On believing his time to win a Major had finally come . . .

“You never really think that up until you’re on the 18th green with a couple of shots ahead. You never know what’s going to happen. I got a couple of good breaks that went my way. (On Saturday) I played as good as I could play from tee to green and I didn’t really get anything out of it. (Sunday) I played not bad; I played okay. Got a couple of good breaks that went my way. Also at the same time hit lots of great putts today which burnt the edges and doesn’t go in. So it sort of balanced out.

“But there’s times you can get a couple of good breaks but it could have easily just gone the other way, and that’s the game, that’s links golf and that’s the way it is. I actually did not take anything for granted until it was on the back edge of the 18th green there. You can’t take anything for granted.”

On keeping his emotions in check . . .

“I’m just older, just a little bit older and allegedly a little bit wiser. But I certainly had a few thoughts going through my head when I was walking on to the green on 18 because at that stage I could have four putts from there, and even I figured I could manage to get down in four from the edge of the green there. But the few thoughts, thinking about the past, and then again with the “Beeb” doing an interview and then making a speech, but you know, I can only be as normal as I am.

“So if I didn’t feel a little bit emotional it wouldn’t quite be right. I was but just about managed to cling on to it.”

On his perseverance . . .

“You know, bad times in golf are more frequent than the good times. I’ve always been pretty hard on myself when I fail because I don’t find it very easy to accept that.

“And there’s times I’ve been completely and utterly fed up with the game. But friends and family and Chubby (Chandler) say, ‘get out there and practice and keep going, keep going, keep going’.”

On future ambitions . . .

“To win another couple of these. You know, what can I do? Can I say that’s it, I’m going to retire now? I can’t. I’ve got to keep on playing. To be the Open champion is just incredible. I’ve got to go back now, reassess and set some more goals.

“I’ve spent a bit of time earlier this year with a guy called Mike Finnigan from i2i Sports and we wrote down all my goals and stuff and blah, blah, blah and a few of them was to be sitting at Christmas and having won a couple of tournaments, and back in Augusta (for the US Masters) again next year to get myself back on track, and obviously I’ve achieved that now.

“It’s all good, but I need to reassess now and figure out some more goals. I don’t just want to rest on this. I want to keep on going, keep on working on what I’m working on because my golf was obviously very good this week, albeit it was links and links does suit me. But I still feel as if I can compete with the best players in the world, and that’s what I want to do. Obviously I can.”

On his plans to go on a Weight Watchers diet . . .

“I’ll probably get bored with it in a week and give up. I think this could probably be a bad week for me to try and start. I think every time there’s five points in a pint of Guinness, I think it’s a real bad week for me to start. With Chubby doing it, I can’t get away from listening about him doing it.”

On the crowd support factor at Sandwich . . .

“They were sensational for me all week. They really were. The support they have given me through the bad weather as well as the good weather. They were all out there roaring and shouting. It was just brilliant to have that amount of support. It’s been a while since I’ve felt that amount of support. The fans could not have been any better for me . . . the reason I was telling the crowd to be quiet when Dustin (Johnson) was going to play, that’s golf etiquette, that’s manners, that’s politeness, that’s the way the game should be played. Yes, the roars and shouts for me were wonderful and I really, really enjoyed them, but whenever another player, a fellow professional is trying to win the Open Championship, as well, and he’s about to hit his golf shot, it’s only right I try and get the crowds to give him the respect they give me.”

“On why Northern Ireland produces one Major champion after another . . .

“I don’t know. We’re blessed to have obviously two fantastic players in Rory and G-Mac, and I’ve just come along, the old guy coming along behind them. You know, we’ve just been lucky. We have fantastic golf courses, we have fantastic facilities, but to have three Major champions from a little small place in a short period, it’s just incredible . . . Northern Ireland is a very small place and it’s all a very close-knit community and everyone is very pleased for our sporting guys that do well, and I’m pleased to join them.”

On what it means to win the Claret Jug . . .

“To sit here and talk in front of you guys with this trophy being the Open champion just means the world to me . . . I’ve got here in the end. It may be the only major I win, it may not be the only major I win. But at least I’ve gone out there and did my best, and my best was good enough to win. If I had come off and hadn’t won, I could still have said I did my best. I can’t ask for anything . . . I ask my two boys to do their best and that’s what they do. I can’t ask them for any more, so I think their dad should try and do the same.”

On the prospects of a British Open at Royal Portrush . . .

“That’s where I would like to see it. There are logistics the RA have to take a look at, and they have done, and at the moment they can’t see a way of having it there, so it’s very tough. I wish there was some way around it and I hope at some stage they will find a way around it because the golf course is every bit as good as any of the Open venues and is good enough to be in the Open rota. Hopefully they will figure a way around the logistics . . .”

On his bond with Phil Mickelson . . .

“Phil has been through an awful lot with Amy and what have you, and we have spoken quite a lot. He has turned into also a very good friend of mine through thick and thin, and he said some very, very kind words to me there after the thing, which is great. And Amy is looking fantastic, as well. In the 2006 Ryder Cup at The K Club, the way that we walked out – the Europeans were alphabetical and the Americans were whatever way they qualified, so I was C, so I was on my own, and Amy and Phil were walking opposite me . . . and Amy stood in the middle and held both our hands. I can’t say anything more about it than that.”

On being relegated to a “cheerleader” role for McIlroy and McDowell before his win . . .

“I have been working away on my game, and the two guys deserve all the attention and credit they get. You know, I haven’t given you guys too much to write about, so I can’t have any qualms whatsoever, can I? That’s the way the world works . . . I will always support the two guys because they’ve been fantastic.”

On being spurred on by McIlroy’s win in the US Open . . .

“I enjoy Rory, I enjoy playing with him, I enjoy being friends with him, I enjoy . . . watching how he hits the golf ball. It’s wonderful. In terms of, ‘do I still want to play and compete against him and try and beat him?’, of course I do and I planned to do it. He’ll probably beat me more often than I’ll beat him.”

On why his win was so popular . . .

“Because I’m a bit of a normal bloke, aren’t I, really? I like to go to the pub, have a pint, jump on Easyjet, fly home, buy everybody a drink, just normal. There’s not many airs and graces about me. I was a little bit more difficult to deal with in my earlier years, and I’ve mellowed some. Just a little bit. But I’m just a normal guy playing golf, having a bit of fun.”