"What in the blessed name of Ben Hogan is a refractometer?"

Thanks to Stan Ferguson for highlighting Karl MacGinty's fascinating look at Team Padraig Harrington and the lengths he goes to in preparing for a major. This is downright wild:

Every day, Harrington will use a hand-held refractometer to determine if he is properly hydrated. He simply places a drop of urine on the prism and forwards the results to his health and fitness specialist Dr Liam Hennessy for analysis.

On the 15 to 20 weeks per year that Dr Hennessy travels with the Irishman to tournaments, the medic himself will conduct daily blood, urine and stress testing on Harrington to ensure he is in peak physical condition, especially going into that crunch time at tournaments -- Sunday afternoon.

Until recently, the fitness director at the IRFU, Dr Hennessy, played a key role in the success of Irish rugby entering the professional era, helping to develop the speed and mobility of our players at a time when others opted for brute strength.

Yet his work on Harrington's physiology is just one facet of the Dubliner's 24/7 devotion to the pursuit of further success at the Majors. If it is within reason (and, of course, the rules) he is willing to give anything a try.

World-famous mind guru Dr Bob Rotella; biomechanics expert and putting specialist Dr Paul Hurrion; leading golf chiropractor Dr Dale Richardson; a team of boffins and research specialists at the Titleist Performance Institute (TPI) in San Diego and, probably most important of all in golfing terms, renowned Scottish swing coach Bob Torrance, all support Harrington's cause with a wealth of knowledge.