After turning back clock, Watson's eager to look ahead -- all the way to Pebble Beach

Despite a weekend that could've gone a little better, Tom Watson enjoyed a wonderful week at Augusta National. And now, he's really hoping to get to play the U.S. Open in two months.

By Helen Ross, PGATOUR.COM Chief of Correspondents

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Tom Watson not only turned back the clock at the Masters Tournament this week, the indefatigable 60-year-old made a strong case for a special invitation to the season's next major championship.

Watson started the second round one shot off the lead and finished four rounds at Augusta National in 1 under. He's not sure whether his performance, coupled with last year's playoff loss at Turnberry, will sway the U.S. Golf Association, but he certainly hopes so.

"I would very much like to play the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach," Watson said. "It's my favorite golf course in the world."

Watson said he expects to hear something in the next week or two. In the meantime, he was savoring the experience at Augusta National, where his son, Michael caddied for him for the first time in a major championship -- and proposed to his girlfriend during a practice round.

"Sure, that was the highlight," Watson said. "Having your son ask you, 'hey, Dad, I got a great plan,' the plan came out perfectly. And on the 18th hole or on the 13th hole when we played together and his girlfriend was following us, it worked just right. 

"It was kind of a tearful day. It was just the way it should be."

Watson's opening round of 67 was his lowest since he shot the same score in the third round of the 1990 Masters. He shot 74 in the second round but still made his first cut at Augusta National since 2002 before shooting a pair of 73s on the weekend.

"It was a good week here that got off to a great start," Watson said. "I had one good round and three rounds that were just kind of the average rounds that I shoot here. A pair of 73s and a 74. That's just kind of too many mistakes that kind of killed me.
   
"Like Jack Nicklaus said in 1986 when he won, this is a young man's golf course and the putter has to work like a young man's putter does and mine didn't work. Mine worked like a 60-year-old putter did today.
   
"But I still I'm happy about the way I held in there today on the last day," he added. "And of course the first day was a wonderful day to shoot 67."

Watson, ever the competitor, still felt that he could have done better, though. The two-time Masters champion won the season-opener on the Champions Tour and tied for fifth at the Toshiba Classic. He also tied for eighth at the Dubai Desert Classic on the European Tour.

"My game was just a little bit off compared to the way it was at the beginning of the year," Watson said. "Maybe the Masters has something to do with that and the greens may have something to do with that, but I felt that I was capable of doing a little bit better than what I performed.
   
"But again I'm happy to be here, at 60 years old playing in Augusta National, the Masters, and having my son caddy for me, it's the experience of a lifetime."

So was the walk up the 18th fairway to a birdie putt that stubbornly stopped short of the hole. Watson was greeted by a standing ovation, as had been the case nearly everywhere he went all week. 

"It's a wonderful feeling to have the people treat me like they do," Watson said. "It's a great feeling. I know quite a few of them probably have seen me play a number of years here at Augusta National, and we have a commonality about it.

"I don't have too many years left here at Augusta National playing, it's just always nice to have that cheer coming up the 18th hole."