GULLANE, Scotland – For a few long moments, it seemed the weight might never let Adam Scott stand up.
Sitting back on his haunches, resting that broomstick putter against his forehead, Scott struck a lonely pose on Royal Lytham's 18th green last year after his 8-foot par attempt slid past. After four consecutive bogeys, the British Open crown that seemed his an hour earlier now belonged to Ernie Els.
"I'm sure there will be a next time," Scott said later, "and I can do a better job of it."
Some wondered whether the soft-spoken Australian would be scarred for life.
The memories certainly cannot be sidestepped this week as golf's elite descend upon Muirfield to contest the 142nd British Open. Scott, however, arrives not as a tragic figure but rather as a major champion in search of more.
"Every tournament, I feel, is an opportunity for me now," said the reigning Masters champion, who became the first Australian to wear the green jacket with his triumph on the second hole of a rain-pelted playoff at Augusta in April.
"I haven't won the Open because of the Masters," Scott added. "I still miss out on that. But I'm really looking forward to going back and trying to get myself in a similar kind of situation — a chance to win the Open."
Whatever happens, redemption will not be the Scott narrative. That has been taken care of.