Harrington still has it all to play for

Padraig Harrington has an extra incentive to produce a successful defence of his title at the Hong Kong Open when the tournament starts in Fanling tomorrow.

The Irishman fears that a poor performance in this week's event, which is jointly sanctioned by the European and Asian golf tours, could cause him to slip down from sixth place in the rankings at the end of the year.

"By playing this week, it is possible that I could drop to seventh if I do badly. So I need to play well and try and win it again," said Harrington. "I played well here last year and it's a good reason to come back as this course suits me. I've always believed that you should defend a title if you have the opportunity."

Among his challengers are Ian Poulter, Spaniards Miguel Angel Jimenez and Jose Maria Olazabal, and Stephen Dodd, winner of last week's China Open.

Thailand's Thongchai Jaidee, the leader on the Asian money list and winner of the Malaysian and Myanmar Opens, heads a powerful Asian challenge. However, a confident Harrington added: "I have had a long year but my game is pretty good."

With the winner collecting a prize for around £900,000, also in the line-up are Lee Westwood, Australian Stuart Appleby and Americans Chris DiMarco, Jim Furyk and Todd Hamilton.

Els, winner of the European order of merit this year, has won the Sun City event three times. Last year, the title went to Garcia when he beat Goosen with a birdie on the first hole of a play-off.