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THE PRESIDENTS CUP

December 11, 2019

Gary Woodland

Melbourne, Australia

Q. Can you give us an update, how does DJ look these days?
GARY WOODLAND: DJ looks great. Not many people -- I would say outside of Tiger Woods can take that kind of break off and come back and look pretty good. He had a significant break before, and he came back and won Memphis. He looked great the last two days. Yesterday you could maybe say he was a little rusty early in the round, made some birdies late. Today he played great. I expect him to be playing quite a bit this week.

Q. How has your first team experience gone so far?
GARY WOODLAND: It's been awesome. You know, everything you dreamed it to be. I'm an old guy but I'm a rookie out here, so trying to avoid the hazing from Kuch and some other guys trying to haze me because I'm a little bit older than them and they're still trying to haze me, so that part's been interesting, but it's been fun. Excited. Luckily I think it helps, we got here Monday and we're ready to go on Thursday. We didn't have a lot of time. Ryder Cup guys told me it's a long week early in the week waiting until Friday. It's nice to get going tomorrow. I'm ready to go.

Q. What kind of hazing?
GARY WOODLAND: Carrying bags, unpacking bags, little needless stuff. When we get back home, I'll take care of Kuch myself. I can take care of him.

Q. Did you say no to that?
GARY WOODLAND: I didn't even try. I just did it. It's Kuch being Kuch. I can handle Kuch, though.

Q. You've been in team sports for a long time. Can you impress what it's like to be in a team atmosphere here?
GARY WOODLAND: It's been a long time since I've been in a team sport. The stuff that I am enjoying right now is the stuff that I miss. The bus rides, the team atmosphere, hanging in the team room, the hazing, messing around with the guys. That's the fun stuff. The practice rounds, I'm not a huge practice round guy. The last two days have been great. We're having a great time out there, and that's what it's all about. It's an individual sport, but you see a bunch of guys come together, and that's what makes this team event so special.

Q. Does it in some way make it easier to prepare to play golf when you are in this kind of atmosphere as opposed to just you and your caddie --
GARY WOODLAND: No question, you're definitely more engaged. For me relying on Kuch who's been here and played this golf course, it's nice having Zach Johnson and Freddy and Strick, guys that I've known for a long time, too, having them walk around with you and talk to you. So it's nice being surrounded by guys that have been here, done that. It's definitely easier because you're enjoying being out here. We're having a good time out here, which is huge. Sometimes in practice rounds you're playing the same course over and over again, and all you're looking to do is just really get your feet wet and get ready for Thursday. This week we're actually having a good time preparing. This is a tricky golf course, so trying to get familiar with some of the bounces, and looking forward to Thursday.

Q. Any adjustments from last week to this week, the bounce --
GARY WOODLAND: Yeah, that's been the adjustment. We played in a lot of wind last week, so that part we're used to, trying to work the golf ball. But the bounces, we don't see this anywhere else. I haven't seen balls bounce on the green like that. But that's what makes it fun. Even the British Open they don't bounce like that. But it just creates an imagination. Now you've got to work the golf ball, now you've got to ride the winds and make some adjustments, but it's a lot of fun out there, too. This golf is different from home. Home tournaments, sometimes it can get a little boring. You hit it up in the air and it lands next to the pin and stops. Now you've actually got to think a little bit.

Q. What was the last game you played in a team sport? Was it college basketball?
GARY WOODLAND: College basketball, we lost in the second round of the NCAA tournament, Division II, so that would have been 2003. Kuch and I obviously played the World Cup together in 2011, China.

Q. That doesn't count, that's just a duo thing -- we're talking about a whole team here.
GARY WOODLAND: Obviously in college you're playing golf there, on a team. I played USA-Japan matches my senior year in college. That was probably the last time.

Q. And then what did you do in that NCAA game?
GARY WOODLAND: We lost at the last second. I don't remember how I played, but I remember losing. That part was pretty sad.

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