SLYNC.IO DUBAI DESERT CLASSIC

January 27, 2022

Tommy Fleetwood

Emirates Golf Club

Quick Quotes

Q. 5-under 67, give us your assessment of how well round one went for you today?

TOMMY FLEETWOOD: Played really, really well on the front. Back nine, tricky one really because the par 5s, couple of dodgy tee shots, easy to try it over-shape them on those holes. Laid up twice frustrating to finish like that but happy the way I bounced back on 14. Straightforward shots around the green that you've still got to take care of and two great shots into the last.

Happy to start a good round and just sort of, even though I didn't obviously shoot a really, really low one, but just to keep it going, and 5-under is a great start.

Q. How patient do you have to be, because you know you're going to get chances on this course, in case when things go wrong, stick in there and go through the same method because eventually you're going to get a chance?

TOMMY FLEETWOOD: Yeah, you are going to get chances but only if you hit it well. I'm far from the most experienced player, definitely since I've been coming here the last few years, the test is getting harder and harder. I actually really like the way it plays now, massive emphasis on driving the ball, if you don't drive it in the fairways with the firmness of the greens, especially at the moment, it gets very difficult and almost impossible to score. Like if you drive the ball well you are going to have a chance and you're going to have to stay patient, and I don't think you can really chase it that much around here. It's easy to get greedy and then you get caught out and that is when things get frustrating. But you know, it's really like a golf course where it's whoever the person is that plays best golf is probably going to be the guy that wins at the end of the week. Hopefully I can keep playing like I did on the front nine today. That would be very, very nice.

Q. Your approach from last week, obviously a totally different to test to here. How do you sort of change -- do you change your game plan at all when you come to a course like this which is totally different, especially conditions-wise?

TOMMY FLEETWOOD: At the moment, I'm very focused on my overall game. Obviously two aspects I need to improve. I need to be in the fairway a lot more with a driver and I need to be putting better, and I think whichever golf course I go to, those two things are going to be my main focus really I feel like.

For the most part, I'm not going to speak too soon, but I feel like if I do put it in the fairway that is giving me the best chance to score and I feel like I'm hitting my irons really nicely. I did two things well for the most part and I holed some nice putts and no matter what golf course I go to, that's going to be my main focus for the foreseeable future, get back to doing the things that I always did do so well, and taking it from there.