FARMINGDALE, N.Y. - It didn't take long for Tiger Woods to be asked about next month's British Open and his pursuit of golf's Grand Slam.

Shortly after Woods had finished the 102nd U.S. Open on Sunday night on the Black Course at Bethpage State Park, he was asked on national television about his trip to Muirfield, Scotland. It came up later in a news conference.

"Right now, I could care less about it," Woods was saying about an hour after his three-shot victory over Phil Mickelson. "I'll be honest with you: I want to celebrate this one. It's going to be awhile before I start working on my links game."

There is another kind of links game going on with Woods. His latest victory - his eighth major championship and the 32nd on the PGA Tour in less than six years - was another link that connected Woods with many of the game's legends, one in particular.

Woods now trails Jack Nicklaus, the record holder and the player against whom all are measured, by 10 major championships. He has surpassed Arnold Palmer (seven) and tied Hall of Famer Tom Watson (eight).

The only player to have won the four professional majors in succession - he won the 2000 U.S. Open, British Open and PGA Championship as well as the 2001 Masters - Woods is the first player since Nicklaus in 1972 to win the Masters and U.S. Open in the same year.

Is the single-season Grand Slam possible?

"I've won the Slam before," he said. "I've won four major titles in a row, and no one has ever done that. And that's something I'm proud of. You can call it what you want. But when I was at home, I had all four trophies on my mantel.

"I think the buildup on the British Open will be certainly a lot different from what I had to deal with going into Augusta. Dealing with seven months of every single tournament I played in, I got asked that question."

Those who have fallen to Woods, particularly Mickelson, are now resigned to being asked about what it is like always having to play for second.

Mickelson, who turned 32 Sunday and is still pursuing his first major, seems to be coming to grips with his own place in history.

"As far as gaining on Tiger, that's hard to say," Mickelson said. "I certainly feel as though I'm becoming a better player. Over the last two years, I certainly feel as if my game is improving, and my level of consistency is improving, and I'm able to compete more regularly, week in and week out."

As for beating Woods, Mickelson shrugged.

"He's a wonderful player," Mickelson said. "I know I have a lot of work to do to break through when he is in the field."

Nick Faldo, who revived his sagging career here by finishing tied for fifth, knows something about what Woods and his opponents are going through. Faldo was once the No. 1 player in the world, with three Masters and three British Opens on his resume.

"I set my mind on winning some," said Faldo, who won two of his British Open titles at Muirfield. "I know he's doing that with regularity. That shows the inner strength he has. That's the toughest thing the guys have [to overcome]. They won't be [winning] until Tiger has had enough, and I have a sneaking suspicion that Tiger is going to keep that inner strength for 10 more years."

Those who played with Woods here this weekend got to see that toughness up close and personal. On Saturday, Woods didn't make a birdie until the 15th hole. On Sunday, he bogeyed the first two holes; that cut his four-shot lead to two. It never got closer.

"You could probably say he won this tournament with his B game," said Ireland's Padraig Harrington, who played with Woods on Saturday. "If he can win like that, he can obviously win the next two. He'll be motivated anyway."

Said Spain's Sergio Garcia, who played with Woods on Sunday and slipped to fourth (six shots back) after a 4-over-par 74, "More or less we know everything about him, his composure and his way of hanging in there and just being able to recover when he needs to. ... I know he's going to win a lot more, but hopefully I'll be able to take something out of his reach."

PGA Tour veteran Jeff Maggert didn't paint a pretty picture for those trying to beat Woods.

"You know, it's safe to say that he's the greatest player that's ever been," said Maggert, who finished third. "I don't think you can compare it to Nicklaus or [Ben] Hogan or whatever. He's got 20 years ahead of him. There's no telling what he's going to accomplish. He might be winning tournaments when he's 60."

NOTE: Woods' victory at the U.S. Open on Sunday delivered the highest overnight television ratings ever for the second of golf's Grand Slam events.

Woods' riveting win over Mickelson was seen in more than 9 million homes, and had a record 9.3 rating and a 21 share for NBC.

The rating, a 33 percent increase over last year's U.S. Open won by Retief Goosen, was the highest for the U.S. Open since Nielsen Media Research began tracking overnights in 1975.

Each rating point for the broadcast networks represents 1,080,000 households, or 1 percent of the nation's estimated 100.8 million TV homes, and overnight ratings measure the largest markets, making up 63 percent of the United States. The share is the percentage of in-use TVs tuned to a given program.

The Associated Press contributed to this article