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ZURICH CLASSIC OF NEW ORLEANSApril 24, 2015Hudson SwaffordAVONDALE, LOUISIANA DOUG MILNE: Hudson, thank you for joining us for a few minutes. Off to a great start here after 36 holes of the Zurich Classic, 67, 66, and certainly probably going to be one of the few to play bogey‑free through 36 holes. So with that said, just some thoughts on the previous two rounds and heading into the weekend? HUDSON SWAFFORD: Oh, it was really solid golf. I'm looking forward to what the weekend has. I know the conditions are still going to be soft, so just continuing to game plan. I've done a really good job of kind of taking on the trouble, I guess maybe, per se, of the fairway bunkers and having good angles into the pins. That's what you've got to do on a Pete Dye golf course. It's not always about having the perfect drive in the center of the fairway, but the best approach shot into the greens because it makes it tough to bend. But I feel like I've done a good job of that and had a lot of chances. Just chipping well, and just really rolling it really nice. Seeing lines. My speed is really good, so it's kind of been, I'm not going to say stress‑free, but it's really I've given myself a good chance. DOUG MILNE: You started the year off on a good, strong note, especially the first three or four tournaments. How much steam did you have coming into the year coming off your rookie year last year? HUDSON SWAFFORD: Oh, I had a lot of high hopes. I saw some good golf playing out last summer. Ended up losing my card. I was kind of behind the 8‑ball when I started playing well, and that was kind of a bummer. But knew that I was playing great golf, so really went into the playoffs with a lot of confidence, got my card back, and continued in the first four or five events in the PGA TOUR season. Really, I'm not going to say‑‑ I've set the expectations high for the west coast, but playing well, I just thought I was going to kind of go in. I practiced hard over the winter. Thought I was going to play well, and actually had a really terrible west coast, didn't get too disappointed. Mechanically it wasn't great on the west coast. Made a few changes just a little before Bay Hill in my takeaway, back swing, and it's really kind of coming to and really kind of changed my stroke on my putting. My putting has been great for six weeks, seven weeks, just really solid. Q. Are you kind of surprised with the score considering you played probably in the rain yesterday afternoon and then today things very soft today? HUDSON SWAFFORD: I'm not too surprised with the score. I mean, it's soft conditions. The greens are actually good. They're getting spiked up, but I only had to really play one and a half holes in the rain, and really one shot when it was pouring. Actually, my ball was in the air on 13 with a wedge shot, and I wish I would have waited 30 seconds more so I didn't have to hit it. They blew the horn as the ball was in the air. But I ended up hitting the green and two‑putting for par. So really didn't have to play a ton in the rain. Came back out with some good rhythm, nice patience, and made a wedge shot on 18 to kind of get me going back again in the right direction. Q. Did you see these two rounds coming? And would you talk more about your plan to play a Pete Dye course? I found that really interesting. HUDSON SWAFFORD: Absolutely. The two rounds, you know, I have seen it coming, I really have. Last week I came off of a week I was actually sick. Kind of got a stomach bug and laid in bed for a few days. My energy level was low. Didn't get to practice much. But I really saw some solid golf at Bay Hill finishing 11th, being in a bad wave in San Antonio where 23 guys made the cut and I finished 30th. It was really solid golf. I wasn't disappointed with my 79 the first day. Really actually played solid at Houston, just didn't get much out of it and played rock solid last week. Then on Sunday I didn't make any putts, and that's probably the only round that I really‑‑ I'm not going to say struggled with my putting‑‑ but putts didn't fall. I tell you what, maybe sitting on the west coast and seeing this I would have been surprised, but not right now. I've seen a lot of good golf, seen a lot of good motions, displayed a lot of patience. So I'm not overly surprised with this. It's just when was it going to come out? Q. And then about the Pete Dye? HUDSON SWAFFORD: Yeah, and the Pete Dye courses, they're visually very intimidating and very tough. You know, I feel like you kind of have to take the trouble off the tee. If it's water, you might want to shy a little away from it. But fairway bunkers, stuff like that, holes like number 12, you've got to press that left fairway bunker to have a good shot into the green. It's a tough driving hole for me because I like to fade the ball. But I've really kind of worked on a draw off the tee, and it's really, I'm not going to say I've hit every fairway with a draw, but I've missed it in the appropriate spot. I've had good ball position. I've had the right approach shot into the green. The same on, I guess, No. 5. Yeah, 5. You've got to hug the left bunker to let the green open up. So I feel like I've done a good job of ball placement, per se, and controlling my golf ball. Q. Is playing Harbour Town that's a Pete Dye, are those similarities to the angles that you're talking about? HUDSON SWAFFORD: Oh, absolutely. Harbour Town didn't have much rough, and it doesn't have much rough, but it's very intimidating off the tee. You have to work it both ways and be on the right side of the fairway. It's not missing fairways there. You have to be on the correct side of the fairway. So I actually did drive the ball very well last week. That's why I was able‑‑ I didn't hit my irons great last week. That's kind of where the confidence got coming into this week and sort of hit my irons a little better, little more rhythm, little more reps. Really, it's just been kind of solid. Q. Going into the weekend with the lead and trying to win your first tournament, what are some of the motions you're feeling right now? Second, are you aware of the success of some of the other guys that have won this tournament in recent years getting their first win and what they've gone on to do? HUDSON SWAFFORD: Absolutely, yeah, Billy Horschel for one of them. FedExCup Champion last year. This seems like a big‑time like first‑time winning spot. The emotions aren't flying high. There is still a lot of golf left. I'm just proud and happy with the way I'm controlling the golf ball, placing the golf ball on the greens. I haven't really shortsighted myself. I haven't really been crazy out of position. Always had a nice shot into the green, so kind of been just proud of the ball placement that I've had. Q. Did you have any technical thoughts going through your mind today? HUDSON SWAFFORD: Not really. Not so much technical, just good rhythm. Each and every day I just kind of come out and try to‑‑ if I have good control over my rhythm, I'm usually going to hit it well. The way I feel like my putter has been for a while, I'm going to have a chance, so just concentrating on my rhythm. Q. What is your plan for this evening? How will you prepare for tomorrow? HUDSON SWAFFORD: I'm probably going to go eat some mud bugs with my wife, some crawfish downtown, just walk around, see the sights. We love to kind of‑‑ especially New Orleans, we're both from the southeast, so good food. We'll probably go to a good meal, maybe get up with Harris English and his girlfriend and go to dinner. But got to see the sights here and take in the good food while we're here. Q. Brendon de Jonge came in with 10‑under and said that wasn't going to hold up. Do you think 11 might have a chance if conditions hold like they are now? HUDSON SWAFFORD: Yeah, I don't know. Especially the way Boo played and a couple others yesterday. It's going to get a little windy this afternoon, but with the soft conditions, you know, I think maybe 12 will be leading at the end of the day. But my day is over, so I can't control that. I'm not really worried about going into tomorrow with the lead or not. It's just where you are. You're playing yourself. So I got off to a really solid start, great patience, good rhythm throughout the last two days. So just take that into tomorrow. Q. The way the Jazz Fest is going on too, by the way, and when you're trying to win your first tournament and you're actually in contention, what is your philosophy about relaxing or enjoying yourself away from the course? Do you worry about how much that's going to zap your energy, or do you watch a little bit while you eat and stuff like that? HUDSON SWAFFORD: Yeah, I still want to take it in. I probably won't go to Jazz Fest only because of the weather. I would like too, but maybe a late tee time tomorrow is not going to let that happen. Maybe potential rain this afternoon probably won't deal with it, but still want to get around downtown. Maybe my wife will buy us cabs instead of walking all the way around, but you never know. Yeah, while we're here you've got to kind of take it in. I'm not going to spend a ton of energy walking around all the town and seeing all the sights. But definitely want to hit a few spots up. We've got some really close friends that live here, and one of her close sorority sisters live here. So her and her fiancee, I'm sure we'll get up with them and take us to a couple local spots. While you're here in New Orleans, you have to take in a few sights. Q. And the wind really picked up. You can hear it blowing right now, over the last couple holes you played in. I just wanted to know, was that tough to deal with? Was it a little more challenging, or do you feel that prepared you a little bit for tomorrow? HUDSON SWAFFORD: Yeah, it is definitely challenging. Especially coming in with like 16, 17, and 18. You've got to step up and hit a lot of good shots on those holes. I didn't hit a good tee shot on 16 or 17. I was kind of rushing. We got put on the clock at 15, as we probably should have been. But hit a great recovery shot on 16, talked about it with my caddie, and hit a great shot there. Ended up making birdie. 17 was just a little quick, little high and spiny, but just missed it in the right spot. Just short, chipping straight uphill, and ended up getting up and down. It was a pretty easy chip. So, like I said, happy with the ball placement. I'm not saying every shot was perfect, but happy with the ball placement. Q. This might have been your first answer, and I think I missed it. But what would you say would be the highlight shots or most critical shots of your round where you had to make a strategic decision on? HUDSON SWAFFORD: I'd say on 12 today. Kind of talked about it. Got up there, the tee was up, not a great wind for me on that hole. It was hard kind of left to right, so fairway is already getting small for me with the fade. Kind of talked about it with my caddie, D.J. We were thinking driver, and I was like, man, the fairway gets really narrow. I wasn't a hundred percent committed to it. I ended up hitting a draw 3‑wood just into the bunker. Like I said, the bunkers are compact. They're perfect, the fairway bunkers, so had a really nice shot into the green. Cut it a little chunky, but landed it on the front fringe. It was an easy par as opposed to hitting a shot I wasn't a hundred percent committed to. No telling what would have kind of happened. But I missed it on the appropriate side of the fairway. Had a clean, easy shot into the green, and ended up with an easy par. Q. Is that a decision you may not have made a year ago? Does that show your seasoning out here? HUDSON SWAFFORD: Yeah, I think so. I've done a lot of work with Dr.Gio Valiante. He says you can't ever hit a shot that you're not a hundred percent committed to, and I felt like I was going to run out of room with some of the wind right there. So I stepped out, kind of took ego out of it and just accepted it. There are a number of holes, four or five holes out here for me that were just good par holes, so that's one of them. I kind of took the ego out of it and just accepted that 4 is a really good score here. Doesn't matter what you've done. It's not going to dictate how you're going to play this hole different, but you've got to do the right‑‑ have to have good ball placement on this hole. Q. I know you went through a couple of them, but if you wouldn't mind running through your birdies there and give us some clubs and yards? HUDSON SWAFFORD: Yeah, No. 1, right out of the gate. Actually hit a great 5‑wood right down the middle, had a really good number I think it was like 138‑ish. I was just really stocked, pitching wedge, and hit it to five feet and rolled it in. That was a good way to get the day going. 4, I hit 3‑wood. That is another one that kind of to my eye doesn't set up great for a driver, so I like to hit 3‑wood off that tee, especially depending on the wind. If it's into it, I'll hit driver, obviously. But if you showed some discipline there, hit 3‑wood, hit a 7‑iron. It was a good number with a 7‑iron. Hit it three feet and ended up making it. 7, the par‑5, went for it. Hit a good drive right down the middle. Went for it, left myself in the correct spot just a little left of the green. Chipped it back up the hill, had plenty of green to work with. Chipped it to a foot, which was nice, a little stress free birdie, and you'll take those anytime you can get it. 11, it was kind of not the best drive, in the right rough, and perfectly up and a good little wedge shot in there. It was kind of a tough pin. Was really happy with my tempo on my wedge shot. It was one of those you have to get to the hole and control, and not let it spin because it's right on a ridge. So really happy with that one. And 15 and 16, it was kind of 16 maybe got a little lucky with the 7‑iron laying just short of the green rolling out because it was coming out of the rough. And 16, which was another one I just kind of landed it perfect right on the front and let it trickle out of the rough. Rolled to about 8, 10 feet and rolled it in. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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