Padraig Harrington believes the wrist injury that almost forced him out of the Open, helped him win the championship for the second year in a row.

The Irishman's participation was in doubt when he hurt his right arm less than a week before the event began.

And he barely managed a practice round at Royal Birkdale before play began on Thursday.

He even admitted the injury would have forced him out of any regular event but he decided to play so he could defend golf's most prestigious prize.

Harrington said: "On Wednesday I genuinely felt there was a big issue with playing.

"But it was a great distraction for me. There's no question the injury pushed everything about coming back to defend the title to the side."

He added: "There's an element when you're an Open champion or a major champion of trying to live up to it all the time and that can be a burden.

"But the injury took a lot of pressure and stress off me. It was a good distraction to have.

"Another plus was the fact that I played only nine holes in practice and everybody will tell you this has been, physically and mentally, the toughest week we could ever have in golf.

"But I was fresh going into the week. The wrist was a saviour for me really."

When Harrington won the Open in 2007, he carded a double bogey at the final hole and needed a play-off to beat Sergio Garcia.

But there was no sign of a nervous finish at Birkdale.

An eagle at the par-five 17th gave Harrington a four shot lead and a straight drive at the last filled him with confidence.

He said: "You can't have enough shots to play with going down the last, as I proved last year. As soon as I hit the 3-wood off the tee, I knew I had won the Claret Jug."

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