home

jobs

	products recent interviews FastScripts archive about ASAP Sports

Our Clients:

Browse by Sport

Find us on

Subscribe to RSS

Click to go to
Asaptext.com

View our
e-Brochure

THE INTERNATIONAL

August 11, 2006

Sergio Garcia

CASTLE ROCK, COLORADO

THE MODERATOR: Sergio Garcia, thank for joining us. 6 points yesterday; 10 today. Looks like you're in a great position heading into the weekend.

SERGIO GARCIA: Yeah. I mean, we'll see what happens this afternoon. But if the weather stays like it was this morning, it's not going to be easy for the other guys out there. So hopefully I won't be too far away from the lead.

THE MODERATOR: You played some great golf at the British Open over across the pond, and obviously in contention this week. You're doing some really good things.

SERGIO GARCIA: Yeah. Played three weeks in Europe. Played the Scottish Open; finished 9th.

And then, of course, the British, and then I played in Germany and finished 9th again. But the game a definitely coming around. I feel like, you know, I'm driving the ball a lot better than I was for a while.

My putting had improved a lot. My short game is getting better every week. And, you know, this week was no different.

I definitely would like to hit a couple shots again that I had and a couple of double bogeys that I made. One each day, and that puts you back a little bit in this format.

But overall, I felt like I played well. As I said before, it was very windy and gusty and difficult out there. Any time you're hitting a sand wedge from 181 yards on a Par 3 you know that something's not right.

THE MODERATOR: All right. We'll take some questions.

Q. What would you normally be hitting on that hole?

SERGIO GARCIA: Well, the funny thing about it it was the perfect club, too. It flew about five feet from the hole and swung back a little bit. Hit a great putt and lipped up.

But usually with no wind, usually hit about an 8 iron, maybe 9. So yesterday we played into the right. The wind kind of switched when I hit it, but I hit 8 and I hit it just over the green.

So today it was just funny, because we got to the tee and we converted the altitude and everything, and I think it was like 165. So it was downwind and downhill, so I'm looking at my caddie, Greg, and I'm like, Do you think we can get it with sand wedge? And he was like, Funny enough, I think that's the club.

And we hit it and it was the perfect club. But it's difficult to get yourself to hit it, because you know it's so far away. So I guess it was a bit of a, And we'll see what happens. Fortunately it was right.

Q. Could you go through your birdies and others today and let us know

SERGIO GARCIA: Well, I birdied 11. That was my second hole. I started on 10, so you want to start on 1 or

Q. However you want.

SERGIO GARCIA: I didn't hit a good shot with the 8 iron. Pulled it left and just missed the green and great chip in there from about 35, 40 feet.

Then on 15, I hit a nice 5 wood off the tee down over the green and hit a great ledge from 102 yards. Well, yeah, 102 meters. I'm converting. And we hit it to about a foot.

16, I tried to hit an 8 iron and I got it right and got a pretty simple chip. Not too difficult, but the ground underneath was a little firm and I didn't feel that and my club kind of bounced and it went over into the back bunker.

It was an impossible shot. And hit it just short and made double bogey there.

Then on 17, I hit a nice 5 wood off the tee again. I hit 7 iron onto the green and hit a great putt from about 45, 50 feet, and hit it to about two feet.

Then on 18, I hit 5 wood off the tee again. 9 iron just past then spun it back to about four feet, three and a half feet.

Then I missed a short one on 1 for birdie from about four feet.

And then on 2, I hit 3 iron off the tee. Hit a very nice 9 iron from 150 meters into the wind. Hit it to about probably about 12 feet and made that.

Then on 3, I tried to hit 3 iron off the tee down to the left and, you know, the wind kind of didn't turn it over. The wind took it at little bit and hit it just into the right rough. Pretty bad lie. Hit it right, short of the green. Chipped it from about 70 meters. Hit it pretty close to about maybe 8 feet, and unfortunately missed that.

Then on 6, I had I hit a 3 wood down the middle. Hit a very nice sand wedge from 105 meters into the wind on the right to about 2 feet. Then, of course, the 165 meter sand wedge on the next, and lipped up.

Then on 8, hit another good drive down the middle to about 240 meters up the hill. Hit 5 iron and just pulled it just lightly and hit it into that collective area left of the green putted it to about five feet for birdie.

And then a good save on the last for par. It was a good drive, what I thought was a good drive, and the wind switched a little bit from down on the right to kind of down on the left. The wind kind of kept cutting and bounced just on the fairway into the water.

Hit a good lob wedge from there from 92 yards and hit it to about 7 feet past the hole and made that for par.

Q. Sergio, I have a Ryder Cup question for you. With Darren Clark, his chances to making the Ryder Cup team were looking kind of slim. What does it mean to you having him as a teammate? What kind of impact do you think he would have on the team?

SERGIO GARCIA: What's been happening to Darren, it's a shame. And I it's a difficult thing to swallow. He's a great player and wonderful friend of ours. It'll be great for us to have him on the team, but we got to see if he's ready or not.

Because it's difficult with everything that's happening to his wife, it's difficult to know if he's going to be mentally because we know he's playing well. He's been playing really nicely with everything that's been happening to him, so that's even more impressive.

We'll see what happens to Heather and see how he'll be mentally more than anything.

Q. You worked hard on your game and you've struggled some. Lately it's starting to come together. I want to know if you know why that is and where are you now as compared to where you want to be?

SERGIO GARCIA: I think it is because just hard work. Putting in a lot of hours with my dad and trying to work on the right things. Did some nice work with the Taylor Made guys, too. We worked on my clubs and my drivers and my woods and everything and found, you know, some nice things that clicked into my swing. Hit it a little bit better.

And then, you know, just slowly getting confidence back. Putting a little bit better. That always helps. I'm driving the ball not as good is as I usually drive it, but I'm definitely driving the ball 95 percent better than I was two months ago.

So that, to me, is huge. Because I've always driven the ball fairly well for the distance that I hit it. And when my driver is on I feel like everything is on. If I struggle with the driver, my swing struggle a little bit.

Q. (No microphone)

SERGIO GARCIA: No, I still can get better. I still, you know, lack a bit of trust in some shots, usually right to left shots. So I need to improve on that. Probably cost me 7 or 8 points this week in the first few days. So hopefully I can keep working on that and there's room for improvement.

Q. What you did at 17, you said 5 wood and a 7 iron?

SERGIO GARCIA: Uh huh.

Q. How many times did you hit your 5 wood off the tee, and how far do you it?

SERGIO GARCIA: It was downwind, so that made it easier. It was down on the right. So I hit a I usually hit my 5 wood about 250 yards, but here

Q. Yeah, you said you were driving better. How many times did you use the driver, for example, today?

SERGIO GARCIA: I hit it on 14. Hit it a little bit in the right rough. I hit it on 1. I hit a good drive on the right side.

And then I hit it on 8. I hit it down the middle. Great drive.

And 9 was a great drive, and unfortunately the wind played a little trick on me.

THE MODERATOR: Time for one last question.

Q. Next week are you going back to a play where you had some pretty good memories of, and how do you feel about your game going into Medina as opposed to last time you were there?

SERGIO GARCIA: Well, I'm definitely a lot happier than I was just before the U.S. Open. So I'm feeling much better. I feel like everything is coming together a little bit better. Definitely, as I said before, there is room for improvement and I still need to work on he hard on it.

But I feel good about it, and I'm looking forward to it. Medina and Chicago is a special place for me. It's where everybody got to know me. I'm hoping that I can go out there and put on a good show. I'd love to finish one better than last time. But if not, at least be around there and get a nice feel from the people.

THE MODERATOR: Okay. Thank you, Sergio.

End of FastScripts.

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297