Harrington has been struggling with neck and ankle problems which have required up to two hours of physiotherapy a day.

And the Irishman admitted he was relieved to be on eight under par after a third round of 68 at the BMW International Open in Munich.

"I was struggling badly before I went out," said Harrington.

"I would have loved to have shot a good score but after the way I was hitting it on the range this morning I did marvellously well to shoot four under.

"I was hitting some wild, wild shots. I think I've hit 10 of the worst shots of the last three years in the last three days."

Harrington's injury will be a concern for Europe captain Sam Torrance, who also has Colin Montgomerie struggling with a back injury ahead of the Ryder Cup at The Belfry.

But the Dubliner, who celebrated his 31st brithday on Saturday, insists he will be fit to face the United States from 27-29 September.

"Don't worry - I'll be ready in a month's time," said Harrington.

Harrington will undergo a scan before seeing his coach Bob Torrance to discover what swing problems the injury is causing.

"It will take Bob five seconds to tell me what's going wrong with the swing and then we can find out what's causing it," added Harrington, who is likely to be paired with World Cup-winning partner Paul McGinley at The Belfry.

"Most likely I have picked up a bad habit in the last three weeks because I've been playing with the injuries."