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RBC HERITAGE

April 17, 2019

Dustin Johnson

Hilton Head, South Carolina

JOHN BUSH: Dustin, first of all, before we talk about the competition, just talk a little bit about being back at the RBC Heritage.

DUSTIN JOHNSON: Yeah, for me it's the only tournament in my home state. I came here my first couple of years on Tour, didn't really have a lot of success. And then obviously being a Team RBC Ambassador I came back last year and really liked the course. I always liked the course. But had a little success last year. And so for me to come here and play for my home state, I've got a lot of family and friends who get to come down and watch me. It's a really nice week.

Q. Solid finish in the Masters. After you've had a couple of days to reflect on it. What's the take away?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Yeah, it was good. Obviously I had a little bit of a chance there on Sunday, which was nice. And I felt like -- I knew going into the back nine I needed to play really well and I did.

And I hit a few good putts there on 12 and 14 that I thought I made and just kind of burned the edges, which kind of putts I really needed to make.

Then the one on 18 I just misread.

I gave myself the opportunity. And I felt like I performed really well when I needed to in that situation. So I'm pleased with it. Obviously one stroke, I definitely could have found that somewhere. But, yeah, I mean all in all it was a good week. I played well when I needed to.

Q. Definitely one of the most successful players the last decade or so. But being out there and listening to the roars from Tiger what was it like for you, just sort of experiencing that as a player and knowing him as well as you do?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Yeah, I mean it was good. Obviously it's great for the game what Tiger did. All it does is increase the notoriety for golf. He moves the needle. So for us it's good.

And obviously for me to be competing against him when he's coming back is a lot of fun. He's still a great player. I enjoyed it because I grew up watching him and kind of idolizing him. So to get to play with him and play against him it's been great.

Q. You mentioned the success here last year. Obviously you like the big ballparks. This is much different. Do you change the strategy? Do you sort of enjoy doing something different than your normal game?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Yeah, the golf course is really good. It's tight. It's tree-lined. It's kind of position golf. If you're playing well or if I'm playing well I enjoy any golf course. So if I'm hitting the ball where I want to, it doesn't matter what kind of course it is, I like it. And this is the kind of golf I grew up playing. It's something I'm used to. Last year I had some success and I'm looking to have some more success this year.

Q. Obviously a different test from last week to this week. Can you talk about how your game might change this week compared to how you played last week?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Honestly it doesn't really change. Last week the course was long. But even the fairways are big. They're still kind of tight the way they position the bunkers, and the slopes and the fairways, you're still trying to hit it to a certain spot. So it's actually a good preparation for this week as far as because you've got to hit your numbers. These greens are really small. Last week the greens were big, but very small quadrants. There's a lot of similarities, even though the golf course may not look anything alike. But the kind of golf you've got to play is very similar because you're trying to place it in certain spots.

Q. Does your preparation change now that we've got another major staring down in a month instead of two months in?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: No, I don't change my prep. It doesn't matter what tournament is coming up.

Q. Does it seem unusual that the PGA is sort of staring at you all of a sudden?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Not really. For me, I prepare for all tournaments the same. So for me it's another tournament. I played the course so it's not -- yeah, it's going to be different playing in May but it's still -- doesn't matter what time of year it is, it's still the PGA Championship.

Q. Coming up in South Carolina, people were aware of this tournament pretty much all your life, I'm sure. What was your impression of how important this tournament was to South Carolina, as far as bringing the attention of people here and being a golf haven?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Yeah, it's great for the state. It helps the grow the game for the juniors. RBC has done a great job with this event. I think this is the best field they've ever had this year. So it definitely helps the state. It helps the local community here. So I'm definitely proud to support it and help out in any way I can.

Q. Talk about defending the home state here today?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: It was just a fun little challenge for RBC. Me and Webb are good buddies, we grew up playing against each other in college, amateur golf. It was a lot of fun.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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