Yes, I'm a patriotic person. For these people who disgrace the American way and burn our flag and do all of these things... I say, don't live here and disgrace my country. Go live in the Middle East and see how you like it.
— Payne Stewart
We grew up with so much love in our family.
Then I would have an occasional cigarette and then I started back dipping. I started dipping last year. My family has asked me again to stop, and I'm trying my best to do that.
That's why I'm very proud of being American. I'm proud to pay taxes. I pay a lot of taxes, but it sure beats the alternative.
Not that money is a driving force. It's an honor to play for your country.
If somebody asks for my opinion, I tell them my opinion, whether it's what they want to hear or not.
I went over before the British Open and played Valderrama thinking that I might make the team, might be a captain's pick. I made the effort to go over there.
I don't think it's healthy to take yourself too seriously.
For sure I would be a very emotional captain. A very hands-on captain.
For a while, I think in 1994, it got to where I didn't want to practice.
Tiger is the greatest thing that's happened to the tour in a long time. He has brought incredible attention to golf at a time of year when football and the World Series always take precedence. Everything I've heard about him seems to be true.
With the media, I could be quick and ugly and critical. I tend to wear my emotions on my sleeve.
This thing is for the game of golf, yeah, but trust me, the Europeans don't have that mentality.
The two-piece ball I switched to spun too much. One shot would go the distance I thought it should, then the next one would fall short, and then the next one would go long.
Raymond Floyd. The man knows how to control situations. He was experienced. He didn't let me get overly excited; he kept me in check. It allowed me to free myself up, and I played really well with him.
Invariably something happens at a U.S. Open where the golf course gets out of control one day, they have one pin that's out of control. It always seems to happen. But they've gotten better about the height of the rough.
I've just become more conscious about how much I do drink and how often I want to have a drink and things like that. I think being conscious of it will help me to control the urges.
I very rarely saw Tom Kite around. I've talked to Tom about it. I don't think Michael Jordan needed to be on the captain's cart with Kite; he needed to be walking in the gallery, supporting them from outside the ropes.
I don't read magazines much, and I have an awful time with books.
For one thing, when you're playing as well as I was at the time, you think you can play with anything. That isn't true, of course, but I didn't know it then.
But in the end it's still a game of golf, and if at the end of the day you can't shake hands with your opponents and still be friends, then you've missed the point.
We live in such a sheltered environment in the United States. I've been fortunate enough to have traveled all over the world, and I've seen things you only read about and see on the news.
These guys who keep on playing but aren't winning, you've got to sit them down and let them figure it out and perform a little gut-check on themselves.
The cast clubs were a big part of it, too. I found I wasn't getting that instant feedback I was used to with a forged blade. The sweet spot is a shade bigger, and when I didn't hit the ball dead center, I didn't know it, because it still felt great.
People who have never had an addiction don't understand how hard it can be.
If you can't laugh at yourself, then how can you laugh at anybody else? I think people see the human side of you when you do that.
I'm 42 now, what I would consider prime time.
I sometimes got distracted easily and allowed my mind to wander when I needed to be focused. It's quite subtle, really, and just being aware of it helps.
I didn't hesitate to kiss my father in public. And that's how I tried to raise my children. We're physical.
For example, I wouldn't hesitate to sit somebody down if he wasn't performing, even if he was the No. 1 player in the world. I've been sat down before.
But I'll tell you something: We had a big family discussion about it recently, my two sisters and I, and I pointed out that we all have the same genes as our mother and we're all susceptible to becoming alcoholics.
