Duval finds happiness - and his game

SOUTHPORT, England - David Duval strolled up the final fairway on a cloudy day in dark sunglasses, waving to the cheering fans, back in a familiar place at the British Open.

OK, so it was only Friday. And most of the grandstand seats were empty. And this is Royal Birkdale, not Lytham.

But, for a guy who lost his way all those years - even while finding himself away from the golf course - it was like a homecoming.

"C'mon, David!" someone screamed.

This goes out to all those who wondered, "Hey, whatever happened to David Duval?" Well, he's back - at least for a day - and in the unlikeliest of places, the leaderboard of golf's oldest major.

For a while, Duval made it feel like 2001 all over again by shooting a 1-under 69 that left him just 3 strokes behind leader K.J. Choi.

Not that Duval is ready to reminisce. He'll leave that to 53-year-old Greg Norman, just 1 shot off the lead and an equally compelling figure.

"Stepping back in time?" Duval repeated a reporter's question. "No, I'm looking to the future."

Good move. That has to be an improvement on what he's gone through the past six or seven years, though any discussion of Duval's descent comes with a very important caveat: He's never been more content.

Duval's teenage stepsons, Deano and Nick, were out on the course with the guy who treats them like his own. Wife Susie was back home in Colorado, caring for the rest of their expansive family: another child from her first marriage, plus the two young children she's had with David since they tied the knot.

It's sort of like the Duval Bunch, except the husband came to the table alone, yearning for the comfort and validation of a family to call his own.

"I'm 100 percent happy," he said in the slowly dwindling light of a lengthy summer day. "I'm where I want to be and I'm doing what I want to do. The difficulty now lies in actually leaving and going and playing. You know, I've become a very good country club golfer. I enjoy carts and 2-hour rounds and then going back home. It is sometimes quite hard getting on the road."

But don't mistake homesickness for a lack of resolve. Duval intends to get back where he was once: the world's No. 1 player, standing on the 18th green at Lytham with the claret jug in his grasp, champion of the 2001 British Open.

Duval will be playing on the weekend at this British Open. He'll be in the fifth group from the end, in the mix for a major title, something that would have sounded ludicrous to suggest just two days ago.