the root

He's also 59, although for the record he is six months older than I am.

It didn't hurt that he is an American.

Most people who have read this space over the years know I'm not a golfer.

My clubs, Wilson Ultras, are double-bagged and in the attic. They have been used twice, the last time being so many years ago I barely remember that we won the four-man scramble at Chenal Country Club (my one and only contribution was a lucky long putt).

If you want to understand just how long it has been since I played a round of golf, my driver was an original Whale.

I watch a little more golf on television than I do reality shows (none), but do keep up with the golfers from Arkansas and love to watch the Masters.

As for golf in Arkansas, Jeffrey Slatton does a great job covering that.

It isn't that I don't like golf, it is more that it didn't like me.

I joke - and it is just a joke - that I took a lesson from Dan Snider, and when we finished, he asked: "Did you keep the receipt for those clubs?"

If you thought the rough was tough during the British Open, let me tell you those looked like manicured fairways compared to the places I was usually taking my second, third, fourth and fifth (would have been more but friends tired of waiting) shots.

Still, as stated before, Friday and Saturday got me hooked.

There was Watson, nine months after hip replacement surgery, playing like he was 29 instead of 59.

The man who won 39 PGA Tour events, but the last in 1998, wasn't just hanging in there, he was leading the charge.

The man who had won seven playoffs was capturing the imagination of a nation and maybe the world.

The fans, mostly people from Scotland, were treating him like he was a patron saint.

Watson was the oldest golfer left standing after the cut, and he was leading golf's oldest major tournament.

So there I was, sort of propped up between a pillow and the arm of the sofa, watching what I hoped would be a Senior Citizen Sunday.

I was keeping up with Arkansans John Daly and Bryce Molder through the laptop.