An Irishman, an American and an Australian walk into a bar.

No joke.

Padraig Harrington, Stewart Cink and Mark Hensby were the Men For All Seasons Saturday.

All three shot 68; the three are tied at 202, and all three played all-in in the third round of the U.S. Senior Open Championship.

It was as if the venerable, historic, exquisite, magnificent, immaculate BROADMOOR was located on this day in New Zealand rather than Colorado. Summerfallwinterspring came to the Springs.

British scholar and statesman Sir Thomas More was characterized as someone who could cope with all contingencies, conditions and consequences. So did Hensby, Cink and Harrington. They might be the golf adaptation of Crosby, Stills and Nash.

Each started the day at 6 under par and was, at times, minus 7, 8 and 9, and Cink and Harrington got to 10 below. But they ended the adventurous afternoon at 8, 8 and 8. All even. The trio tee off together at No. 1 at 8:50 a.m. Sunday. The marathon four-day event will have a sprint to the finish in the early p.m. — although more rain is expected.

The Broadmoor Golf Cub revealed a bit of weather-thou- goest: blistering sunshine, sonorous thunder, threatening lightning, light and heavy raindrops, cooling temperatures and swirling sporadic winds.

Play was stopped and started; thousands in the gallery scattered and scurried, and the old pros from 19 different countries had to adjust and acclimatize, fire and fall back.

It wasn’t as difficult as the U.S. Open for the younger fellows a couple of weeks ago at Oakmont, but it wasn’t some muni-member-guest with windmills and clown faces and bounces off the concrete. But I did see one player’s ball nestled in the daunting rough about 2 feet from a fence, and he chunked an attempt 4 yards into another tough patch.

Ernie Els, the South African-Palm Beacher who has won four majors and seemingly was a runner-up to Tiger Woods about two dozen times, went wild on the front nine, going from 1-over-par to 3-under. He won the late, lamented International Tournament in Castle Rock, and he’s played a ton of Colorado golf (and was thisclose to buying a home here), so he knows that the climate changes constantly.

“Thought I was making a run, then the rain delay and couldn’t keep it going.” On the green, he was about to smooth home a 12-foot birdie putt, then backed off when the wind turned from heading toward the mountains to leaning toward town. He backed off, looked at his partners, pointed fingers, and laughed. Els said the delays affected him, but added: ”I can’t make excuses.”

He ended 54 holes at 1 beneath par. To win Sunday, “there will have to be collapses, and I’d have to shoot at least a 63 or 64.’’

I said: “How about a 60?’’

“Well, I did that in Melbourne, Australia. But I was a lot younger and stronger then, and it wasn’t at a golf course like this.’’

A comeback from 7 strokes behind would be biblical-like miraculous and extremely hard for “Big Easy.”

He was not the only one who was bitten in the behind. There are people at plus-10 and plus 9s and 8s from Augusta, Ga., which has a course with greens as quick and quirky as The Broadmoor, and Fiji (Vijay Singh) and K.J. Choi (The Republic of Korea) and Tom Pernice Jr. of Scottsdale, who is closing on a home in Colorado next week. He won The International, too. “Putting poorly, and this is not a place for that.’’

Guys from Germany, Thailand, Sweden, England, Brazil and Shreveport were stymied. Grin-and-bogey it.

However, the Aussie, Aussie, Aussie — Hensby — is hanging in there with the well-known Cink and the more well-known Harrington, and they will go head-to-head-to-head after three rounds of sub-70s and rather consistent performances. Hensby dipped to 5-under, but eagled No. 9 and birdied the 10th. Cink made three birdies on the front side to reach minus-10, but Cink couldn’t sink anything after the turn. And Harrington, who managed not to argue with any of the on-course network broadcasters, completed the first nine at 10, but was blowing in the wind for a double bogey on 12.

Sunday should be seasonal and stimulating for the Irishman, the American and the Australian. One probably will walk into The Broadmoor’s Golden Bee bar later. Maybe Hensby.