New British Open champion Padraig Harrington was still in a state of disbelief today after securing his first major victory by beating Spain's Sergio Garcia in a four-hole playoff.
'It's hard to describe, it's unreal, especially in those quiet reflective moments when I am on my own,' he said when he arrived back in Dublin this afternoon.
'I was standing in the shower and I thought: 'I won the Open Championship'.'
Harrington was caught up in a frenzy of commitments until he left the course at 11pm on Sunday to start partying.
The likeable Dubliner, whose victory lifted him to sixth in the world rankings, said he did not overdo the celebrations.
'The first drink I had was a beer straight out of the claret jug,' said Harrington. 'There was champagne spraying and celebrations and we moved into a party mode.
'I only had a couple of drinks though. I was flying anyway and there was no need for any outside help.
'I was in a good mood and will be for the next week, next year or maybe even ten years.'
Harrington finally went to bed at 4am but did not sleep for long.
'I was wide awake at six and woke my wife up,' he said. 'The claret jug was at the end of the bed; we both looked at it and we were still in a state of disbelief.
'But then she said: 'Can we go back to sleep now?'.'
