THE 151ST OPEN

July 23, 2023

Adam Scott

Mixed Zone

Q. That's a great way to finish.

ADAM SCOTT: Yeah, it's hard to know. If the wind blows like it has been, then probably not. It's getting hard to manage. Everything is so wet, I think, with the wind, but I was lucky I had the first 10 holes kind of dry; then played the back nine in the rain.

It's a nice way to finish. I did today what I needed to do the other days and I would have had a nice week, but I finished poorly every other round. Just kind of made up the numbers this weekend.

Q. We haven't seen much of you this week. Has it been a frustrating week?

ADAM SCOTT: Yeah, I was just a bit out of sorts with the swing, really, and it's easy to be critical when you're not up there contending. A little out of rhythm and also middle two rounds I just didn't make a putt. Not putting poorly, just nothing fell. Couldn't get any momentum going.

As guys get momentum going, you kind of space yourself far, far from the lead. That's how it went. It's a shame because I love The Open, and it would be fun to be in the mix.

Q. So many 22, 23 Opens now --

ADAM SCOTT: Something. A lot. It's getting too many to count.

Q. Do you get the same sort of thrill playing here?

ADAM SCOTT: Absolutely. It's incredible. It's kind of the reason I still work hard at my game, thinking I could have a chance to get that other hand on the jug that I was so close to getting.

That's what I'll be working at over the next 12 months, to come back and have another crack and be in good form and maybe steal a trophy later on in my career.

Q. It's on your birthday, isn't it, every year? Each time you come back do you think, I'm still enjoying it so I'm going to come back?

ADAM SCOTT: Yeah, I think while I'm still feeling like I'm really playing relevant golf, which I think I am, it's very hard to play at the top level forever. It's not going to happen. But on a given week, I think I can still.

I'm hoping for it to show up at the four big ones. But I'm also at that point in my life where it's harder to balance everything, and I think every year it's worth having a look at kind of how you're scheduling and how you're preparing and what your priorities are as far as the golf goes, and I'll certainly do that as I make a plan for next year's kind of major season.

Q. That's your priority now, is it, the majors?

ADAM SCOTT: It really is. Of course there are other -- there are some things that I'd like to achieve still, but the majors are at the top of that list.

I really feel like if you get in kind of a rich vein of form for a four-month stretch, you could bag a couple. We've seen lots of guys do it in the past few years.

I think that's still motivating me to stay fit and healthy and keep playing well.

Q. Can I ask about Jason? It's good to see him contending today. Does that give you a thrill when guys like him come sort of --

ADAM SCOTT: Yeah, absolutely. He had a -- maybe it was his first little dip in his career. He was pretty much on a path to stardom and World No. 1. It happens to I think everybody, actually, in the game. Even thinking of Nicklaus when you think of that, I don't know, '79 or something he was playing terrible. He had a year where he played poorly. It happens to everyone. He's worked really hard to get back.

I'm not surprised. It's very hard to maintain the highest level indefinitely. It just doesn't happen. That intensity falls off, and you can get yourself in a bit of a rut.

Golf is a hard game anyway.

Q. You're 43 now and still playing as well as you are, still in the top echelons of the game, that's quite an achievement. Do you sometimes ever sit back and think that, that I'm still going bloody well?

ADAM SCOTT: Yeah, I think I'm hanging in there pretty good because I'm seeing a lot of the people I came out on Tour with not on the Tour, some through injury, some through not playing well.

It's much harder to stay up. The early and mid 20 somethings are much better than they were 10 and 20 years ago. They're taking up a lot of the spots for the mid 40 guys.

It's hard to stay on Tour and play such a heavy schedule when there's 47 events with points and things like that, and young guys can play a lot. I think at this point I've played so many tournaments that it's hard to be on the road week after week after week. That's one of the challenges. But that's how it is.

Q. There's one other thing this week. You've got a new fan, that lad that you hit accidentally with the drive. He's now a new big fan of Adam Scott.

ADAM SCOTT: Oh, is he? You've got to hit someone over the head to get a fan. Not great. Yeah, I felt for him. Probably ruined his day. But I think he's okay.

Q. He was, and in the end it was all hunky-dory for him, social media, et cetera, et cetera.

ADAM SCOTT: Oh, okay. Well, I'm glad he's okay. Hopefully his headache wasn't too bad.