Given the recent accusations of cheating against Colin Montgomerie, do you think that's going to hurt his...You know what...

...chances at being Ryder Cup captain someday? That's a different question.

What did you think I was going to ask? If you were going to ask me about it, I haven't seen the tape. I'm going to sit right on the fence.

Even so, it's a hard stigma for Monty to shake, even if he's innocent. Just ask Vijay. You're right about that. Either way the dirt has been thrown. I don't think it will have any effect on his Ryder Cup aspirations.

Other than your family, who would be the first person you'd invite to your birthday party? [Laughs] Who'd be the first person? [Thinking]

Your World Cup teammate and longtime buddy Paul McGinley will be upset if he doesn't get the call here. Ah no, forget that. I'm thinking somebody I don't know. I hate to say this, but I always end up picking despots because I like to figure out what they are thinking. Are they mad or not? I don't know. Eminem--I want to see what's going on in his brain.

Does Eminem count as a despot? I think so, in the way of the world. People either love him or hate him, but he's interesting.

Who's the last person who'd get the invite? Maybe Jose Maria Olazabal? [Harrington and Olazabal had a well-publicized falling out over a rules incident in 2003] No. That will never be water under the bridge, but we're civil. Unfortunately we were reasonably friendly before that and we're civil now. Who'd be the last? I suppose I'd have a few on my list but I ain't going to say them.

What do you spend your money on? The only extravagance has been my house. That was where all the cash went for a couple of years. I do have my eye set on something--I'm saving for one thing.

The plane? Could be, all right. That would make my life simpler. It would probably make me a better golfer. It's not a matter of explaining it to my accountant. I can justify it that it's good for the family, good for golf. It's just...[laughs] financially.

Here's a scenario: you're playing Texas Hold 'Em against your cousin Dan Harrington, who won the World Series of Poker in 1995. You've got just a pair of aces and Dan pushes all his chips into the pot. Do you call him? Oh, yeah. If I've got the right cards I'll play them. I would always try to do the right thing and risk losing everything. I wouldn't go all in if I had two eights. If I didn't have the right hand and I thought he was bluffing, that would be a problem.

Another of your cousins is Detroit Lions quarterback Joey Harrington. Can he hit a wedge farther than you can throw a football? He can certainly hit it farther. About three years ago I got an American football out to practice. I must have done 20 throws with my right arm so I decided to throw it with my left arm. It took me six months to sort out my left shoulder. Joey came over to Ireland and there was an opportunity for us to watch each other hit wedges or throw footballs. It never happened--we stuck to neutral sports. He never reached for a wedge and I never reached for a football.

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