Considering that he just lost to Alex Corretja 6-3, 6-2 at the Tennis Masters Series tournament in Hamburg, Germany, Todd Martin is in a remarkably good mood. Maybe it's because he can still taste that "drown-your-sorrows cheeseburger" he had for dinner.

	Todd Martin says playing on clay is his greatest challenge.

The subject of this conversation, on the cusp of the French Open, is clay courts and why they seem so alien to American tennis players. Martin laughs in his room at the Hotel Intercontinental. This is something he understands. Only a few hours earlier, Corretja had dismantled Martin -- on clay.

"I was pretty impressed today," Martin says. "I was trying to attack him and turn it into a faster court. It's hard because he responds so well to it. Trying to play his game is ... torture."

This is hardly an uncommon response from Americans regarding clay.

Americans have landed on the moon and probed Mars. They have harnessed the atom, and Pamela Lee Anderson, for that matter. They have developed an unimpeachable model of capitalism.

So why can't they win on the red clay at the French Open?

Andre Agassi, of course, is the defending champion, but successful Americans in Paris are an exceedingly rare breed. Jim Courier won in 1991 and 1992 and Michael Chang became the youngest Grand Slam winner ever in 1989. Before that? Some 34 years earlier Tony Trabert was the last American man to win at Roland Garros.

Chris Evert (then Lloyd) won seven of 13 French Opens between 1974-86, but since then no American-born woman has won. Steffi Graf (six titles), Monica Seles (three) and Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario (three) have won 12 of the last 13. They were born in Germany, Yugoslavia and Spain, respectively. The 13th? Iva Majoli of Croatia.

Quite simply, Europeans grow up playing tennis on clay. Americans don't. And even if they have seen the green synthetic clay prevalent in the U.S., it is no match for the sticky, icky red clay of Europe.

		French favorites Who will master the red clay of Roland Garros this year? It is a wide open tournament with the usual and some highly unusual suspects: Men Andre Agassi, U.S.: Defending champion is the clear favorite; he has won three of the last four Grand Slams and been in all four finals. Gustavo Kuerten, Brazil: The 1997 champion knows how to win here. Magnus Norman, Sweden: No. 1 in the ATP Champions Race 2000 after winning in Rome. Alex Corretja, Spain: Won in Indian Wells and is healthy again. Cedric Pioline, France: Reached the U.S. Open semis a year ago and won in Monte Carlo. Yevgeny Kafelnikov, Russia: hasn't been playing well, but won here in 1996. Marcelo Rios, Chile Made the last two French quarterfinals; is struggling but always dangerous. Pete Sampras, U.S.: Has never won here, but has the talent to contend. Rising stars to watch: Lleyton Hewitt of Australia, Marat Safin of Russia, Ecuador's Nicolas Lapentii and 20-year-old Juan Carlos Ferrero of Spain. Women Martina Hingis, Switzerland: The Grand Slam that tennis people predicted Hingis would win first is the one that still eludes her. This could be the year for Hingis, who lost to Steffi Graf in last year's final and Iva Majoli in the 1997 title match. Venus Williams, U.S.: Has struggled with tendinitis in both wrists; won her first clay title (Hamburg) last year and could contend. Mary Pierce, U.S.: Adept on clay; she reached the 1994 French final at the age of 19 and won the 1997 Italian Open. Lindsay Davenport, U.S.: Has never reached the final here, but has the game (and the patience) to do some damage if her back is healthy. Conchita Martinez/Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario, Spain: Relentless returners who have a great track record (Sanchez-Vicario has played in five finals). But at 28, do they have the stamina to go all out for two weeks?

It is a vastly slower surface than hardcourts, which means it's easier to retrieve balls and harder to hit winners. Points last longer, which places a premium on patience, conditioning and intelligence.

Americans typically have been known to be wanting in some, if not all of these areas.

Martin, who grew up in Lansing, Mich., is not your typical ugly American on clay. He won the 1998 Barcelona tournament and embraces the nuances of claymation.

"The problem comes mostly from the way we're taught in America to play tennis," Martin says. "Most kids learn first and foremost how to hit the tennis ball. There's such a focus on that that you're seeing creativity, versatility and quality thought processes sort of take a back seat. And when that happens, frankly, we end up not being as good players as we should be."

When you've grown up drilling winners on hardcourts, it's a tough adjustment to make. Evert was a classic baseliner who was content to pick her spots, sometimes a dozen strokes into the point. Courier and Agassi both play inside the baseline and have the extraordinary reflexes to take the ball early and the mental tenacity to survive those obligatory five-set matches.

The Europeans, meanwhile, are right at home on clay.

"They are literally at home," says Brian Gottfried, the 1977 French Open runner-up and 1975 and 1977 doubles champion. "It's more that the Europeans are comfortable there than the Americans are uncomfortable.

"I needed time on it to gain confidence. If you play the French and one or two other tournaments and lose early, that's only three clay-court matches in a year. It can take you a few years to get enough experience and confidence to make the adjustment."

Rod Laver grew up in Australia playing on compacted cow dung, which plays very much like clay, and it prepared him for two French Open championships.

"People argue that if Americans played on clay, or the equivalent like Laver did, they'd feel more comfortable on it as professionals. Frankly, they'd be better players," said Peter Bodo, who has worked for Tennis Magazine for more than 25 years. "Bjorn Borg, Stefan Edberg and Boris Becker all grew up playing on clay, and it made them more well-rounded players."

How do you succeed on clay? Here's the dirt on dirt:

First, check your ego at the door. As Martin says, it is a game of creativity and patience. Martin, who at 6-foot-6, 205 pounds has a big game made for hardcourts, likes to end points. On clay, he forces himself to play with controlled aggression.

"There's a lot more that goes into the strategy and the construction of a point," he says. "You've got to plot your course a little bit more on clay. It can be frustrating. You can hit three, four, five shots that normally on a hardcourt give you quite an opening. On clay, you might only get a little bit of a tiny advantage in that point.

"That's the charm of playing on clay. I enjoy clay more than any other surface because it's the greatest challenge for me. I have to do things that aren't necessarily the best thing for me. It becomes a greater thrill to figure out how much I have to learn. You know, the things I learn that I didn't know I didn't know."

Listen to what Agassi said after defeating Andrei Medvedev in last year's French final.

"I'm a clay specialist," Agassi laughed. "No, it's too slow, too slow. It's very difficult. I mean, it's a discipline that requires a lot of focus. Once you settle into it and accept it, then it becomes a way of life and you don't notice it as much."

Martin on Agassi: "To win seven matches on those courts against guys who are one with the earth is asking way too much. He played a lot more defensive than he would on hardcourt, and it worked."

Martin on Courier's two titles: "Jim was the first guy who could get the ball to do almost what it does on a hardcourt. He hit it so much harder and so much more aggressively. He shocked guys."

Which brings us to Sampras, who has been nothing more than French Toast in Paris. Sampras has won a record-tying 12 Grand Slam titles, but none of them came at the French Open, where he is 0-for-10 with a pedestrian 23-10 match record. His record at the other three Grand Slams is 138-18.

After defeating Martin, of all people, in the 1998 French Open, Sampras discussed his strained relationship with clay.

"It's so hard to really play the way I want to play," he said. "I mean, I have to. It's the only way I'm going to give myself a chance here. I still want to be aggressive. I still want to come in. I want to use my serve. It's just tougher from the backcourt. It's tougher to get in. It's tougher to be forceful back there, not get impatient.

"The times I've gotten in trouble on clay is when I press a little bit, and I go for too much too soon. It's a fine line between being patient and aggressive. It's a learning process."

Sampras blew through the French Open field in 1996, beating a string of clay-court wizards, including two-time champion Sergi Bruguera, to get to the semifinals -- his deepest advancement. But the toll of four- and five-set matches proved too much. Sampras was rocked by eventual champion Yevgeny Kafelnikov, a superb physical specimen who annually plays more ATP Tour matches than anyone.

"The two words in Sampras' case are history and confidence," Bodo said. "Pete sat on the baseline in the '96 French Open and it cost him. He's really tried everything, from playing a lot of clay in Europe before the event, to not playing at all. None of those approaches has been particularly rewarding."

Martin believes Sampras needs to play the middle, not temper his game too much, or too little.

"He needs to tinker and modify his game, not recreate himself," Martin says. "He needs to understand the game is not quite as simple on this surface. You have to respect when you're in a defensive position.

"Pete's trademark is the running forehand. He takes a defensive position and turns it into offense position. Well, that doesn't happen so easily on clay. We've all learned how to hit very aggressive, point-winning shots. We haven't learned the dimensions of the court and how to best exploit them.

U.S. Davis Cup captain John McEnroe is faced with an intriguing decision before the July match in Spain, which will be played on clay. It was Martin who saved the United States with two heroic matches in Great Britain and played heroically in the quarterfinal loss to Australia.

Not only does Martin understand clay, he happens to have a terrific record against Spaniards on the surface. While Agassi and Sampras played in the last round, defeating the Czech Republic in Los Angeles, would Martin, America's No. 3 singles player, be a better bet than Sampras?

According to Martin, no.

"Davis Cup is a unique competition that seemingly has less to do with tennis than being a champion and being able to compete," Martin says. "Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras are the two best players we have. Rather than trying to dissect people's games, you should go with the best.

"On the other hand, I know some people who disagree with my opinion."

Perhaps this year's French Open, which opens Monday, will hold the answer.

Greg Garber is a regular contributor to ESPN.com.