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Posted 7/16/2003 8:33 PM     Updated 7/17/2003 1:40 AM
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Weir's well-suited to play spoiler, win another major
SANDWICH, England — Mike Weir was in the middle of a practice round at Royal St. George's the other day when a British television crew interrupted him and asked for an interview.

That's the price you pay for winning The Masters. Forget privacy, even in the workplace. The Canadian lefty isn't just another golfer in spikes anymore; he's a prime contender to land the Claret Jug when the British Open starts today.

Sunshine and warm temperatures bathed the links layout Tuesday, but the forecast for the first round was music to Weir's ear: cooler temperatures with showers and wind.

This isn't Augusta. Royal St. George's is a quirky course with knobs and knolls that send drives bouncing off the fairways. Those conditions favor a shot-maker such as Weir, who likes to play his ball low into the wind. Length isn't a major factor here. Accuracy is, and that's the game that has produced Weir's breakout year.

Asked about adapting his game to this course, Weir smiled. "I think the one thing is I don't have to adjust my game very much. I'm a low-ball hitter anyway. So that's the one adjustment I don't have to make, with the trajectory."

Weir has parlayed The Masters and two other PGA Tour victories into a No. 1 ranking on the Tour money list and a No. 3 spot in the world rankings behind Tiger Woods and Ernie Els. They're the 1-2 favorites here.

But Weir also is positioned well to play the spoiler because of his putter. He's second behind Justin Leonard on the Tour in putting.

Putting wins majors, no matter which side of the Atlantic you're on. "Obviously the putter is really important every week," Weir said. "If you're not holing putts, you're not going to be there come the weekend. I would say putting is the biggest thing here because you're not going to hit every fairway. You're not going to hit every green. As we said, the golf course has quirky things out there that you're going to have to get the ball up-and-down and you're going to have to convert some putts for pars a lot of the time."

This will be Weir's seventh British Open. He has no fond memories of his first six; his best finish was a tie for 37th in 1999. But that could change, especially if the weather does.

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