The 39-year-old American may have snatched only “a little bit of sleep” on his flight over on Monday morning but his grin was as wide as the Atlantic Ocean as he relished the prospect of testing his game on the links course of Royal St George’s.
“If there’s some way I can find the attitude that Rory had when he won the US Open (by eight shots) last month, I’ll have a wonderful week,” Duval told Reuters in an interview.
“For me that was fun watching how much fun he was having and the way he played so beautifully. You could see he was enjoying it and if you’re not enjoying it you’re probably not going to do that well.”
Duval has been in the doldrums for several years and is without a victory since the 2001 Dunlop Phoenix event in Japan. But he said he always looked forward to teeing his ball up in the third major of the season.
“I love it — this is my favorite week of the year,” he said. “It always has been.
“The way I grew up playing, and the way most Americans have grown up, is that you hit the ball up in the air and then it stops where it lands. It’s nice to let your mind open up and get free here (in Britain).
“You don’t have to hit perfect shots all the time here. The variety of shots you get to play, the shots you sometimes have to hit along the ground, it’s just a lot of fun to me.”
Last year Duval (106th) finished in the top 125 on the US money list for the first time since 2002 and he feels his game is in good enough shape to allow him to contend when the British Open starts on Thursday.
“I’ve seen the bottom and I know the difference between good golf and bad golf,” he said.
“I know I’m playing good golf right now and there’s no reason for me to go out with any other attitude than to try to figure out how to win this tournament.”
Duval’s best performance this season was a tie for ninth place at the Northern Trust Open in California in February but he believes he has a chance this week if he can hole those important mid-range putts.
“I didn’t do anything spectacular when I won the Open in 2001,” he explained. “I hit the ball good, not great. I putted good, not great, but I think I missed maybe two putts inside eight feet all week.
“That’s the kind of thing you have to do to win golf tournaments.”
Duval will tee-off at 9.42 local time on Thursday alongside Colombia’s Camilo Villegas and Brian Davis of Britain.
“I couldn’t have asked for a better draw,” he said. “They are two nice people and are fun to be around.
“I like the start time too. It means I don’t have to get up at four in the morning.”
