I am at Turnberry in Scotland preparing for the British Open Championship. Before I left, I checked the weather forecast, and it wasn't very good. It was supposed to rain almost every day, but hopefully it won't affect the tournament too much.
I hadn't played the course prior to this week, but did watch video of the 1994 British Open. They've changed the course since then, adding bunkers and length, so I'm not sure what we're going to get.
I've been fortunate to win three Claret Jugs and there are two things that have to happen for me to be successful again: 1) I have to play well; 2) Hopefully, I play well on the correct side of the draw.
You just never know what the conditions are going to be, and you have to deal with it. That's part of the charm of the tournament and why we all love it over there. It could be bone-dry like Hoylake or rainy like Muirfield in 2002. I didn't play last year, but it could be windy as well.
The key is to formulate a game plan and go play. I'll do that during my practice rounds, figure out what the course allows, then decide whether to carry a 5-wood or a 2-iron.
Hank and I worked really hard in Florida last week. He won't be joining me in Scotland, but I feel like I have a better understanding of my golf swing and don't need him here this time.
I feel good about my game right now. I played well at the AT&T National and was lucky enough to win my third PGA Tour event of the year. Hunter Mahan played a great round on Sunday and really put the pressure on Anthony Kim and me. One thing about Congressional Country Club: You have to hit the ball well to score, and if you miss the ball in the wrong spots, you have some serious lag putting. Lag putting was one of my strengths that week, and I hope it carries over to Turnberry.
As host, I had a lot going on that week at Congressional. Thanks to my staff, the members, volunteers, military, fans and players for making it such a special week. We generated a lot of awareness and raised funds for the Tiger Woods Foundation, and I'm very grateful to all for helping make it such a big success.
In addition to everything we do at the AT&T National for the troops, we also hosted several Earl Woods Scholars all week. They volunteered in the USO Care Package Tent. I was very proud to have them there representing the Foundation and the scholarship program we created in honor of my Dad. He and I always talked about honoring the military and helping kids. I thought about him a lot after the tournament, and I think he would be pretty happy with how things turned out.
I had a little fun at the awards ceremony, where I interviewed myself. I've always wanted to do that, but it never came to fruition. I certainly didn't realize it would get so much play in the media. All in all, it was a fantastic week, and I am looking forward to bringing the tournament to Philadelphia and Aronimink in 2010.
I must admit it's pretty cool to win the Arnold Palmer Invitational, Memorial (Jack Nicklaus) and my tournament in the same year, especially while they're still around. It makes it that much more special.
Congratulations to my friend Roger Federer for winning Wimbledon and his record 15th major title. He's now one ahead of me, so hopefully I can catch him. We've never played golf or tennis together, which is something I would like to do. We're not in the same city very often, and when we are, we're usually competing in tournaments, so there's not a lot of free time.
Before my knee surgery last year, I played a lot of tennis and really enjoyed it. I'm not sure if I am a better tennis player than Roger is a golfer. I know he just started playing, so I'm not sure how good he is. As for my tennis, I'm a weekend hack.
Prior to the U.S. Open, I spent some time in New York promoting my new EA Sports video game, "Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10." Jimmy Fallon beat me straight up the first time we played, but I got him the second time. He's a great guy, and we had a lot of fun.
Hope we don't get too wet this week, and I'll talk to you after the British Open.
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