Padraig Harrington carded a closing round of 67 (-3) to win the 2025 US Senior Open title by one stroke ahead of Stewart Cink at Broadmoor Golf Club on Sunday.
The Irishman was tied with his close friend through three rounds in Colorado and the pair exchanged positions on multiple occasions during the final day.
All square at the turn, Cink nudged ahead straight away with a par as Harrington made bogey. However, a gain at the 11th from the European - combined with a bogey from his US counterpart - saw Harrington take the lead once more.
It was a position that, despite plenty of pressure from Cink and a free-scoring Miguel Angel Jimenez, Harrington would never relinquish once the US Ryder Cup vice-captain followed a birdie at 14 with an immediate dropped shot.
Several clutch par saves down the closing stretch ensured the 2024 World Golf Hall of Fame inductee would walk down 18 narrowly ahead.
And despite a missed birdie attempt from six feet, Cink's par at the last meant Harrington could comfortably two-putt for his second US Senior Open victory, following on from his maiden senior Major triumph back in 2022.
Reacting to a 10th PGA Tour Champions win - an achievement which earned him $800,000 and a spot in the 2026 US Open - Harrington noted how confident decision making on the course during his first trip to The Centennial State resulted in his success.
Regarding Colorado's notable elevation, he said: "There's a lot going on. You leave that to your caddie, you decide at the start of the week what sort of percentage you're going to use for the uphill and the downhill.
"Obviously these greens are unbelievably difficult and you have to be precise going into it, so there's a lot of pressure. Ultimately, whatever number you pick, you've just got to commit to it and be confident.
"You have to accept maybe the odd few mistakes during the week. You'll probably find that I made the least mistakes or got the least of the bad breaks.
"For 63 holes, we talked a lot, and for the last 9 holes things were a little quieter! But it was always in good spirit."@padraig_h on playing all four rounds with U.S. Senior Open runner up Stewart Cink. pic.twitter.com/cjcmgpyZi2June 29, 2025
"But that's golf, isn't it? You've got to get the good breaks at the right time and maybe hit the right shots at the right times, too."
Cink's third 68 of the week was good enough for second place in the end, one shot ahead of Jimenez who blasted an incredible six-under 64 at Broadmoor to fire himself into solo third.
Four strokes back on five-under were the pair of Thomas Bjorn and Mark Hensby, with Steve Flesch (four-under), Steven Alker (three-under), Paul Stankowski (two-under), Jason Caron, Tim Petrovic, Cameron Percy and Dicky Pride (all one-under) completing the top-10.
