I'll have to go back and work on it."Like Faldo, Colin Montgomerie arived on Long Island with legitimate reasons to believe this would be his week. At the second he found a bunker and dropped a shot; at the third he went over the back of the green and accrued another bogey. From there he just stood still and his 11-over-par 291 was about 12 strokes more than he had bargained for "I suffered on Saturday," he said. "My short game wasn't there and when I needed to scramble I couldn't. ers are not reprieved in that way and Faldo, whose 79 on Saturday had ended his hopes, had to go to Shinnecock yesterday to physically return to what was already replaying in his mind.It was not a happy reunion. He completed his US Open with a 72, but the final round brought him no pleasure. Just a souvenir of waste.If you lose at Wembley or even a Rugby Union World Cup semi-final, you are at least spared a trip to your field of nightmares the next day.

It was his putter that let him down, missing all but one birdie opportunities from within 15 feet from the sixth to the 11th.If anyone needed reminding that you can want something too much it was Nick Faldo yesterday. I need to slow down and find some rhythm."After his missed chance at the first, however, he followed that up by three-putting the second and fourth and eventually finished with a five- over-par round of 75 and a total of 287. "If I could get the ball on the fairway, I could score well," he had said "I'm swinging too fast on the tee like an amateur. He began the final round three strokes behind the leaders, but once he missed a chance for a birdie - a 12-foot putt on the first - the impression grew that he was not going to make a sustained run at claiming his second major, to complement his 1991 Masters.Only a last-round 67 at the Hamburg Open last week had suggested the Welshman was coming out of a slump that had included missed cuts at his three previous tournaments, so some people, possibly even himself, must have been rubbing their eyes when his name appeared in joint fifth place after the third round.A good start was necessary to reinforce confidence that was still fragile even after his 69 on the Saturday. At the 12th, 13th and 17th he was wayward and consequently reaped bogeys.He finished with a successful eight-foot putt to end on 282, one ahead of his fellow overnight leader, America's Tom Lehman, who had a four-over- par 74.Ian Woosnam's challenge never really got going. The Australian can find any number of ways to self-destruct, but yesterday his work on the tee proved to be the weak link.

"I had prayed this would happen," he said, "and it's wonderful now that it has. I just feel fortunate that I've come out ahead."Three behind the leaders at the start, Pavin, who has won 11 events on the US Tour, did not make his move until the final 10 holes, which he completed in three under regulation. A 12ft putt at the 12th ensured he was one of four players on one over, and when he birdied the 15th from 10 feet, he was in the lead for the first time.Norman, who has blown more winning opportunities in major championships than any other golfer, succumbed again on the final nine holes. Pavin crowned his day with a glorious four wood to four feet at the final hole. Golf GUY HODGSON reports from Shinnecock HillsCorey Pavin, who was arguably the best current player without a major, removed himself from the running yesterday when he won the centennial US Open here.

On a day of escalating scores, the American's final round of 68, three under par, was a jewel among many flawed stones.The wind blew at Shinnecock yesterday, playing on swings and nerves while drying greens until they were hard and seriously fast. The result was a string of high numbers for the leaders and Pavin, nicknamed "the Bulldog" by his compatriots for his fighting qualities in the Ryder Cup, holding the prize.His level-par 280 total left him two shots ahead of Greg Norman who, not for the first time, failed to deliver. "This has doubled my money this season and has secured my card for next year I am so proud of myself," Robertson said.. He collected pounds 33,330 after scoring five birdies, the best of which came at the 190-yard 14th when his two-iron landed two feet from the pin. This was a good test to try the things we have been working on I was in control and I enjoyed it. In a pressure situation I kept my composure better than before."Robertson, a Tour rookie, has made a flying start after gaining his card last year at qualifying school.