PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. -- It didn't take long for David Duval's feet to return to terra firma.

"Well, 74 in the first round in Phoenix helps," Duval said Tuesday at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

Duval, 27, still has a hard time comprehending how he won the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic with a final-round 59, the lowest in PGA Tour history.

Sure, he's the consensus No. 1 player in the game right now, no matter what the world rankings say. But 59 is sacred territory, something few sniff, let alone dream about.

"The feeling ... it's very hard to describe," he said. "I don't even know if there is a feeling involved with it, because you don't expect to do it.

"It's just not something that entered my mind and I don't think it enters the other players' minds. And then, to have done it, you really don't know what happened. All of a sudden it's over and you did it."

After winning four events and setting a new standard with more than $2.5 million in earnings last year, Duval hasn't missed a beat. He claimed the first two tournaments of 1999 and was a combined 52-under par before tying for 18th at Phoenix last week.

Some were beginning to wonder if the man was bulletproof.

"What David has done this year is pretty much beyond belief," said Mark O'Meara. "I don't think anything is distracting him."

For a guy who's supposedly stuck for answers and prefers his space, Duval was remarkably chatty and outgoing during Tuesday's press conference. He dispelled several rumors, notably that he's aloof, unapproachable and uncomfortable with his success.

On the contrary, after playing a practice round at sunny Pebble Beach Golf Links (no, that wasn't a typo), the relaxed and confident Duval thoughtfully answered every question on a variety of subjects, even displaying a sense of humor. Yes, folks, the man can smile. And he took off his dark glasses, too.

"I think I'm very approachable," Duval said. "I think I'm as accommodating as anybody in the game for autographs and such. I don't know what else I can do to remedy that."

Like all players, he's had bad days, and expects to have a few more. But Duval is hardly the anti-social bookworm some have suggested.

"I'm not losing sleep over it," he said of the reputation. "I don't know what I can do about that, so I don't think about it."

With nine victories in the past 29 months, Duval has been the hottest player on the planet. Officially, Tiger Woods carries top billing.

"Everybody knows David deserves to be No. 1," said O'Meara.

It took time for Duval to come to grips with his fame. Sure, he was a four-time All-American at Georgia Tech and was stamped "can't miss" for the PGA Tour. But like many before him, the pressure and expectations took a toll and Duval needed three attempts to earn his tour card at the qualifying school.

He's a fixture now and loves every second of it.

"I enjoy it," he said. "There is an adjustment involved, obviously. I think for the most part everybody understands that and has been a little more forgiving. It's gotten harder to hide."

Duval heads a stellar field this week that includes Woods, Fred Couples, Justin Leonard, Jim Furyk and defending champion Phil Mickelson. He's finished second here twice, and unlike some of the game's marquee names, takes just as much pride winning a non-major.

"They (majors) are certainly the most important events we play," said Duval. "However, I don't think they are everything there is in golf. And I think it belittles the efforts of the thousands of people this week and the thousands of people last week and next week, because those events raise more money than the majors do. Every time we play it's a major golfing event."

Most consider Duval the best player never to win a major, having temporarily forgotten Mickelson and Colin Montgomerie. It doesn't bother Duval who understands that it comes with the territory.

Duval nearly won the Masters last year, a costly three-putt at 16 opening the door for O'Meara. Some think Duval the man to beat in April.

"I would like to think my game is best-suited for a U.S. Open or British Open," he said. "Any guys who contend that week in those events have a chance to win."

Asked if he could win only one major title, which would it be, Duval replied, "The U.S. Open. I just think that's the greatest championship of them all.

"Having it on our soil is the difference, maybe. I think the greatest thing about it is all the complaints you hear during the week. You know, it's too hard. I think that's what makes it special."

Didn't expect that answer, did you? Which just goes to show there's more to Duval than meets the eye and ears.

Some were surprised to see him clench his fist in a rare show of emotion after holing his eagle putt to shoot 59. Actually, Duval had other plans.

"I might have done a few laps if there wasn't a group behind us," he said.

Virtually every player on tour has congratulated and abused him for the accomplishment. It's part jealousy, part reality-check.

"You get friendly cracks," said Duval. "There's a lot of stuff that was brutal. I think everybody was stoked for me."