Ryder Cup: Padraig Harrington's Irish dream

Padraig Harrington has won two major championships this year, but there's much more to his story than his big-time success on the PGA Tour. With the Ryder Cup set to begin Friday in Kentucky and Harrington leading the European team, Times correspondent Chuck Culpepper traveled to Ireland to discover what it was like for a young Harrington growing up.

The young Padraig began playing golf on a course in South County Dublin called Stackstown. It is a  course designed and built by Harrington's father and about nine other cops ... because class distinctions in the 1970s kept them off some of the other fine courses in the area.

Already posted: the Ryder Cup is ready to be played, despite widespread problems related to wind storms in Kentucky.

-- Mike James

Photo: Padraig Harrington of Ireland signs autographs during Tuesday's practice round for the Ryder Cup at Valhalla in Louisville, Ky. Credit: Don Emmery/AFP/Getty Images