Harrington's 7.5m reasons to be happy

Belief in the benefits of continuity today earned Padraig Harrington a £7.5 million deal.

The Irishman, Europe's leading player in the world rankings at No9, has signed a five-year extension to his contract with Wilson golf clubs reported to be worth a minimum of £1.5m a year.

With the offer of a £750,000 bonus for winning a maiden major, Harrington now has one of the best equipment deals in golf.

Harrington has been careful to avoid the difficulties faced by world No1 Tiger Woods and former European Order of Merit winner Colin Montgomerie when they switched club manufacturers. The form of both players suffered when they changed clubs during the past two years, and Harrington said: "If you do change, the emphasis can go away from how you are playing to how your equipment is affecting your play.

"You start wondering if that bad shot was caused because your equipment was inferior or if it was caused because you made a bad swing."