	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 EUROPEAN OPEN

July 2, 2008

Sergio Garcia

ASH, KENT, ENGLAND

RODDY WILLIAMS: Thanks very much for coming in to join us and welcome to the European Open here at The London Golf Club. It's a new venue for this tournament, have you had a chance to see the course yet and what are your thoughts heading into this week.
SERGIO GARCÃA: Yeah, played nine holes yesterday morning, course looks very good, very good shape. You know, I'm looking forward to it. I think the course is set up in a way that obviously rewarding great hitters. If you hit a little bit off-line, you're okay, the rough is not too bad but if it starts turning around, you're going to struggle in this high grass.
I think it looks pretty good. It rained a little bit yesterday and hopefully won't rain too much today, doesn't look like it. Looks like pretty good fun.

Q. Are you playing Loch Lomond as well next week?
SERGIO GARCÃA: No.

Q. Just wondered, the taxes situation, has it affected your movements in recent years?
SERGIO GARCÃA: No.

Q. How do you assess the new venue for The European Open?
SERGIO GARCÃA: As I said, it looks good. It's in very good shape. Obviously a little bit different -- it's got a little bit more of a links kind of look. It looks nice. I think it's a good, tough golf course, and like I said, it's in good shape. So we'll see.
Obviously if the wind blows a little bit like it was yesterday, it's going to play a little bit tougher. If it's calm like today, it's probably going to be a little bit easier.

Q. How do you feel about your game right now?
SERGIO GARCÃA: I not too bad. I feel pretty good about it. I feel like I've been hitting the ball very nicely. Short game is obviously good and I'm looking forward to it, and hopefully I'll be there on Sunday giving myself a good shot at it.

Q. What's more important this week, the result or the practise, preparing yourself?
SERGIO GARCÃA: The result, no doubt about it. I've got an extra week to prepare for The Open. Obviously it's always good to get some competitive golf into it and kind of get those juices going, but obviously I'm here to try to win this event, and The Open, it's still two weeks ago, so I have a lot of time to prepare for that.

Q. Can you talk about your mental routine; do you do any meditation or do you do any of that stuff?
SERGIO GARCÃA: No, not really. I mean, I try to be as positive as I can be within myself. That's about it.

Q. Would you have played next week if your tax situation allowed you to?
SERGIO GARCÃA: Probably not. I have a huge schedule for the summer so, I don't want to be overdoing it too much. I played a few weeks prior to this with the U.S. Open, so I always like to take at least two or three weeks off before The Open, and I don't really like to play too much going into The Open, because I know that after that, I'm going to have probably five or six weeks or seven or something like that. It's quite a hectic summer.

Q. How will you prepare?
SERGIO GARCÃA: Last week I went to Old Head in Ireland and we played for four days and it was nice and windy, so it was good practise.

Q. What was the decisive factor in playing this week rather than next week?
SERGIO GARCÃA: Well, I heard good things about this course. I wanted to take a look. My dad played here in a European Seniors Tour event last year, and he told me the course was pretty nice. So you know, I just thought it was a good situation and that instead of playing the week at Loch Lomond, I'll practise at home and get ready for The Open.

Q. Because of the type of course Loch Lomond is?
SERGIO GARCÃA: Yeah, probably, if there was -- I mean, it's still -- I've played it in the past, and it's a good golf course to get some of those competitive juices going. But I guess I'm doing that this week.
If it definitely was more of a links course, I guess it would be a little bit of a different feel. I think this course probably has a bit -- even though it's not properly links, it does have a little bit more of a links kind of look.

Q. It was a good week for Spanish football and could be a good week for Spanish tennis. Are you in touch with other sportsmen at the top of their game in your country and do you exchange messages?
SERGIO GARCÃA: Yeah, it was a great week for the Spanish people, great month. So excited back home. Yes, it's great to see and I've talked to a couple of the guys on the team.
Obviously tennis is looking good, two guys in the quarterfinals so we'll see what happens today if they manage to play. I think overall it's been a pretty good year for Spanish sports. Pablo Larrazabal won last week in France, and so that's also great. Hopefully we can keep it going.
I think it's great. I think it's exciting. We have some youngsters coming up and doing good obviously, and it's good to see. Obviously it's an exciting time and obviously being a Ryder Cup year, that makes it even better.

Q. Drug testing is starting in Europe; have you attended a drug education seminar either in Europe or the United States?
SERGIO GARCÃA: Yeah, I did in the U.S., and fortunate for me I don't have anything to hide, so, you know, we'll see what happens. It will be interesting to see how things go.

Q. If you could pick one tournament to win this year between now and the end of the season, which would it be can and why?
SERGIO GARCÃA: Outside of The Ryder Cup, obviously The Open. It's my favourite event. It's an amazing championship and I've been close to winning it, so I think that would be the one I would pick.

Q. Do you feel you have unfinished business with The Open?
SERGIO GARCÃA: No, I wouldn't say that. I just love the tournament so much, everything about it: The courses, the people, the crowd, the history of the game in that championship. So definitely that's one of the reasons.

Q. How much is the Ryder Cup in your thoughts at the moment, and will not having Tiger play be an advantage?
SERGIO GARCÃA: We'll see. I guess you can take it both ways. You know, you could think that they lose a great player but at the same time everybody can kind of shake it up and show everybody that with him or without him, we can still try to beat the Europeans. So it's a dangerous subject for us. I don't think because Tiger is not playing, you know, we are going to win for sure. We've got to be careful of that.
I'm looking forward to it. Obviously every week counts and I'm trying to get my spot, make sure I get my spot on the team. It's definitely one of my goals.
You know, I think the team is shaping up nicely. We have some youngsters with very good potential. We have some of the guys that have played more often there. Obviously there's some names missing, but that only means you have some of the young guns coming up and trying to get on to the team.

Q. Justin Rose was in here earlier and he talked about the world qualifying points was his way on to the Ryder Cup Team; he thinks the number of points that would get in has already been surpassed and he think it's very tough to come in that way. Obviously you play a similar sort of schedule on both sides of the Atlantic. Have you looked at it from a numbers point of view earlier in the year and how do you see the buildup coming in?
SERGIO GARCÃA: No, I don't look at it that way, because I think, you know, I need to get to 180 points or whatever, once you get there, what do you do? I want to keep building up on those points and make sure -- I would rather finish second on the points list than fifth just to feel more comfortable.
I think, you know, I've just got to keep playing well. I know that I'm close to making it with a couple of good weeks, but I'd rather have a good summer and make sure that I get myself up there.

Q. Can you imagine a Ryder Cup Team without Montgomerie and how important is it in your opinion that he make the team?
SERGIO GARCÃA: Can I? Obviously it's going to happen sometime. I'm not saying that it will this year. Monty has been great for the European Ryder Cup Team. I think that he's been the heart of it, and probably, you know, he seems like he's playing better. So I probably think he will still make it this year. But unfortunately, you know, it's going to happen sometime, so we'll see what's going to happen.

Q. How long did it take you to get over last year and what are your thoughts on Royal Birkdale?
SERGIO GARCÃA: Just a couple of days. Obviously it was a good opportunity for me. I feel like I gave it my best, and you know, just came up probably about half an inch too far left.
You know, overall, like I said, I felt like it was a very positive week. I felt like I learned a lot, and that probably made me a better player for this year. If I would have made that putt, maybe I would never have gone back to the short putter and never won The Players Championship. So you never know. You can't really think about it too much.
Everything happens for a reason, and you know, if I wasn't meant to win at The Open last year, there must be a reason for it. It's just a matter of waiting for it and see what happens in the future.

Q. Your thoughts on Birkdale?
SERGIO GARCÃA: It's a great golf course. There's been a couple changes and a couple new tees and here and there. Last time I played was '98 and I like the course, so I'm looking forward to going back.

Q. Are you still feeling the benefit from that Players Championship win, the warm feelings and confidence?
SERGIO GARCÃA: Yeah, obviously any time you win a big event, it gives you a little bit of extra confidence. Obviously I played very well after that, too. I was close to winning and although my first seven holes at the U.S. Open, I played great, so obviously it does help.
But I don't want to get stuck there. I want to keep playing well and give myself chances and keep winning tournaments. That's a big goal this summer. We have some big events coming and it would be nice to get some of those.
It doesn't make it difficult -- I wouldn't say it makes it easy. There's still a lot of players out there that can play the game of golf and they all have the same goals as I did.

Q. How do you think without Tiger, how do you think it will affect the atmosphere at The Open?
SERGIO GARCÃA: I don't think it will affect it at all. I don't think there's going to be less people there.
I think, you know, the British crowds, they love the golf and before Tiger was playing, you know, The Open was still great, and obviously there's going to be something missing a little bit. But you know, The Open is still The Open and it's bigger than anybody else.
RODDY WILLIAMS: Thank you very much for your time and have a good week.

End of FastScripts

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297