.”

Harrington was typically gracious in victory and quick to praise Norman. “I thanked him for his company and I said to him coming down 18 that I was sorry it wasn't his story that was going to be told,” he said. “A win at this stage of his career would have been the icing on the cake.”

Norman, who had started the day with a two-shot lead, was plainly disappointed with a round of 77. He has had crushing disappointments in majors before - not least the time when he surrendered a lead of six shots in losing to Nick Faldo at the 1996 Masters - but this time the pain was a little less.

“I can walk away from here with my head held high because I hung in there,” he said. “Padraig played great today. Even though he let it get away from him in the middle of the round [with three successive bogeys from the 7th], he came back and finished like a true champion.”

Poulter, who also had a round of 69, had his best finish in any major. He played inspired golf and knew it. “I'm fairly happy how I've played today,” he said. “I'll take a lot of confidence from that. But hats off to Padraig. The shot he hit into 17 [a five-wood of 250 yards to within four feet of the hole] was quite awesome.”