Golfer Padraig Harrington reveals had undergone treatment for skin cancer

Irish golf ace Padraig Harrington has revealed that he has undergone treatment for skin cancer, in a bid to raise awareness for the dreaded disease.

The two-time Open champion, whose father Patrick died of oesophageal cancer on the eve of the 2005 Open at St Andrews, had undergone surgery for 'sun spots' on his face.

According to the BBC, the three-time Major winner said that he have had a number of 'skin cancers' removed from his face and warned people not to ignore any possible symptoms of the disease, adding that his father had obvious symptoms but still did not do anything about them.

Stating that it is the nature of men in Ireland and older men in general, Harrington also said that dealing with cancer is not what it was a decade ago, adding that nowadays, doctors are combining different types of treatment of dealing with oesophageal cancer.

The report mentioned that Harrington won three majors in the space of 13 months between July 2007 and August 2008, achieving consecutive Open triumphs and also clinching the US PGA title.

However, the Dubliner has struggled in recent years and has failed to achieve a win on either the European or PGA Tours since his US PGA triumph in 2008, leading to him dropping steadily down the ratings to his current 137th position, the report added.