Ain't got no sweet tea, and ain't got no fried chicken.

Back home, you don't get the BBC feed of the British Open, which I fear means you missed one of the all-time great interviews.

Here are the highlights of Boo Weekley's post-round interview Friday. He's doing America proud.

Most of the best stuff is lower down, and I've highlighted it.

BOO WEEKLEY

Q. How are you liking this kind of golf?
BOO WEEKLEY: I like it. It's very similar to how it is back home on the golf course I grew up on. It's a lot shorter than the one I grew up on, but it's firm like this and it plays pretty fast. You can bump it around the greens. You can use any club you want around the greens, which is a good thing. The putting surface here is really excellent. They're a little hard to read sometimes, but they roll real good and they're real flat.

Q. What's your impressions, you've been here a few days of the country, of the golf, of the people?
BOO WEEKLEY: The people are great. I haven't run into too many ‑‑ I'm going to leave that one alone. It's been nice getting to meet some people. The golf course is great. The atmosphere is great. It's a bigger atmosphere than I thought it would be.

Q. In what way?
BOO WEEKLEY: Just a lot more people. It's kind of like the U.S. Open back home. I knew it was the British Open and everything, but I figured the way the weather was going to be there wouldn't be that many people out. But today is a beautiful day, I almost blame them for not coming out today. But yesterday was awful.

Q. What didn't you know about Britain or Scotland before you came here?
BOO WEEKLEY: I would say my family was from here. That's all I knew. I knew it was a long way from where I grew up.

Q. Did they tell you much about it?
BOO WEEKLEY: No.

Q. Any background?
BOO WEEKLEY: No, sir.

Q. Where exactly is your family from?
BOO WEEKLEY: I couldn't tell you that, neither. But I know they're from here, south of here, down south on the border down there, I think. That's all I know. You'll have to ask my aunt.

Q. Did you have a passport before this season?
BOO WEEKLEY: I got one right at Christmas, you know, earlier this week.

Q. A lot of people thought you had to have tattoos out there, you know that?
BOO WEEKLEY: Yeah, I've heard. I mean if I do, I've got them all the way up my leg and my back. I ain't got no tatoos.

Q. What about away from the course, the food, things like that here?
BOO WEEKLEY: It's rough. It's been rough on that food. It's different eating here than it is at the house. Ain't got no sweet tea, and ain't got no fried chicken.

Q. I thought you were a fish guy?
BOO WEEKLEY: I've been eating a lot of fish.

Q. Fried?
BOO WEEKLEY: No, they've got the guy smoking some right over here, probably some of the best you'll ever eat. Yes, sir, it was good.

Q. Arbroath Smokies, you like those?
BOO WEEKLEY: Oh, yes, sir, very good.

Q. Is there anything new that's better than back home?
BOO WEEKLEY: I can't go there. (Laughter). I don't know, sir.

Q. What about driving around, is that putting you off?
BOO WEEKLEY: I ain't driving. I ain't driving nowhere.

Q. Scary?
BOO WEEKLEY: I think so. On the wrong side of the road? Yes, sir.

Q. Rumor had it that you had to smuggle in a few cans of dip because you heard they didn't have it here.
BOO WEEKLEY: I didn't smuggle a few. I brought a bunch. I think about 20‑something and my caddie brought like 30‑something.

Q. You're not going to run out, are you?
BOO WEEKLEY: Nope. Got six more to go.

Q. You have three more days.
BOO WEEKLEY: That's perfect.

Q. Did you watch any British Opens in the last say 15 years before you came here?
BOO WEEKLEY: No.

Q. On TV, you didn't?
BOO WEEKLEY: If I did it was flicking through it and stopping and wondering who it was or something like that, but I didn't. I don't watch golf. I watch it every now and then when my friends are playing it and stuff like that, but I don't care to watch it.

Q. There wasn't a curiosity how ‑‑ British as opposed to the PGA TOUR?
BOO WEEKLEY: No.

Q. Do you know about the previous Champions and previous great players?
BOO WEEKLEY: No.

Q. Paul Lawrie, you apparently played with him last week?
BOO WEEKLEY: Yeah. I kind of stuck my foot in my mouth there, didn't I (laughter), but I didn't know. If you don't know, you don't know. I hated I said what I said, especially with him just saying what he said a couple of days before that, he don't get no respect. And then I say something like that, you know, it's like, wham, here's a slap in your head (laughter).

Q. Have you watched television here? What do you make of the television over here?
BOO WEEKLEY: I don't watch much TV.

Q. You can't get the race on Sunday?
BOO WEEKLEY: No.

Q. Are you a NASCAR fan?
BOO WEEKLEY: Yes, sir.

Q. Are you going to St. Andrews, the home of golf, when you finish here and have a game of golf? It's only just down the road.
BOO WEEKLEY: I didn't know it was the home of golf. I thought the home of golf was where I was from (laughter).

Q. Have you developed an appetite for being abroad and playing abroad? Would you like to visit other places in Europe?
BOO WEEKLEY: I don't like to visit, I just go and do what I got to do and get home.

Q. Had you been out of the country before you went to Mexico for the Cancún thing?
BOO WEEKLEY: I've been to Canada once, but that ain't really like leaving.

Q. Jim Furyk was out in some of the local pubs last night. Are you thinking about going out with a drink and mixing with some of the locals?
BOO WEEKLEY: No, probably not.

Q. They'd love to meet you.
BOO WEEKLEY: Yeah, I'm pretty sure they would (laughter).

Smokie

I've got a belly full of smokie.

It's local specialty fare, sort of the cheesesteak of a nearby town, Arbroath. The original idea dates back to the Vikings 900 years ago, according to Ian, the guy doing the actual smoking. Somehow, Arbroath became the "home of the smokie."

To cook it, they dig a pit in the ground, line it with slates and put a half barrel of whiskey in the bottom of the pit for juicy favoring. Then they take haddock, or trout, cut it, tie up the tail, spread it over a plank and cook it for 40 minutes over smoking beech or oak fire, which is covered by some sort of sackcloth. In the end, the smokie is "golden brown." Quite tasty.

I had my first smokie a couple of nights ago in a pub in Arbroath, mostly at the urging of the locals at the next table. Today, a few of us discovered some guy from Arbroath has a smokie stand not far from the media center. He served his smokie on paper plates and we all stood around eating and picking tiny fish bones out of our teeth. It's sort of like standing around Pat's in South Philly eating a cheesesteak. You can't beat it.

Daly dose

You want to know the state of John Daly's life and golf game?

A few minutes ago, Big John holed out from about 100 yards out in the 11th fairway to grab the solo lead at the British Open at 5-under. On the very next hole, he lipped out a two-footer for bogey, giving it all back.

Suddenly, it occurred to me that just because Daly was the momentary leader, I wouldn't bet you $2 he hangs on to make the cut. Heck, I wouldn't even bet you $2 he makes it through 36 holes without walking off the course.

Thomson on Tiger

Here's a British Open note that got bumped from the paper...

CARNOUSTIE, Scotland -- If Peter Thomson knows what he’s talking about, Tiger Woods could win eight straight British Opens.

“I’m serious about it,” Thomson said this week. “If I can do three or five, then Tiger can certainly do better than that.”

Thomson, of course, is the last man to win three straight Opens (1954-56) – and the only player to do it in the modern era. He and his record are in all their glory this week at Carnoustie because Woods, with back-to-back wins at St. Andrews in 2005 and Royal Liverpool in last year, is gunning to match Thomson’s record this week.

Two other long-gone players, Jamie Anderson (1877-79) and Bob Ferguson (1882-82) won three straight Opens. But the list of twofers who fizzled going for three-in-a-row is long and impressive: Old Tom Morris, J.H. Taylor, Harry Vardon, James Braid,, Bobby Jones, Bobby Locke, Arnold Palmer and Lee Trevino.

Thomson, winner of five Opens over his career, not only doesn’t count Woods out for three straight, he believes he could raise the bar to unthinkable heights – eight straight.

“I nearly went five in a row,” said Thomson, 77, a native Aussie. “The fourth one I sort of threw away, not quite the way Mickelson did, but I finished second at St. Andrews at my fourth run. And I felt I should have won that if I had been a bit smarter. But then I won the next one.”

If Woods does pull off the three-peat this week, Thomson will be there to congratulate him. “I’d be as proud to be linked with his name as with three-in-a-row.

Thomson thinks the only thing standing between Woods and eight straight is illness, desire and preparation and, potentially, weather.

Thomson also takes his hat off to Tom Watson, the only other modern-era player with five Open titles.

“He’s still walking around winning, too, I believe,” said Thomson.

Welcome to Scotland

After two days of clear skies, warm days and a light breeze at my back, I walked out of my rented house in Carnoustie this morning to be greeted by an arresting chill and a driving rain. Man, is it dreary.

So what if it's July 18th, welcome to Scotland.

I grabbed a light rain jacket but, not to be discouraged, I struck out for the golf course wearing shorts and short-sleeved golf shirt, refusing to admit that there was any chance the sun might not come out later in the day. Halfway throught the five-minute walk to the course, I was cold and wet, telling myself what a dope I am. This is what a rainy day in late October feels like at home. All around me, cheerful native Scots were bundled up in wool sweaters, pullover fleeces and rain gear.

So what. I'm from Philly. We laugh in the face of nasty weather.

Ah, the Open

If I had to pick a favorite golf tournament, it would be the British Open.

I like the trip over, I've learned how to drive on the left side of the road and I like wandering the streets of the small towns and villages where the Open is usually played.

After an overnight flight, with my body clock haywire, I was up by 5 a.m. Scotland time this morning -- midnight back home. The sun was up already, so I made a cup of coffee, grabbed my camera and struck out from the house I'm sharing a few hundred yards from the course to hit the streets of Carnoustie.

I don't care where you go in the U.S., we don't have the kind of little ancient villages they have over here. By 6 a.m., a few shopkeepers were already preparing to open. Dressed in shorts, loafers with no socks and a fleece pullover, I stuck out like a sore thumb -- or a typical America.

People nodded and greeted me on the street with a cheerful hello.

Sandbagging, cheating or remarkable golf?

I've just seen something I can't recall seeing in the generally friendly confines of club golf -- what appears to have been a blatant case of sandbagging, cheating or remarkable golf.

A buddy of mine invited me to play in a one-day member guest at his club, which shall remain nameless. I was one of three guests and, along with my buddy, our foursome competed as one of 18 teams in a modified Stableford format.

Using your handicap for net scores, pars were worth one point, birdies two points, eagles three points, bogeys and worse counted for zippo. Each green even had a second, much more difficult hole location, where point values were doubled. Of course, it all came down to legitimate handicaps and the honest accounting by each team.

At the turn, hoping to gauge our success or lack thereof, we asked one of the assistant pros what it took to win this thing? High 60s, sometimes 70 points, he told us. Our team didn't play great and we went on to finish with a total of 53 points, putting us back in the pack. Plenty of teams finished in the mid-50s, the 60s and even the low 70s.

To the astonishment of most everybody, the winning team finished with 98 points -- 19 points ahead of the second-place team's 79 points. In other words, most of the teams were bunched together, except for the winning team.

As we all watched the results get posted, the doubt set in and the eye-rolling began. This foursome of middle-aged, soft-bellied, non-athletic looking guys had almost lapped the field? Was anybody buying that? No.

The pro was helpless to do anything, unless he wanted to publicly question the integrity of the member and his guests. But everybody else let their feelings be known.

At the awards ceremony and dinner, when the names of the winning team and their winning score were announced and they made their way up for their pick from the prize table, they must have been embarrassed to be greeted by snickers, hoots and hisses. One guy in the back even did that thing that where you cough, while under your breath you're yelling, "BULL----!"

Except for the prizes, those guys got exactly what they deserved.

Upheaval at the USGA

There are all kinds of upheaval and head-ducking going on at the U.S. Golf Association.

The manure first hit the oscillator the week of the U.S. Open at Oakmont when Golf World magazine came out with a cover story headlined "Can the USGA survive Walter Driver?"

Driver, of course, is the high-powered, hard-driving Atlanta businessman who is president of the USGA. Even Driver's fans -- and he has his fans -- tout him as a "change agent," meaning nothing and nobody is safe these days at the USGA.

But the cover story, which was long, well-researched and damning, suggests that in the first 1 1/2 years of his two-year term Driver has tried to bring a corporate-style management to the USGA not used to it.

That might not be such a terrible thing, but Driver comes off as an impersonal, imperial, impervious man who has left many of the USGA staff of 300 cowering in fear. While the top dogs at the USGA earn hefty salaries and fly around in leased jets and drive leased Lexuses, the rank-and-file folks aren't paid nearly so well and they are seeing their benefits get cut.

In the past week or so, two top people have left: Tim Moraghan, the USGA's chief of agronomy, and a man who plays a major role in setting up U.S. Open courses. Many insiders believe Driver had been gunning to take down Moraghan ever since the disaster at Shinnecock in 2004.

Also gone, suddenly, is Marty Parkes, senior director of communications, and No. 4 on a USGA staff flow chart. Insiders suggest Parkes got the blame for not being able to kill the Golf World story before it ever got published.

I don't know Driver well. The longest conversation I've had with him was maybe 10 minutes long at the Open a few weeks ago. But I remember well the impression he was making on USGA staffers at the U.S. Amateur at Merion two summers ago, just as he was about to take over.

I remember him walking past me and a couple of USGA staffers one day. As he passed I could almost feel a chill. And as I looked over at the USGA staffers, they were almost shuddering.

"I'm not looking forward to the next two years," said one.

Tiger's swing

For the life of me, I cannot figure out why Tiger Woods swings at the ball so hard. Never could.

I mean, I am sitting here watching the AT&T National as Tiger takes the violent swipes at the ball with his driver. And while the stat sheet says he's hitting more fairways than he misses, it seems like every time I look up he's dropping the club in disgust or wading around in ankle-deep rough looking for his tee ball.

I cannot help but wonder if he couldn't hit almost every fairway if he would just dial it back a little.

The guy's got power to burn. Even if he let up just a itty-bitty bit, how could it not give him a little more control and accuracy? How could it hurt?

His driving accuracy is just over 55 percent and he ranks 165th on the PGA Tour. Imagine how many tournaments he would win if he improved that ranking to, say, 65?

Abortion politics on Sports page

When I checked my emails this morning, I was already hearing from angry readers accusing me of promoting a liberal pro-abortion bias on the Inquirer sports pages.

Because of a story I wrote from the AT&T National golf tournament quoting Tiger Woods on the wonders of fatherhood, some readers mistook what he said for what I believe.

Specifically, I wrote that Tiger and Elin had spent much of the first night staring at Sam, wondering how they could love something so much that "didn't exist the day before."

For the record, I don't know anybody who has any idea of where Tiger stands on abortion or on when life begins; and I know readers have no idea where I stand, despite their best efforts to jump to conclusions.

Here, exerpted from the transcript of Tiger's pre-tournament interview, is the question and answer:

Q. Everybody before they have become a father has expectations or guesses about how they will feel, but usually it doesn't -- things happen that surprise you those first couple of weeks. How have your emotional responses been different than you might have guessed?

TIGER WOODS: Well, you know, something that I think Elin and I talked about on our first night, said, how can you love something so much that didn't exist the day before. We never experienced anything like that. And certainly it's one that was different and one that was special, and something that we want to experience again.

O'Hair to British Open

O'Hair, 24, from West Chester, overcame a triple bogey on the first hole to shoot 68 at Oakland Hills Monday to play his way into the upcoming British Open at Carnoustie.

Here's a story from the Detroit paper on all the qualifers.

Philadelphia Open qualifer

This just in from the Golf Assn of Philadelphia...

VILLANOVA, Pa.–Alan Borowsky, a 22-year-old amateur from White Manor CC, heads to the historic East Course of Merion GC for the first time in the summer’s marquee event, the 103rd Open Championship.

Borowsky, a recent Lehigh University graduate, earned a trip to the fabled Main Line venue with a 4-under-par 66 on Monday at Radnor Valley CC (par 70, 6,531 yards), the first of three Open Championship qualifiers administered by the Golf Association of Philadelphia. Borowsky and 15 others advanced from the RVCC site into the championship field of 72.

For the rest of the story click here.

How did Tiger Woods develop those pecs?

The No. 1 golfer in the world finally spills the beans about his workout regiment in a story in Men's Fitness magazine.

Hint: Low weights, many reps. Workout six days a week.

Vacation

I'm outta here for a week...

Huh?

It's 1:30 in the morning, I can't sleep and I'm pacing the floor, pondering the great questions of the day:

-- How to solve the health care crisis in America?

-- What to do about Iraq?

-- Why does David Letterman wear white socks every night?

-- What's up with Tiger and Elin naming their daughter Sam, not short for Samatha, but only Sam?

Phil's sorry

In an open letter on his website, Phil Mickelson says that after he missed the cut at the U.S. Open, he said some things out of frustraton that may have been a little "out of line."

As we say in newspapers, here's the "nut" graf:

I have to say Oakmont was a bitter disappointment to me. Not the Open, really, despite what I said on Friday, but not being able to prepare properly for it. I tried as hard as I could with a wrist that was far less than 100 percent. It’s the national championship and the event I want to win most. But being injured for really the first time in my career, aside from a broken leg years ago, and not being able to follow the routine that’s served me pretty well over the last three years was really frustrating. It’s probably why I said some of the things I did on Friday and some of them may have been a little out of line. It was frustration talking. I’ll be a little smarter about my preparation for majors in coming years, although I’ll continue with some variation of my routine. Without it, there’s no way I would have come within a shot of making the cut, let alone shooting 74 in the first round.

Wie WDs from John Deere

Finally, Michelle Wie has done something right -- withdraw from next month's John Deere Classic.

If you missed the small item in the news last night, the teen phenom from Honolulu has pulled out of the PGA Tour, where she has enjoyed sponsor's exemptions, saying she needs more to heal her ailing wrist. Frankly, I don't know which is more injured these days, her wrist or her pride, but she's smart to get away from the game and the glare of the spotlight for a while.

In the weeks since Wie WD'ed from the Ginn Tribute hosted by Annika, she has been pounded in the media. At the McDonalds LPGA Championship a couple of weeks ago, the long knives really came out for her -- from the media, the players and the LPGA.

Almost in unison, everyone said Wie's parents, B.J. and Bo, need to give her more space, stop micromanaging her life, let her grow up a little. Wie herself took heat, too. Annika Sorenstam called her out. In Sports Illustrated this week, Dottie Pepper, the former LPGA player who writes a column, said Wie comes off these days as a "self-centered, unapologetic brat."

Couldn't have said it better myself.

Following is the official press release from the John Deere regarding her WD.

MICHELLE WIE WITHDRAWS FROM 2007 JOHN DEERE CLASSIC

EAST MOLINE, Illinois—Michelle Wie has withdrawn from the 2007 John Deere Classic to continue to rehabilitate her injured wrist, tournament officials announced today.

"This has been a particularly difficult decision to make because of the support I have received from the John Deere Classic and everyone in the Quad Cities," Wie said. "I want to thank John Deere for offering me this tremendous opportunity. I hope I get the chance to go back and play there again."

The decision comes as Wie is rehabilitating from a wrist injury suffered earlier this year.

“I’m just coming back from an injury,” said Wie. “While my rehabilitation is on schedule, I do not have all of my strength back yet. The TPC Deere Run course is obviously very long, and I just don’t have the length to play there right now. I do intend to play in the U.S. Women’s Open, and to continue competing throughout the summer to help myself gain strength and get back to where I want to be.”

Tournament officials were supportive of Wie’s decision.

"The John Deere Classic has long been a supporter of Michelle Wie and we remain so today," said John Deere Classic tournament director Clair Peterson. "We support Michelle's decision and we sincerely hope she continues on the path to reach her full potential in every aspect of her life. We look forward to welcoming her back when the time is right."

The John Deere Classic is a PGA Tour event to be played July 12-15 at the Tournament Players Club Deere Run in Silvis, Ill. Last year's champion John Senden will defend his title against 155 other of the world's top golfers, including Masters Champion Zach Johnson.

Furyk's rationale at 17

With his bogey at the 17th on Sunday at Oakmont, Jim Furyk missed his chance to force a play-off with Angel Cabrera. Whether you think he blew it or not, here's his post-round press conference with his explanation of how the last few holes played out.

JIM FURYK: I played well all day. I struck the ball well. I hit a lot of good putts. I think I ended up making four birdies today, and the four bogeys just -- I didn't do all that much wrong; I didn't hit that many bad shots. I just wasn't able to dig it out of the rough and get the ball on the green on two on 17, and in the end that's going to be the difference. But I had a few holes like 2, 12 and 17 where I really should have been able to make par, to manage par on those three holes and I wasn't able to do it. And that's what a U.S. Open does to you, you hit a lot of good golf shots, play the hole pretty well, and somehow you add it up in the end and you have a few bogeys, and I did that a couple of times today. I was able to turn it around in the back nine. I thought making the turn if I shot 2-under, I would have won the tournament and that would have been the case. And I had a lot of opportunities; it just didn't work out.

Q. Right after your second shot on 18, you took a look over to where the crowd was. Was there a noise that you heard? Why were you looking over there so long?

JIM FURYK: Probably was looking at the scoreboard on the way up to the green. It was difficult coming in. I saw the board at 15, and then we didn't see another one until 17 green and it was tough really to be aware of what was going on ahead. I was trying to tell by the groans. I couldn't tell whether Angel Cabrera made four or five, and I wasn't aware at the time what he made on 18. But either way, it didn't matter. I was trying to hit it at the stick, just wasn't able to.

Q. On 17 did you know you were tied for the lead?

JIM FURYK: I didn't know what he made on 17. There was no way for me to know that. I heard the groan; knew he missed a putt of some sort, but I didn't know if it was a birdie or a par putt.

Q. Can you talk about the birdies and keeping the adrenaline down and how you kept yourself in it?

JIM FURYK: That's what we do to get into those positions to try to win tournaments. I think I got really excited probably after knocking the putt in at 15, and that was a pretty crucial putt. I was three down at the time and I knew the leader, Cabrera, was right in front of me. And I had to knock a putt in and get momentum going again. And I made a great par at 16. And I'm still a little surprised at 17. Surprised I made bogey and with the pin on the left-hand side of that green. The no-no is to go left, but I didn't think I would hit the ball -- I haven't hit a ball anywhere within 20 yards of anywhere that one went. So I was shocked to see how far it went. At my length, I can hit the ball left of the green and it had an avenue up the center, and that's where I wanted to go all week. And the ball I hit today carried a lot farther, and I was surprised by basically how far it went and didn't realize from the tee box that I put myself into that poor of a position. I should have been able to dig it out, and I was playing away from the pin because I had no shot at it. And I should have been able to dig it out and make a 4, and it cost me. Q. Are you the type to take consolation from two runners-up in a row and being the only guy that's going to shoot even par on the weekend, or do you kick yourself for that? JIM FURYK: No one likes consolation prizes. I'm proud of the way I played, and I'm proud of those finishes. But, you know, a second is not that much fun to be honest with you; possibly third, I guess. I'm not sure what Tiger did out there.

Q. Would you have been done anything differently on 17; would you have taken an iron and laid up?

JIM FURYK: No. The play I made was the play. Now if I went back, I wouldn't hit left of the green for damn sure. But, no, it was the play. I would stick by that play through and through with the way the wind conditions were and the pin position was. In my mind, I made the right decision. I shouldn't have hit the ball so far left, but I'm surprised it went as far as it did.

Q. The long one on 16, were you surprised it was coming in?

JIM FURYK: At the very end, about eight, 10 feet short it looked like it might have had a shot, but I was trying to coax it up there, and I was playing a good eight, ten feet of break. From that distance I didn't have a club in my bag to go at that pin. My 3-iron wasn't going to safely carry the bunker and get back there. And my next club is a hybrid, that as soft as I wanted to hit that, I thought I would have trouble hitting the green. So taking a three-iron out to the left and trying to make three was my only option.

Q. Talk about the gallery.

JIM FURYK: It was a lot of fun coming back to Pennsylvania, my family being from Pittsburgh and the people here; knowing that this is where my roots started. And even though I grew up in eastern Pennsylvania and I call Lancaster home, I had so much support here and so many fans from Pennsylvania rooting for me, and it was special. It meant a lot to me.

Q. Did you hear the chants from the guy behind the bleachers?

JIM FURYK: I heard a ton. "Here we go Jimmy" was the great one on 17. Wish I would have made birdie; I would have remembered that a lot longer.

Q. What was your ball doing on --

JIM FURYK: If it would have come back 15 feet, I would have a realistic chance of knocking the putt in. The shot I've been fighting I double-crossed a few times; I did earlier in the week, quite a few times this week and I hit it in the Church Pews. And the shot was kind of a regular to a little bit of a smooth 7-iron. Ran it down in the valley and hop it up to the pin. And being a little jacked up, I got quick and I double-crossed it. And because of getting over the top of it, obviously I hit the ball longer than I wanted to, quite a bit longer than I wanted to. And, you know, whether I was at that time -- whether I was tied for the lead or one back, I was sitting there right in the middle of a fairway with a stick trying to win the U.S. Open, just didn't do it.

Q. Can you talk about what you like about the U.S. Open?

JIM FURYK: No one enjoys getting their rear-end kicked, but I feel good about my ability to get the ball in play and hit the ball straight and kind of gut it out. And I think I've come to the U.S. Opens in the last five or six years in a good mind-frame, knowing that the course is going to be really difficult, and there is not that many places where you can go out and shoot 72 or 73 and feel good about yourself; or shoot 75 like I did in the second round and know that you hadn't shot yourself out of the tournament. You just have to -- I do enjoy it. But I also, as I said, I don't have that much fun getting pounded and shooting 6-over par.

Q. You pulled your hat down and caught your breath. Do you remember what your thought was there, covering your face.

JIM FURYK: Just excited, taking a deep breath and concentrate on what I wanted to do in the last three holes. I hit some decent shots in the last three holes. I would have liked to have got it in at par or better, but I guess if I had to kick myself on one shot, I would love to go hit the 17th tee shot again. But more than anything I would like to dig that flop shot out of the rough and get it up on the fringe and make 4. But I wasn't able to do that.

Q. 15 and 16. You and Angel Cabrera were side-by-side. And you see what each other are doing; does it feel like match play?

JIM FURYK: Not really. No, I wouldn't go that far. But I was definitely -- I was surprised when I got to the 15th green. I didn't think I was three back. I don't know where he made the birdie, whether it was 14 or 15, but I hadn't realized at that pint -- there wasn't a heck of a lot of leaderboards out there, and you get lost in the golf course where they don't have the ability to put them by 11 and 14 and some of the holes. But there was times where you would go two or three holes without seeing a board. I think you go from 9 to 12, I'm not sure if there is a board on 10 but there might be. It seemed like two-hole jumps, rather than I'm used to the 1-hole jumps. But I knew I had to knock a 6- or 7-footer in, and let him know there was a roar coming and he wouldn't make a mistake.

Q. I think there was a five-shot swing there in three holes, you went from five back to the share of the lead; is that good that you don't know about it?

JIM FURYK: No, no way. I don't mind looking at the leaderboard and seeing where I stand. I realize there is a couple of holes where they can't put one, but I like to see them.

Q. Of the majors, is this the most difficult one to come from behind, even if it's only two or three strokes?

JIM FURYK: Starting today? I would say no. You can make up two or three shots in a hole here; so I would say not. It's tough to make up two or three shots when you've got to go out there and -- I think it's harder when you have to fire birdies, and you know the scores are going to be low. You start two or three back here and par one, you can be pretty much tied at that point. I think going out there and grinding away and get in red numbers in the U.S. Open, you can make up ground in a hurry.

Oakmont Ugh

After nine holes at Oakmont yesterday, I could finally identify with what the players were saying all week.

Given the traditional media pass to play the course the day after the U.S. Open, I intended to play all 18. But it was pushing 90 degrees, I was carrying my own bag, we had no forecaddie and, frankly, you couldn't find a ball in the rough unless you practically stepped on it. There was also the drive back to Philadelphia.

After the front nine, my threesome of writers had experienced enough. We called it a round, grabbed a 'dog and a cold beer at the halfway house and chilled.

It's always a thrill to play these brutally tough golf courses that the USGA has set up for an Open. But when golf is that hard, that unforgiving and that discouraging, it takes a lot of the fun out of it.

You hit a shot that you know is dead-on perfect only to watch the ball trickle across the green and disappear in the rough. Two feet off the green and you can't find it. Without a forecaddie, if you hit a tee shot into the rough, good luck finding that ball.

The players talked about the linoleum-fast greens. True, they are extremely hard to putt. But at least you can get used to them after a few holes. You know to barely touch a three-foot downhill putt and still expect the ball to roll six feet past. But I found the rough to be the toughest challenge of all. If you find the ball -- and that's a big if -- you have no clue and no control over how it's coming out, where it's going. When you've only missed the fairway by three feet, that strikes me as too much of a penalty.

That all said, I started well: 1-over par through three holes. On the 4th, I visited the church pews on the left. Actually, with a decent lie and the ball not up against a lip, that turned out to be one of the easier shots of the round.

I made my first of two doubles at the 5th, where a blind uphill tee shot left me whacking away in knee-high fescue; I made another double at the par 3 6th when I missed the green to the right and my flop shot over the bunker trickled off the green on the other side and sank into the rough.

The famous par 8th, we played from 245 yards. I hit a 3-wood to the back of the left bunker, blasted to 12 feet and two-putted for bogey.

All in all, I was 7-over on the front nine.

Cabrera victory press conference

Here are highlights from Angel Cabrera's victory press conference, with a translator...

USGA: It is a pleasure to welcome the 107th United States Open Champion, Angel Cabrera. Angel, round of 1-under par 69 today, 285 for the championship. Could you tell us what it means to you to be the first United States Open Champion from Argentina?

ANGEL CABRERA: It's definitely a very difficult situation to describe. You are not the U.S. Open Champion like every day, so it's very difficult to describe at the moment.

USGA: Would you share with us a little bit what your thoughts were as you were sitting and watching Jim Furyk and Tiger Woods finish their rounds on the 18th green.

ANGEL CABRERA: I was there sitting, waiting. I knew that I could do no more to lower my score, so I was only waiting and hoping that it was going to be a win.

Q. Can you talk about the shot you made to the green on 15?

ANGEL CABRERA: It was a very impressive shot. It was a 9-iron from 160 yards, and it was very impressive. (Laughter).

Q. What brand of cigarettes did you smoke and does that help you settle down?

ANGEL CABRERA: (Laughing) Well, there are some players that have psychologists, sportologists; I smoke. (Laughter).

Q. What brand? What brand?

ANGEL CABRERA: I don't want to say the brand but they are short 72s, they are called, short cigarettes.

Q. Have you been in contact with Eduardo Romero this week and how do you think he feels about this championship?

ANGEL CABRERA: I haven't been around Eduardo, but I am definitely sure that he's very happy about this win, and, well, he's a very close friend of mine.

Q. You never missed the cut in the U.S. Open; what makes you so good in this tournament?

ANGEL CABRERA: Yes, well, I definitely usually play very well in the U.S. Open. Most of the time I'm not making any putts, but this week it was like everybody was missing the putts. So that gave me an advantage.

Q. I have actually two; one, I'm wondering how many cigarettes you went through today and that 50-minute wait from when you finished up and went inside, how stressful was that wait, watching on television?

ANGEL CABRERA: I usually smoke between eight to ten cigarettes in a round and this round was not special about the number of cigarettes; it was more or less the same. And the wait, it was tough, because I was nervous.

Q. How disappointed were you with the 76 on Saturday, and did you fear that you shot yourself out of the tournament?

ANGEL CABRERA: I shot 76 and I thought that I still had chances; that if I scored low on the final round, I would be able to win it.

Q. Two questions. One, coming off a bogey on 16, bogey on 17, what pressure were you feeling standing on the tee on 18? If you're understanding me, why aren't you answering this in English? (Laughter).

ANGEL CABRERA: Yes, definitely making bogey on those holes made me feel nervous. But, well, I knew that I had to hit a good drive to make par on the 18th hole and sit and wait. I don't speak much English because -- I understand, but I'm not fluent enough, so I feel that I cannot be myself.

Q. I just wonder if you can tell us the story of how you took up golf. There was a mention of Eduardo wanting you to play when you were 15, but I wonder if you can share in your words how you started playing this game.

ANGEL CABRERA: I started as a caddie when I was ten years old in Cordoba Golf Club, my home club, and they allowed caddies to play on Mondays, when I started playing golf, and I turned pro when I was 20 years old.

Q. Name of the club again?

ANGEL CABRERA: Cordoba Golf Club.

Q. What brand of cigarettes do you smoke and how does it help you?

ANGEL CABRERA: (Shaking head. ) I smoke.

Q. 40 years ago, Roberto DeVincenzo beat the best player in the world to win the Open Championship at Hoylake. You beat the best player in the world to win the U.S. Open Championship. How do those accomplishments compare?

ANGEL CABRERA: Yeah, definitely I don't want to compare because comparisons sometimes are not so good. But the good thing is that I beat everybody here, not only Tiger Woods.

Q. After you birdied 15, did you stand on 16 tee knowing you had a two-shot lead? And then go through your nerves and the shot selection on 16 and 17.

ANGEL CABRERA: I knew that even though I had birdie on 15, that I had to play very well the last three holes because the last three holes, you can birdie or bogey them, so I had to keep concentrated and try to make the lowest score possible on those three holes.

Q. You have six Top-10 finishes in majors previously; did you take anything from those majors, maybe draw on that today in this round or in this tournament?

ANGEL CABRERA: Yes, the more you play in a major, it gives you a lot more experience. It helps you accomplish great things.

Q. You said you beat the best player in the world and the rest of the field, but you also beat a very, very difficult golf course. In this last round, were there ever any moments for you where you said, "What are they trying to do"?

ANGEL CABRERA: Yes, definitely I was able to beat the best player and the best players here, but I wasn't able to beat the golf course. The golf course beat me.

Q. Who taught you how to play golf, and did you ever have any professional teachers?

ANGEL CABRERA: I never had a professional coach. I've always had people getting close to me and giving me one advice or two, but never had a coach.

Q. I wonder if anybody has had a moment to reflect on your impact on children in South America and Hispanic-speaking children in America? It seems now with this victory they have someone to focus on as a hero and a role model; could you comment on that? It seems very exciting.

ANGEL CABRERA: I don't want to set an example. I just want to do things right so that people can imitate and follow. And definitely this is going to be something to be remembered in Latin America, not only in Argentina, but also in Latin America and probably some other places in the world.

Q. Can you talk about your childhood; how humble was the place that you grew up, and did you have to quit school to raise money for the family? And also, I read something where you didn't learn to read or write until later in your childhood.

ANGEL CABRERA: I wasn't able to finish elementary school. Also, I had to work as a caddie to put some food on the table, so that's why probably these moments are enjoyed even more than the common things, yes.

Q. You strike me as a very private person.

ANGEL CABRERA: Yes, I am private. I have friends but it's not a big group of friends. I try to remain, you know, as private as possible.

Q. But was golf and becoming successful at golf important to you, to not only help yourself, but to help your family? Were you motivated by the fact that you knew you could have a career in the game and take care of the people you love?

ANGEL CABRERA: Yes, I couldn't do anything else. I definitely had to play golf to make a living, to feed my kids and wife. So I just feel that I have no other option.

Q. What will you do to celebrate?

ANGEL CABRERA: I don't know exactly how I'm going to celebrate, but definitely I will at some point later on tonight.

Q. Can I have an invitation?

ANGEL CABRERA: You're invited. (Laughter).

Q. Why are there so many good golfers from Argentina?

ANGEL CABRERA: There are so many opportunities for caddies to play in Argentina, even though they are private golf clubs, they allow the caddies to play. This is something that helps boost the careers of the caddies and they usually turn pro. 90 percent of the great golfers of Argentina have been caddies.

Q. I want to know, if you looked at the leaderboards today, and was there a particular point in your round where you realized you were at least tied for the lead today?

ANGEL CABRERA: It's impossible not to see them because they are so big that you cannot miss them. You have to look at them.

Q. Just talk a little bit about what kind of town you grew up in; was it a small town or big town, and what do people do in that town?

ANGEL CABRERA: It's a middle-class kind of town with a population of 30,000, and that's pretty much it.

Q. Which players do you hang out with on The European Tour, and are you playing the Scottish Open this year and do you think it will be an easier week or a tougher week?

ANGEL CABRERA: Well, Carnoustie where the British Open is going to be played, is going to be absolutely difficult, so we have to work very hard to make a good score over there.

Q. I meant the Scottish Open, not the British. And who do you hang out with in Europe?

ANGEL CABRERA: Yes, I'm going to be playing the Scottish Open. I usually hang out with the other Argentines that are playing on The European Tour. There are like ten other players that are members of The European Tour.

Q. I was just wondering, how is this victory going to be viewed in Argentina, and will this knock Manu Ginobili off the page for a day or two?

ANGEL CABRERA: Ginobili is still going to be there on the front pages because he has accomplished things that no other Argentine has. What I have done has already been done by DeVincenzo, so what he has done will be more recognized.

Q. As a result of this win, do you qualify for the FedExCup? And how likely are you to spend more time playing on the American tour?

ANGEL CABRERA: I'm not going to change my schedule, and so I'm going to keep on playing the events that I had planned to play. I'm eligible for the FedExCup.

Q. Do you consider yourself one of the best ball-strikers in the world, and if so, to what do you attribute your gift?

ANGEL CABRERA: No, I don't consider myself like being the best-ball striker. Everybody that is here playing and on the Top-50 in the World Ranking are excellent ball-strikers. So it's difficult for me to say that I am the best ball-striker.

Q. Congratulations, Angel. How much influence has Roberto DeVincenzo had on your career, and are there any players in particular that you looked up to most growing up?

ANGEL CABRERA: DeVincenzo was not much of an inspiration for me because I wasn't able to watch DeVincenzo. When he won the British Open, I was not even born. So, yes, I looked to Eduardo Romero, Fernandez; those are the Argentinians that I followed.