David Duval stood on the putting green -- chatting with old friends, introducing his new wife, catching up on what's happened the last seven months.
Through it all, he couldn't stop smiling.
Welcome back, David.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Duval makes his return to competitive golf in the toughest test of all, teeing off early Thursday morning in the US Open at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club.
A curious decision, for sure, considering his last tournament was in November. And he didn't even finish.
To Duval, an often-enigmatic figure who was the last player not named Tiger Woods to be ranked No. 1 in the world, it all seemed right.
"I just wanted to go play," said Duval, who made his decision Saturday night. "For no other reason than I just felt like I was going to go have some fun and enjoy it again. Up to that point, I hadn't wanted to play."
Always a man of mystery in those wraparound glasses, Duval opened up his soul for all to see Wednesday, revealing the inner workings of a complex figure who once stood on top of the golfing world, then let it all slip away.
"You know, the life out on this tour is long. It's hard. It's lonely. And I've been doing this for a long, long time," Duval said. "In some sense, to be honest with you, I haven't missed it. I haven't missed being away.
"But I just wanted to play this week."
So play he will, with no expectations, just a renewed desire to knock around that little white ball. The ranking that was once No. 1 has plunged to 434. Just making the cut in the 156-player field would be a major accomplishment.
That was apparent during his first practice round at Shinnecock. He opened with a 3-wood that hooked into the gallery, took a hop and hit a man in the back of the head. Not to worry. He couldn't stop smiling.
"I came to play and have fun, just simply be out here and enjoy it," Duval said.
Others are playing for a lot more. Start with Tiger Woods, who has gone seven majors without winning after a dominating 7-of-11 run in golf's biggest events.
He is under more scrutiny than ever because of his engagement to a Swedish nanny, his divorce from high-profile coach Butch Harmon and shots that don't always go where he's aiming.
Woods' slump -- if you can call it that -- has given South Africa's Ernie Els and Vijay Singh of Fiji a chance to move up to No. 1 in the world, a position Woods claimed from Duval on Aug. 16, 1999, and has held ever since.
"I'm playing as good as I've ever played," Singh said. "I can't do any more than just go out there and try to win the golf tournament."
Duval isn't the only player making a comeback this week. Jim Furyk, the defending Open champion, had surgery on his wrist three months ago and counted himself out. Lo and behold, he played two full rounds last week and decided Friday to give it a shot.
Can he win? Put him in the same league with Duval.
"My expectations are high," Furyk said. "They're not that high."
He's already part of history, one of six straight first-time major winners. The streak began with Rich Beem in the 2002 PGA Championship and stayed alive with Phil Mickelson in the Masters two months ago.
Certainly, it's not out of the question that another neophyte will hoist the trophy Sunday as the sun sets on Long Island.
That list starts with Spaniard Sergio Garcia, the consensus choice to inherit Mickelson's former title of Best Player Never to Win a Major.
Garcia is hardly unknown, finishing second to Woods in the 1999 PGA Championship and fourth in the US Open two years ago.
The 24-year-old Spaniard is peaking at just the right time. He's won twice in the past five weeks, taking the Byron Nelson and the Buick Classic just last week.
"I'm pretty comfortable with my game," Garcia said. "I've been getting quite consistent throughout these past years. I really feel like I have a bit more confidence in myself to try to do something here."
Harry Kane opened the scoring ahead of lifting his first career silverware as Bayern Munich beat Borussia Moenchengladbach 2-0, with veteran Thomas Mueller playing his last home game for the club. Bayern officially won the title on May 4 when defending champions Bayer Leverkusen were held to a 2-2 draw at Freiburg, but were presented with the Bundesliga shield in front of their home fans at full-time. Dripping wet after being showered with beer by teammates, Kane said the title win was “an incredible feeling,” and hoped it would be “the first of many.” “It’s been lot of hard work, a lot of
INTER AWAIT: Superb saves by PSG ’keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma inspired the victory, as Arsenal were punished for misses, including one by Bukayo Saka Arsenal on Wednesday fell short on the big stage again as their painful UEFA Champions League semi-final exit against Paris Saint-Germain left Mikel Arteta to rue his club’s failure to provide him with enough attacking options. Arteta’s side were unable to reach the Champions League final for the first time in 19 years as PSG clinched a tense 2-1 win at Parc des Princes. Trailing 1-0 from last week’s first leg in London, the Gunners made a blistering start to the second leg, but could not convert their chances as Gianluigi Donnarumma’s superb saves inspired PSG’s 3-1 aggregate victory. Arsenal were punished for
Bayern Munich on Sunday were crowned German champions for the 34th time, giving striker Harry Kane his first major trophy, after second-placed Bayer 04 Leverkusen drew 2-2 at SC Freiburg. Bayern’s 3-3 draw at RB Leipzig on Saturday, when the Bavarians came from two goals down to take the lead before conceding a stoppage-time equalizer, meant defending Bundesliga champions Leverkusen needed to win at Freiburg to delay the title party. Leverkusen were two goals down before scoring twice in the final 10 minutes, but Xabi Alonso’s side could not find a third, as Bayern reclaimed the title at the first attempt after
Taiwanese e-sports veteran Lin “ET” Chia-hung yesterday successfully defended his King of Fighters XV title at this year’s Evolution Championship Series: Japan (EVO Japan), securing his second consecutive championship. Lin claimed victory with a 3-1 win over Japanese pro gamer “mok” in the grand final, repeating his earlier 3-1 win against the same opponent in the winners’ final. The 40-year-old earned a ￥1 million (US$6,897) cash prize at the two-day tournament, which drew 294 competitors. Mok, Lin’s toughest rival in the bracket, took home ￥400,000 as runner-up. Lin remains undefeated in match sets against mok in King of Fighters XV, holding a 10-0 record,
RSS