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Big time. A huge amount of my golf has been driven by fear. It's not a great emotion, and I'm trying to get away from it. I'm not as fearful now about my game disappearing. It's taken me a long time to trust what I've got.
You seemed pretty confident all week at Carnoustie. You believed you were going to win. Why?
I wasn't confident. I was content. Would I have put a bet on myself Wednesday evening? No. But I couldn't ask any more of myself, whereas previously I would have been panicking and trying to find imaginary problems. Then on Saturday evening I did something I'd never done before. I turned to one of my friends and said to him, "I'm going to win tomorrow."
You were confident of victory even though Sergio Garcia was at 9-under, six strokes ahead of you, entering Sunday?
He had a three-shot lead, and then I was three behind [Steve Stricker]. If I were leading I'd probably shoot 72 or 73, playing well. Few people can push on when they have a lead. We get defensive. I didn't know Sergio would shoot 73, but I knew when I got past 6-under that I had a great chance. He's probably got 7-under in his head all day, thinking 7-under is one ahead of second, and I'm thinking of getting past 6-under. This is what happens: Guys behind tend to move forward. If two guys are starting the day at 9-under, they battle it out between them. But having one guy ahead, more than likely it's going to be a grind-out round of 1- or 2-over.
Were you spurred on when Nick Faldo said that week that guys like you were too nice to win majors?
I wasn't spurred on, but I found it interesting. The reality is, I don't think players now can pick up as evidently who their competitors are, bar Tiger. There are 20 guys in a given week who could win. My goal is to compete against myself. But this is what Tiger Woods has earned — I'm always aware what score he shoots.
Faldo will be your Ryder Cup captain. What's your relationship like with him?
I get on pretty well with Faldo. Bear in mind, I didn't know him in his competitive days. He's entertaining. He's a great commentator. If I didn't know anything about what he was supposedly like when he was a player I would think, "Great guy." I can't judge him on what guys say he was like. He was obviously very insular, very self-focused in his day. I played a practice round with him in my first Masters [in 2000]. I was watching him work really hard. And I said, "You've won six majors — would you not just stand there and bask in that glory?" And he said, "If I could just win one more." Now, he's much mellower and doesn't seem to be the person people said he was.
How did you summon that Faldo-like focus on the 72nd hole at Carnoustie? You're one up on Sergio as you approach the tee, but your drive bounces off the bridge and into the water. Then you take a drop and rinse your next shot, too. You had to be churning inside.
Well, I was disappointed with the drive, but it didn't really knock me back. I was very disappointed with the second shot, however, because I thought it had lost me the Open. But by the time I hit my next shot, everything was just about that shot. I didn't spend any time brooding on what I should have done [with the previous swing].
Did you see Jean Van de Velde's ghost out there?
Yes. When I was counting up my score [on the 72nd hole] it crossed my mind that I had a chip and putt to beat his 7. My caddie and I had discussed Van de Velde every day that week. In practice rounds we'd look at where he [had played shots on 18 in 1999]. It was, "He was here. What would you have done?"
As you walked to your tee shot that had found the water, you passed Sergio on the bridge. Did you exchange any words with him?
He said hello with a cheeky grin on his face. And to me it said, "What are you doing here?" Obviously he only said "Hello," but I gave it the stern face. I didn't have anything to say. There wasn't something to smile about.
So there was a little needle attached to his grin?
I don't know if there was, but you could read that into it. I can't tell. But when you're in the wrong fairway, and you've hit an embarrassing shot, and someone smiles and says "Hello," you're like, "Yeah, I feel bad enough without having to meet the guy who's going to beat me walking across the bridge."
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