SONOMA — Tom Watson couldn’t get into his e-mail account when he returned home from the British Open in late July.

“My e-mail broke down,” he recalled Wednesday.

“I had so many e-mails coming in.

“It just said, ‘Nope, I’m not doing this anymore.’ You know how computers are. Just couldn’t handle it.”

Watson can’t put a finger on just how many e-mails he had following his runner-up finish at the Ailsa Championship Course in Turnberry, Ayrshire, Scotland, but estimated that they were in the thousands.

Fortunately, he got his computer back working again and was able to retrieve every one of them.

They were from people expressing their congratulations, well-wishes and support in honor of Watson’s magical play at 59 years of age at the 138th Open.

Watson is in the World Golf Hall of Fame, is a six-time PGA Player of the Year and has won eight major championships and 39 events on the PGA Tour. But the response that he received from golf fans from all around the world after nearly pulling off one of the all-time great stories in sports history — when he lost a four-hole playoff to Stewart Cink — was emotional and heart-warming.

“They responded from e-mail to a pat on the back to letters to all sorts of different ways of communicating that really humbled me,” Watson said. “The enormity of the response was unforeseen.

“I was just trying to win a golf tournament when I was doing it. A lot of people were there pulling for me, and I knew that. But afterwards, the response from the people in America and around the world, it was very special.”

After he completes play in the $2.5 million Charles Schwab Cup Championship — the season-ending event on the Champions Tour at the Sonoma Golf Club — Watson plans to take time during the offseason and personally answer each e-mail and letter that he received.

“I’ve been answering the letters,” said Watson. “I’ve still got a big box of letters that I still haven’t answered. They’re all in a special folder right now. I’ll answer those.”

Watson came so very close to winning a record sixth British Open Championship, shooting scores of 65, 70, 71 and 72 to tie Cink in regulation after making bogey on the 72nd hole. He fell short in his bid to become the oldest winner of the event.

Watson captured his first Claret Jug at Carnoustie in 1973. He won the Vardon Trophy for lowest scoring average three straight years (1977, 1978, and 1979). He played on four Ryder Cup teams (1977, 1981, 1983 and 1989) and captained the victorious 1993 team. He was voted the Bob Jones Award in 1987, the highest honor given by the United States Golf Association in recognition of distinguished sportsmanship in golf.

This week, he’s back in the area as one of the top 30 players on the Champions Tour money list who qualify for the Schwab Cup. Watson is a two-time winner of the points-based competition, taking titles in 2003 and 2005.

“Tom’s the best. I mean, he’s such a great player and a great guy,” said Fred Funk. “But his skill level is so high, and when he plays, he competes every week. Tom is always a great addition to any field we have.”

The winner of this year’s Schwab tournament will receive $442,000 in first-place prize money. The winner of the season-long competition gets a $1 million annuity, with additional prizes awarded to the next four players.

Watson — who was three shots back of John Cook (130) after two rounds Friday with a 64 — said he has positive feelings on the Sonoma course, a par-72, 7,111-yard layout.

“I feel like I can make some birdies. I can get on a run and make a lot of birdies here. The negative right now is my short iron game is lacking right now. When I played here well, my short iron game has been right on.

“You need to drive it well, and I have been driving it well. And that’s not a given, but it makes life a lot easier when you’re hitting the ball out of the fairway all the time. My short iron game could be a little bit sharper.”

The critical holes that you need to play well on, Watson said, are 7 through 12.

“You play those holes well, you’ll do well on this golf course. You can make some birdies on those holes. But you have to do a lot of things right there on those holes to get yourself in position for birdies.”

Watson missed last year’s Schwab Cup due to having total hip replacement surgery in early October of 2008.

He led the PGA Tour money list five times and was the No. 1-ranked player in the world from 1978 through 1982.