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WGC ACCENTURE MATCH PLAY CHAMPIONSHIPFebruary 28, 2009Geoff OgilvyMARANA, ARIZONA CHRIS REIMER: Jeff Ogilvy joining us in the interview room. Welcome. Obviously it's got to feel great to be in the finals again. Spectacular day of golf. I think you played pretty well today. If you can just talk about your day as a whole. GEOFF OGILVY: Yeah, I did. That's the best I played all week by a long way today. I was a little scrappy the first couple of days but I was getting the job done and I was going okay, but today I was a lot sharper. I hit the ball great off the tee. I hit some good iron shots and made some good putts. I knew I had to be all there obviously this morning against Rory. He's in form and one of the best young players in the world. And Stewart, this afternoon, again in form, one of the best players in the world. In this format obviously he's always up there in this tournament. So two pretty satisfying guys to beat. And I guess the most satisfying part was I played my best golf in the last few holes of each match, which is really nice. CHRIS REIMER: Talk about finishing both of those matches off. Obviously the great eagle on 15 but going through the last few holes on both matches and hitting the shots when it counted. GEOFF OGILVY: It was nice. Obviously when I birdied 15, 16, 17 this morning and only won one of those holes, Rory wasn't going away. That's probably the most impressive part about his game this morning is that he got better in the last few holes as well. So that was -- because when you're 1-up, I was 1-up and he birdied 15, 16 and 17, and you were sure that it was going to be pretty easy about that was only it was still right on the edge there on 17. So it was nice to hit the shots and nice to finish like that. Then this afternoon I was up most of the front nine and then I lost a couple holes and ended up losing 11. I hit a 5-wood 300 yards nearly into the wind, which is absurdity, really, into the fairway bunker on 11. Ended up losing that hole. Then hit a great looking shot at 12. It was short by a couple yards at the most from being really close when Stewart was in the bunker. So it was a bit of a frustrating couple of holes there, 11 and 12. And then 13 through 16, yeah, I didn't miss a beat. I made a really good up-and-down on 15, 14, 13? 13. Really good up-and-down on 13. And then actually 14 and 15 and 16 were just the way you want to play the last three holes of any match. It was really nice. Q. They have discussed you and Paul coming down here. When exactly was it and whose car did you take and how long did it take to get here, and how much was the gas? GEOFF OGILVY: It was two cars, it was two cars, because both of us drive cars that don't have many seats in them. (Laughter.) So the gas was probably more than it should have been. I think it was Friday before Riviera. Friday the 13th? Q. Yeah, if it was when Paul said it was. GEOFF OGILVY: Yeah, it was Friday before Riviera. So Friday. I saw him at Whisper Rock that week, and I said I was going down there and he said, I'll go down there. Let's play. He came down, we had a good game and we checked out the golf course. It's an incredible coincidence that we're the last two guys in the tournament. Q. Who won that match? GEOFF OGILVY: We didn't really play. We don't gamble on TOUR. (Laughter.) We really didn't have a match. We just messed around really. Q. What was your first impression of the course when you saw it? I mean when you played here. Did you like it? GEOFF OGILVY: The greens were surprising. (Laughter.) They're incredibly slopey and lots different than most of the greens we play, with all the humps and stuff. Yeah, they were like -- well, I half expected that because I played with Camilo and Mike Weir at Phoenix, and they both had just been down here during the Phoenix Open to check the course out, and they had let me into the secret that the greens are kind of crazy. So it was kind of what we expected. We knew it was going to be long, but we know the ball goes a long way here. So the length didn't really play into it. But the greens were -- we're very glad we came down here, because the more you play this course, the better you are going to be because of the way the greens are. Q. Will tomorrow's match be reminiscent of any kind of matches you have at Whisper Rock, and who will the members be rooting for there? GEOFF OGILVY: I don't know who the members will be rooting for. We'll find out, I guess. We have had a few -- we have had some games at Whisper Rock, Paul and I and everybody, but it's usually -- we haven't played for awhile. I can't specifically remember any specific match that we have had. But we have played a bunch of times at Whisper Rock, yeah. We get some good games at Whisper Rock. Q. Talk about your third shot on 13. I imagine that's not where you want to leave it on that hole, and just what type of shot you had in there. GEOFF OGILVY: Yeah, that's pretty awkward. The second shot I guess by choice was to hit a 4-iron, that was my choice, front left of the green and have a 60-footer, because if I hit it straight, it's like it's going to hit and go short, or I hit 3-iron over the back and try and get it up-and-down, hit it the way Stewart did. I didn't choose to hit it where I did, but I was a bit caught in two minds and hoping to get a straight bounce or something short. And it was a pretty awkward little pitch, quite doable. They're such perfect lies around here. I was on an up-slope. It was -- I hit a really nice pitch shot. Q. Stewart felt that when he missed the putt it really gave you momentum. GEOFF OGILVY: On 13? Q. On 13. GEOFF OGILVY: Yeah, that was -- when you play a hole like 13, you expect to have to make par to at least halve the hole. So when he didn't get up-and-down, that's a little bit of a bonus for me for sure. Q. You have spoken with great articulation on matters involving course design things, right way and wrong way of doing things, particularly as they relate to the promotion of the game. And without putting you in a very difficult specific, this is a resort golf course and it's connected to a high-end hotel. My question is, given that the best players in the world find the greens somewhat strange, do you think it makes sense for the greens to be -- for a resort golf course to have greens like this? GEOFF OGILVY: Not really, no. From what I understand, it was designed with match play in mind. There's obviously 51 weeks a year it's something else. But unfortunately whenever a golf course is designed with a golf tournament in mind, I don't think they take the other 51 weeks into mind really. I've got a feeling that maybe there'll be some adjustments made in the next few months. The greens like Augusta or Oakmont are way crazier, but they have got to fit into the environment a little better. And they're a little contrived in places here. I don't think any of us mind big slopes. I just think that there's some funny looking ones here. I think that -- I'm sure that with an adjustment, the place will mature quite well. But I think there's a few that need a quick touch-up. Q. And also those others were built 89 years ago as opposed to 80 or 90 days ago. Is the difference in the Stimp speeds this week, has it been a factor for you? GEOFF OGILVY: It was awkward at first because when you putt slow greens on the west coast, we do, because it's winter, but these are slower than normal, which they have to be, which I'm a bit of an advocate for -- actually, I kind of like -- I think the greens are a bit too fast here in the last 10, 12 years, but that's another story. It is a bit of an adjustment. Like first couple matches I left a couple putts woefully short, uphills and stuff. So now it seems normal because we have been playing -- I've played five matches on them and a few practice rounds and kind of got into the speed of them, but at first it was an adjustment. Q. How far away do you guys live? GEOFF OGILVY: From here or from each other? Q. From each other. GEOFF OGILVY: Well, he's kind of -- it's an interesting story about his house, but probably about five or six miles, probably. Q. And since you were here last, Paul's flown to Perth and back. Do you think given this is a long week when you get to the final that you might have a little edge tomorrow? GEOFF OGILVY: No. I think that the hard thing about coming back from Perth would be the first round that you play. I think once you get into it -- I think he's a fairly fit guy. He goes out and rides his bike and stuff. I think he'll be feeling fine tomorrow. I think the Wednesday match would have been the hard one when he came back from Australia, but... Q. I don't want to overstate the friendship or anything. I'm just wanting to make sure that -- determine how tight you guys really are. I know your wives are Americans. Do you guys hang out socially or do you play much at the club when you're home during common times? GEOFF OGILVY: When we're around, we do. Professional golfers tend to have varying schedules. Sometimes when I'm here, he's not, and when I'm here, he's not. It generally we get along really well. We see each other a little bit. I mean, you could go a year and not being in Scottsdale at the same time, but then you could go a year being there 15 weeks together at a time. So we have periods where we see each other a bit and periods where we're just on other continents, you know. That's the way it is. Q. You've become an expert at making it to the finals here the last few years. Is it a little strange on Sunday, the last day of the tournament, and you're the only ones out there? Do you not even think about that, or do you notice that there's only two of us? I know there's a consolation match, but... GEOFF OGILVY: When we're playing, I don't think it's strange because this tournament and this golf course and last year's golf course, you can't see many other holes from where you're at anyway. So you kind of -- and you very rarely wait for the group in front in this format. They kind of spread out, and it goes really nicely. So when you're out there, it's not strange. But when you're alone for breakfast, when we're alone for breakfast at La Costa, there's 25 tables in there, and the Australians and I are kind of walking one side of the room to the other and you end up having breakfast -- it's kind of weird. Locker room attendant is standing over you the whole time because you're only one of two guys, you know. (Laughter.) That sort of stuff. You pull into the parking lot and there's two cars. That's it. Like where the other players park, there's no cars. When you're playing, it seems normal, but it's all the little stuff, and you're on the range and one goes to one side of the range, one goes to the other, and it's -- that sort of stuff is the odd part. Q. The third time in four years in the championship match, how much of that is luck? How much of that is skill? GEOFF OGILVY: I don't know. You tell me. You got to get fortunate that -- I'm fortunate in the three years I made the final, I haven't had anyone going completely crazy and make lots of birdies on me. I've obviously played really well. Shingo kind of let me off the hook a little bit. I got a bit lucky on my second match. Made bogey on the last hole to let me get through to 19. So things have gone my way. He could have just as easily made birdie and ended it. There's a bit of both. I don't know what the ratio is, either. I'm obviously reasonably decent at this format and I like playing in the desert. It's always been kind of a good period for me, like the end of February period, you know. Q. And after winning at Winged Foot, did you have a chance and why didn't you ever go over to Wentworth? GEOFF OGILVY: Wentworth? Q. For the World Match Play? GEOFF OGILVY: I did. I played. I lost to Marco Campbell on the 36th hole the year he won it. Q. That was the year before. That was 2005. GEOFF OGILVY: Was that the year? Q. Yeah. GEOFF OGILVY: Something was in the way in 2006. Q. A baby? GEOFF OGILVY: Yes. Yes. Baby. Yeah. It was. Yeah. (Laughter.) We didn't know what it was at the time, so it was a thing. But now, yeah, she was born. That was why I couldn't go for sure, yeah, and since then, I don't know. Q. It's in Spain now, but it's the same week as the TOUR Championship. It's just bad scheduling? GEOFF OGILVY: I love the tournament. I had a great time out there. Q. You lost to Michael when? GEOFF OGILVY: The last hole, 36-hole match, yeah. 36th hole. First round. Q. First round. Okay. Thank you. GEOFF OGILVY: Yeah. Q. How well do you know each other's games? Is that a factor at all in strategizing tomorrow? GEOFF OGILVY: Not really. We both play the golf course this many times you got a pretty good handle on how you're playing the golf course. I know his game well enough, he hits the ball a long way, he obviously is playing very well this week, so I don't think that the type of game the other guy has affects you, what you do too much. I don't think. Not at this point. We're going to play relatively similar. He's a lot longer than me, but obviously I'll just play the course how I see it. Q. Do you think that -- when you were a kid the middle distance running is that what did you? GEOFF OGILVY: Um-hum. Q. Do you think that there's an element to the endurance within you, rather than somebody doing something like sprinting or whatever it might be, is there something about the long, the length of something that you don't break down mentally and you just keep going? Because you do seem to come up to adversity and don't falter, you just keep going and keep going. GEOFF OGILVY: For some reason in match play I don't know -- I don't know how you relate it. I ran middle distance because I could. That's just, I didn't do it much past when you had to train too much. (Laughter.) I don't know. I enjoyed -- I enjoy the match, the part of match play that you get so many clutch situations in this. You could go all year and not have a must-make putt and have a reasonable year on TOUR and not have a must-make putt. I've had 15 this week. So we play golf to put ourselves in these situations. Even the first round, I go down 19, it's kind of like a little playoff. And I do it the next day. I got a little playoff again. You get so much -- it's so enjoyable to hit good shots and to get to those situations because you -- you want to get -- you don't get nervous, but you feel the pressure as much in the first round match on the 13th hole as you do sometimes on the 13th hole on a Sunday when you're one back at a normal tournament. And that happens, you've got must-make up-and-downs and must-make putts and you've got to get this fairway because the guy in front of you hit the fairway. And that's why we play to kind of rise up to those sort of situations. I just enjoy that aspect of match play, I guess. And when you enjoy it, you do it well, I guess. CHRIS REIMER: You're not as hard on yourself maybe in match play after a bad shot. GEOFF OGILVY: I probably am, I mean my demeanor, if I could be like that every other week I would be pretty happy, you know. I mean it was really good. It's so counterproductive to carry on and get down on yourself in match play, because -- it's counterproductive at all times, but it's more so in match play. So it's just, it seems to force me into the right type of mindset and that. Q. This morning that was your first time playing Rory I think and can you tell me what you thought about him. You obviously heard a lot about him and probably seen him hit balls and everything, but what did you think for 19? GEOFF OGILVY: Yeah, he's the real deal. He's a very impressive golfer. It's feasible that he's going to be top two or three in the world within a year. I mean he's that good. He's got physically, he's got the whole package, but there's other kids out there that have got the whole package, but his demeanor is fantastic. As I said, he got better the last few holes of my match. I had to play the best golf I played all week to just kind of stay kind of level with him at the end there. He was playing fantastic. He's the real deal. I think that the more he plays, the more different sorts of golf courses he plays, he's just going to add more and more dimensions to his game and just, yeah, he's -- this will be the worst ranking he's got for the next ten years, what it is now, it's only going to go up because he's very impressive. CHRIS REIMER: I think there was a quote from Alistair? GEOFF OGILVY: Yeah, this has obviously got to be taken the right way, but my caddie on the way in the car said, if you want to be the second best player in the world you got to be better than Rory. That's pretty much how both Squirrel and I would think about Rory. That's how good he is. He's very personable. It might take a couple years to be like that, but that's what it's going to be. Q. Beginning at Winged Foot when the headliner sort of collapses, you seem to be the one there. And you ended Tiger's streak last year, all the Tiger ballyhooed return, you're the one here, how do you explain that? Is there something about your makeup or game that suits you in those situations? GEOFF OGILVY: I enjoy situations like that. Doral last year was obviously a really nice week to win for lots of reasons. Mostly because everyone was had decided that Tiger was going to win every tournament last year. And it was a course that he had won three years in a row at before, so I don't know, I just enjoy big tournaments, I enjoy the big situations, I mean I don't -- all the craziness around a tournament, I'm, I can take or leave, but like the pressure situations towards the end of tournaments and the big situations, I really enjoy those. And as I said, I think often things that you enjoy, you often do well. So that's the only way I think about it. Q. You would be surprised to learn unless something's happened in the last couple minutes, Paul hasn't trailed all week. GEOFF OGILVY: That happens. You have weeks like that in match play, yeah. He's obviously playing the first few holes well. Q. He's won the first hole all but one match. GEOFF OGILVY: Yeah, I mean he obviously is going good, he's got a great feel for the first few holes and gets his nose in front and keeps going. He's playing very well. That happens when you're playing well. I had two guys chip in on me on the first hole. So, you know, it was, it is what it is. I'll just hopefully if he wins, we'll see him on the first tee tomorrow. CHRIS REIMER: Thanks, Geoff. End of FastScripts Q. Three up after four - did you feel in control of the match after that? PAUL CASEY: I felt very good. I think I got lucky today as Sean got some food poisoning last night and it seemed everytime he hit what looked like a good looking shot it hit the wrong side of a slope or a bank or something unlucky. I think it would have been a much closer match if that had not happened as I was not really making the putts. It was just very good bal striking today. Q. What has pleased you most about this week? PAUL CASEY: Ball striking. And the way I got over being tired at the beginning of the week. I feel very fresh right now. Also trying to figure out how far these clubs go. I have been out in Arizona 12 years now but bit is still baffling hitting eight irons from 180 yards or whatever. Getting your brain in gear and accepting the ball will go that far is very difficult. Q. The greens a bit firmer today? PAUL CASEY: They are. The shots coming into the greens are not stopping. You are not able to get much check onto the golf ball. You have got to really play a well struck say eight iron five yards short to hold it. That makes it difficult when they are cutting these pins over swales and bunkers. Q. You have played 63 holes so far, much less than most of the others, is that going to help? PAUL CASEY: I hope so. I know what is like to play 36 holes in a day match play. The most extreme and most fatiguing I have ever felt on a golf course is at the Ryder Cup. You take the two rounds of golf or three days of golf if you play every match, plus the pressure, that's a lot of golf and it is very tiring. This isn't quite as bad. It is a pretty easy walk, the sun is out and I shouldn't really complain. End of FastScripts |
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