Glover's day ends witha sweet ride

FARMINGDALE, N.Y. -- Dan Cooper has known his man long enough that when Lucas Glover was on the 18th green with a two-stroke lead in the U.S . Open , Cooper already was thinking about a call he would have to make to the Chevy dealership in Greenville, S.C. Cooper has never doubted the talent of the man whose bag he carries. The problem always was, Glover couldn't figure out how to maximize his ability. But as Cooper and Glover still were climbing the low rungs on the PGA Tour ladder a few years back, the caddie extended a bet. If Glover ever won another event -- his lone professional victory came in 2005 at the FUNAI Classic at the Disney World Resort -- Cooper would buy him a Corvette. Standing on the 18th green Monday afternoon with the U.S. Open trophy all but in his hands, Glover knew he had to get it close. Get it close, and then tap it in. He did. And now Cooper has to pay up. "When that putt went in, he said, 'You owe me a 'Vette,' " Cooper said in his Southern drawl outside the clubhouse at Bethpage State Park. Once Glover gets his new wheels, you couldn't blame him if he cruised around the block every hour -- his U.S. Open trophy riding shotgun in the passenger seat. He should, especially after surviving the five-day, four-suspension stress test at Bethpage Black known as the 2009 U.S. Open and adding his name to an illustrious list on the silver trophy. But those who know Glover at all, know he won't. Putting the trophy in a visible place in his house might be too much. The man had just been crowned the champion of Golf's toughest major championship and less than an hour after he won, he was shy about showing off his new hardware. Of course, there's a lot about Glover that defies expectation. He was born and raised in South Carolina, but loves the Yankees and honeymooned with wife Jennifer in New York. He is surrounded by superstar golfers whose in-tournament "reading" constitutes studying the yardage books every Tuesday and Wednesday during practice rounds, but Glover has read four books since he arrived on Long Island, as much of a fan of authors Clive Cussler and Daniel Silva as course designers A.W. Tillinghast and Donald Ross. (He recommends "The Lost City of Z" by David Grann.) And even though he shot 3-over par in the final round of a U.S. Open, he won. "My expectations were high," Glover said after finishing at 4-under 276 -- two shots clear of Phil Mickelson, David Duval and playing partner Ricky Barnes. "But there's nothing guaranteed in this game. We all know that. But there's early bloomers, there's late bloomers and there are always bloomers -- in Tiger's case. . . . So maybe this will be the springboard, maybe it will be. Who knows?" If nothing else, it certainly picks him up off of the heap of players that had fans wondering "Who's that again?" this week at the Black Course. He also can take solace in the fact that he went out and won the title outright -- albeit, a little tough on the nerves -- and didn't back into it. He withstood charges from all contenders: Mickelson (2 under) and his gallery of well wishers; Duval (2 under) and his gallery of underdog lovers; Barnes (2 under) and his gallery of funky clothes lovers; and even Tiger Woods (even par) and his gallery of, well, everyone. While he wound his way through the back nine, Glover continued to hear the ever-increasing roars for Mickelson's theatrics up ahead. Down five shots when the fourth round resumed Monday morning, Mickelson had the Bethpage faithful believing this was going to be the year. He birdied the 12th hole by draining a putt from a mile away, then on the next hole he stuck his second shot to five feet and tapped in for eagle. "He was maybe three groups ahead," Glover said. "And I guess it's like what they used to say at Augusta: You could hear a 'Jack roar' at Augusta. You can hear a 'Phil roar' here. I knew something was going on, so I kept my eye on the board." That's another oddity about the new national champion -- he actively watches the leaderboard during a final round. "Football coaches don't coach the fourth quarter not knowing what the score is," he said this week. He knew the score when he made his go-ahead birdie on the 16th hole, just as Mickelson was tapping in for his second bogey in three holes on the 17th. In spite of all that, the 29-year-old was virtually unflappable during the final round. When Woods made his charge, Glover didn't blink. When Mickelson made his charge, Glover didn't blink. When Duval made his charge, Glover didn't blink. In fact, he played most of the round with a scowl on his face looking like he was losing badly to his best friend on a Saturday afternoon at Nassau. "That's every bit his personality to a T," said Jennifer, who met him off the 18th green with a hug and some tears. Seems pretty appropriate that the guy nobody knew, with the personality no one can figure out, won the U.S. Open that no one had ever experienced before. "People have a vision of him as a redneck, and he's so far from that," Cooper said. "He's a little misunderstood in that sense. But he don't care what people think. He can do a crossword puzzle before I can brush my teeth." So quick, what's an eight-letter word for how much Glover's U.S. Open victory is going to cost his caddie, Cooper? C-O-R-V-E-T-T-E. Results, D-6