Pádraig Harrington out until February after breaking wrist at home

Three-time Major winner says he ‘slipped whilst walking down the stairs at home’

Padraig Harrington will be out until February after breaking a bone in his wrist. Photograph: Oisin Keniry/Inpho

Padraig Harrington has announced he will be out until February after injuring himself at home in December.

The three-time Major winner had been due to participate in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, but will now not make his first appearance of 2019 until next month’s AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-am.

Harrington confirmed in a statement he had broken a bone in his wrist, delaying his return to action.

The statement read: “Over the Christmas period I discovered that I had broken a bone in my wrist. I had slipped whilst walking down the stairs at home in mid-December.

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“Whilst it continues to heal, I need to keep it in a splint a little while longer so, frustratingly, I will need to miss the first two planned events of my season in Abu Dhabi and Dubai. However, I should be fully fit for the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-am on the PGA Tour in early February.”

47-year-old Harrington will now miss both the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship which gets underway on January 16th, as well as the Dubai Desert Classic, which starts a week later on January 24th.

Harrington also revealed the injury on Twitter, he said: “A simple slip and sprained wrist mid- December has turned out to be a broken bone in my wrist. A few extra weeks off is now needed in a splint. If only practicing your putting all winter would make you a better putter.”

Harrington is the odds-on favourite to be appointed Europe’s Ryder Cup captain for the 2020 contest at Whistling Straits in the near future.