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You plummeted to 176th in Europe the following year. What was life like at that time? I wondered if I was going to be like Ian Baker-Finch [the 1991 British Open champion], who was a great player and then lost it completely and never got it back. I felt depressed and embarrassed to be seen on the course. But I have never been a quitter. I was quite good at separating how bad I was playing and feeling on the golf course and leaving it there at the course. But of course I was down in the dumps for a while. Everybody who has played this game long enough understands how it feels when you are playing shitty.
Were your problems technical or mental? It started with bad shots and then became a mental problem. I even practiced hitting balls with my eyes shut because I was thinking too much about what I was trying to do. I was scared to hit the ball. All I could see were hazards, not opportunities.
What ran through your mind in your lowest moments? The driver was my favorite club. It went from being my biggest strength to my biggest weakness. You start thinking, When am I going to play well again? I was working so hard but getting nothing back from my game. But coming out of it has made me a stronger player.
Did you think about quitting? I was the first guy on the range and the last guy off, and I would still play like crap. But I kept fighting and never really considered walking away from the game.
How did sports psychologist Torsten Hansson get you back on track? When I was completely lost with my swing, I just wanted to get it over with as quickly as possible. I felt that way the pain would be over quickly. He got me working on tempo, slowing me down. I had the driving yips. Like Bernhard Langer with his putting. [Torsten gave me] some understanding of the way [the] mind works, and that it can play some nasty tricks on you.
Are you worried your demons might return? When you've had a bad patch, you will probably be stronger if you get close to recognizing those feelings beginning to come back again. But I am not worried that something is going to suddenly happen and I'm going to start spraying it all over the place. Everybody hits bad shots at some time. But I'm not walking around thinking, Am I going to end up like that again?
Holding off Woods and Ernie Els at the Dubai Desert Classic earlier this year must have been empowering. It's always nice to beat Tiger, obviously. But to play four rounds with Ernie and beat him, too, gives me pretty much the same satisfaction.
You hit 66 of 72 greens in regulation. Is that what it takes to beat Tiger? That's the sort of mindset I had going. Just try to grind it out, fairways and greens, to give myself chances and try to wear the other guys out. And I guess I succeeded in the end.
Does Zach Johnson beating Woods at the Masters suddenly make Woods more human, more susceptible? Yeah, it gives everyone that feeling. If Zach can do it, so can I.
Were you stunned by how tough Augusta National played? It was over the edge a little bit. You are always going to struggle with bad shots, but the way it was set up you were struggling with the good shots as well. It was touch and go. You can always debate what's fair, but everyone was playing the same course. It's like you're in a boxing match and you get knocked down each round. You just have to keep getting back up.
Did Augusta get it wrong? It's a thin line. They have control over most things, but they can't control the weather, even though you might think they can.
It didn't look like too many players were having fun out there. It's debatable, at a major, how much fun you're having. It's a battle from the first tee shot to the last putt. They all want a champion who is mentally strong, who can take all the hits on the chin and carry on. I know I have the game to win the Masters.
But as a European, is the British Open the major that you most want? Actually, I've learned from playing in the majors that the British Open is probably the one that might least suit my game. I'm not that good at all those bump-and-run chip shots you need around the greens. So I'm thinking more that the U.S. Open or the PGA Championship might be the ones I'll have a better chance to win. While the British Open was always the dream, if I won one of the others, I wouldn't give it back. Any one of them will do.
