Mon, 11 Jun 22:31:00 2012

Bubba Watson knew his private life would never be the same again after he won the Masters in April. Now he will discover whether his golf game is any different when he tees off at the US Open on Thursday.

The American has never been one for convention, a trait that has endeared him to the huge galleries that hoot and holler every time he swings the club.

Self-taught, Watson relies on his instinct and imagination rather than any coaching manual to get around a golf course.

"I just play golf because I love it. I love the surprise of the different shots," he said before the Memorial in Dublin, Ohio, two weeks ago, his final warm-up for the July 14-17 US Open.

"I hit in the trees a lot, so I try to make it through those gaps. I'm just having fun with the game of golf and if people love it, that's great."

Watson's unorthodox style paid off big at Augusta National in April when the left-hander pulled off a miraculous approach shot from the rough to beat South Africa's Louis Oosthuizen in a playoff to win his first major championship.

Already a cult figure on the greens, his stunning Masters victory catapulted him into a whole new world and he has spent the past two months juggling his golf game with everything from appearances on TV talk shows, being presented with the keys to the city of his hometown and changing diapers.

"There is a lot of stuff still going on in my life," said Watson, who along with his wife Angie adopted a one-month-old boy named Caleb in March. "Dealing with a major championship is a totally different level.

"You dream of winning a major championship, but then actually pulling it off, you don't know how to deal with it."

Continued here:
Bubba eyes second Major at US Open