Waldorf more than just Hawaiian shirts

Duffy Waldorf is not a man to take golf too seriously -- as a glance at his multicolored Hawaiian shirt and cap combo would indicate -- and that is not about to change just because he is sitting atop the British Open first round leaderboard.

Waldorf plays with a smile on his face and, unlike many of his contemporaries, does not live and die by his performance over 18 holes -- even when it is a four-under-par 67 at Muirfield.

He uses balls with scribbled notes of good luck from his family and bearing slogans of his favorite food -- Thursday's was some sort of custard -- and while others dream of winning majors, he says he dreams of how long his 2,000-bottle wine collection will last.

A professional for 17 years, he stopped worrying long ago about his disappointing title return -- just four -- and says he judges himself by a different set of standards.

"If I had to rate my career by how many wins I have I probably would be a pretty unhappy guy, but I don't look at it that way," he said Thursday after his flying start.

"I go out there and enjoy playing the game and if I can keep my game going I'll be happy no matter where I finish."

Unlike his bright blue and white attire, his play was ultra-conservative as he set out to avoid the rough and bunkers, a tactic rewarded with an opening run of eight pars.

"It was very important to put the ball on the fairway," he said.

He then picked up shots at nine, 12, 14 and 18 to find himself as the sole leader with most of the field back in the clubhouse.

But true to his relaxed approach, the 39-year-old took it all in his stride.

"I can't worry about doing well in majors," he said. "It's just great even to get in them.

"I wasn't even in it (the Open) a week ago and only made it with a good finish in the Western Open."

Since his first appearance in the U.S. Open in 1987 he has played in 30 majors but has a sorry record. A tie for fifth in the 1996 Masters is his best effort, followed by a couple of tied ninths. His best result in four previous British Opens was a tie for 25th last time the event was held at Muirfield, 10 years ago.

"I was pretty good at college but when I joined the Tour suddenly the players were a lot better," said the psychology graduate of UCLA, explaining the slow start to his professional career.

"It was a big step up and took me a while to raise my game but I can continue to work on my game for a long time yet and still improve."

Waldorf has been criticized for failing to take that improvement far enough but with around seven million dollars of prize money safely banked and three children to spend time with, he has a refreshing attitude to what success actually means.

"I had to turn around about 12 years ago or I wouldn't have been playing pro golf today," he said.

"You have to be able to separate things and evaluate your game and not have it affect your life, not have it that you're a bad person because you play bad.

"It is important to look at yourself in a lighthearted way and realize where golf and everything else sits in your life.

"It's just a matter of when you get there."

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