ST. ANDREWS, Scotland -- He no longer appears so foolish, the Frenchman whose uncommon candor and bright wit have gone a long way toward easing the pain of his blundering finish at the British Open. Jean Van de Velde made a triple-bogey 7 on the 72nd hole when a simple 6 would have meant the Claret Jug, his place in golf infamy secured.

	Paul Lawrie was thrust into the golf spotlight with his victory at Carnoustie.

But a year later, Van de Velde is viewed with appreciation, and the golf world is probably better off for his misfortune. He has turned out to be a refreshing personality, enjoying his chance to play on the PGA Tour, immensely more popular than the man who eventually prevailed at Carnoustie.

Quick, who won last year's Open Championship? Paul Lawrie does not come to mind easily. His name will forever be on the trophy, but Van de Velde will be remembered.

Both players have reaped financial windfalls, in the way of endorsements and playing opportunities. But neither has won a tournament in the year that has passed. In fact, neither has done much of anything. But Van de Velde, 34, is hailed while Lawrie, 31, is questioned as a one-time wonder.

"I suppose winning the Open came as much of a surprise to me as it did to everyone else," Lawrie said. "But I've played OK, if not great, since then. I've got a lot of ambition. In fact, I'm working harder now than before I won at Carnoustie. If I get into position to win another major then hopefully I'll know what to do again."

Lawrie became the first Scotsman to win the Open on home soil since Tommy Armour in 1930. He shot a final-round 67 and set a major championship record by coming from 10 shots back to tie Van de Velde and Justin Leonard before defeating them in a playoff.

Of course, Lawrie would be even more obscure were it not for Van de Velde's incredible flame-out, a series of events that will be debated as long as he lives.

Leading by three shots with one hole to play, Van de Velde's tee shot ended up in a perfect lie after a drive to the right. He had just 185 yards to carry the Barry Burn that fronts the green and elected to hit a 2-iron. Van de Velde has been widely panned for the play because he could have reached the green in 3 by laying up.

Instead, his 2-iron shot flew wildly to the right, caromed off the grandstand and back some 50 yards into the tall rough. "How many times are you going to hit the grandstand and come back 50 yards? That was quite impressive," Van de Velde said.

"If I would have missed the grandstand and stayed in the rough, it would have taken me three shots to finish the hole and I would have won the tournament by two and everybody would go, 'Yeah, that was pretty good.' It did not happen this way."

	“	I said last year that I suspect I am going to have to talk about it for 10 years. Hopefully there will be some other story to talk about at the end of the week. Once it is done, there is nothing else you can do. But I don't carry any regret. ”
		— Jean Van de Velde

If he could have a shot back, Van de Velde said, it was the third. He tried to advance the ball to the green, but came up way short in the water. From there he briefly considered playing the ball -- "the water was going higher and higher, and I couldn't hit it, really" -- before taking a penalty, knocking his approach in the trap, then getting up-and-down for the 7 that put him in the playoff.

"I said last year that I suspect I am going to have to talk about it for 10 years," Van de Velde said. "Hopefully there will be some other story to talk about at the end of the week.

"Once it is done, there is nothing else you can do. But I don't carry any regret."

Although he would still rather have the title of Open champion, Van de Velde has taken the ensuing barbs with class and humor. He returned to the scene of his crime to shoot a commercial last December for putter company Never Comprise. It took him three tries, but he did play the entire hole with a putter and made a 6.

And he is making the best of the opportunity afforded him by finishing tied for second. One of the perks was an invitation to his first Masters, where he tied for 19th, and the U.S. Open, where he missed the cut. And he has fared well on the PGA Tour, where he is 86th on the PGA Tour money list with $353,458 in 14 tournaments.

"It is a great experience," said Van de Velde. "The conditions are fantastic, the courses are great, and they make life as easy as possible for the players."

Lawrie is playing the PGA Tour with far less fanfare. He's competed in six events and has earned $240,460 to rank 117th. His best finish was a tie for fifth at the Match Play Championship, where he lost in the quarterfinals to Tiger Woods. Lawrie missed last month's U.S. Open with a groin injury. His best finish in Europe is a tie for fourth.

But the spotlight remains glaring, especially in his homeland. Lawrie missed the cut at The Masters; and when he dismissed his caddie just 10 minutes before a tee time at the Match Play Championship, the error was widely reported. Less attention was paid to his letter of apology.

"It's been disappointing to read some of the things which have been written," Lawrie said. "The people who build you up are very quick to knock you down. People who said, 'We'd love to see you win the Open' then said, 'Someone like him shouldn't win the Open.'

"Right after the Open, I felt I couldn't win. I went to the Ryder Cup, where I was joint top points earner (for the European team), and they said I could play again. When things went less well earlier this year, I was almost written off. So I'm not going to bother anymore."

Van de Velde has received far more fame, mostly because he has handled his disaster so well. On the PGA Tour, he has developed a following among fans who have come to appreciate him. The sweet-sounding French accent doesn't hurt Van de Velde, who is fluent in English and Spanish as well.

While discussing the disaster at Carnoustie recently, a fan who overheard the conversation told Van de Velde, "That was painful to watch." Van de Velde's reply? "It was painful to do."

Unless he hoists the Claret Jug again on Sunday, Lawrie's reign is about to come to an end, a bittersweet experience.

For Van de Velde, it will be nice to move on to something else.

"As long as I don't come 3 ahead and hit it straight in the hotel on 18," he said. "Yes, it is a relief."

Bob Harig, who covers golf for the St. Petersburg Times, writes a column every Tuesday for ESPN Golf Online.


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