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BUICK INVITATIONAL

January 24, 2006

Luke Donald

LA JOLLA, CALIFORNIA

JOHN BUSH: We'd like to welcome Luke Donald into the interview room. Thank you for coming by. Two consecutive runner up finishes here. Talk about the last couple of years and your focus for this year's tournament.

LUKE DONALD: Yeah, you know, I played very well here. I think the last four years, even going back to my first year, I haven't finished outside the Top 20. I love playing here. I seem to play really well and I'm looking forward to playing again. Hopefully I can go one place better this year.

This is a place I enjoy to come to and obviously because I play well.

JOHN BUSH: A couple of guys watching you this morning said you're hitting pretty well. Just talk about your game heading into the week.

LUKE DONALD: Yeah, this is my first event of '06. You never know really quite now until you tee up on Thursday. I've been practicing very hard down in West Palm and my game feels pretty good right now. I've worked as hard as I have at any time in my career, and I'm ready to have a great year.

Q. Inaudible?

LUKE DONALD: It's hard to know. This is one of the longer courses we play all year. It's definitely I don't think you have to drive it very far around here to do well. I think you have to keep it in play.

I think hitting long irons is one of my strengths. You have to hit a lot of long irons, a lot of 2 , 3 irons into some of these par 3s, a lot of even 3 woods. It's about really just controlling your ball flight. I seem to have done that well over the last couple of years.

I think if you can play well on the North Course and get a good head start, that always helps. One year I shot 7 under; last year I think I shot 4 or 5 under. If you can try and shoot a couple under every round around the South Course, you're going to be quite close.

Q. Inaudible?

LUKE DONALD: Well, around here it is. I'd obviously like to win. I still come here with feeling good about playing here. I enjoy this place immensely. I have every confidence to try and go one better.

Q. Inaudible?

LUKE DONALD: You know, I want to keep improving. Every year I want to keep improving. I feel like I've done that over the last four years. You know, a great year would mean winning more PGA TOUR events. I think I'm at the stage where I should be competing every week.

I think majors are obviously a big goal of mine. I had one decent major finish last year, third at The Masters. But other than that, I wasn't really contending and I need to be up there in all of the majors having a good chance to win.

Ryder Cup is another goal of mine this year. I obviously want to make that Ryder Cup Team again, and if I keep playing the way I've been playing, then it should just take care of itself. A great year, is winning keep climbing up the World Rankings and getting close to No. 1 in the world.

Q. What are your expectations when you go to a major championship compared to how you maybe approached it earlier in your career?

LUKE DONALD: Last year, I knew I was going to play all four majors which was nice, and again I'll be doing that this year. So I'm going to prepare well, and even though I made the cut in all four majors, only really The Masters I played well. I went there for the first time and enjoyed some early success and had four rounds in the three rounds in the 60s and felt pretty comfortable about playing that tournament, even though I heard that you have to be a long hitter, you have to hit the ball high, all this kind of stuff.

When I first played The Masters, I thought it was a good course for me. Again, those greens being very sectioned off and very fast, you have to be very accurate with your iron play. So I thought it set up well for me.

The other majors, I got off to great starts. In all of the majors I got off to great starts. I think I might have shot in the 60s all four majors in the first round, but couldn't keep it going. I think that was a little bit to do with expectations. That's what I have to do this year is I expect to play well, but when I get into contention, I've got to put less pressure on myself. I've got to go out there and enjoy it, have more fun and just play the golf I know I can play.

Q. What memorabilia do you have from the British Open, the first few days?

LUKE DONALD: Actually I have quite a few posters of Jack and Tom and I on the bridge. I was shaking hands on the 18th, and actually they are sitting in Jack's locker at the Bear's Club waiting for him to sign when he goes there. He only plays there about twice a year, so we'll see how long that will take.

Q. Inaudible?

LUKE DONALD: Just pictures. I ordered a bunch of pictures that I'm go to give to family and friends and keep a few for myself.

Q. What about the 5 pound note?

LUKE DONALD: I have several of those. Three are signed right now. I'm still waiting for four more to be signed.

Q. In the locker, too?

LUKE DONALD: Yeah, four of them are.

Q. Your memories, what do you take away from that?

LUKE DONALD: Just a special experience. I think it would be fun looking back in 30 years if I was in that situation and had done as much as Jack Nicklaus. I mean what a fun experience for him. And for me to be just a little bit of a part of that was a huge honor, a treat. And obviously it wasn't just Jack; I was playing with Tom Watson, too, not a bad player himself.

You know, just to experience the atmosphere of those crowds at St. Andrews, you're walking up the 18th, every window of every building there were people watching out. I saw Ernie Els looking out on the 17th of the hotel. I mean, everyone was watching. This was a huge moment in golf and to be playing with him was pretty special. You know, it was a great treat.

Q. You hear a lot about long hitters cannot be No. 1 anymore and I hear Augusta inaudible can you be No. 1, a person of your length, and secondly, the length changes at Augusta, how do you think that affects things?

LUKE DONALD: Well, you do look at the top five or six guys in the world and they are all reasonably long hitters I think it is a big advantage nowadays. Can I be No. 1? I still think I can. If I can compete and win majors, then there's no reason why I can't be No. 1.

From looking at my game, I feel like I can win majors. You should say that I could be No. 1, and it's going to be hard. I'm going to have to practice a lot, I'm going to have to believe in myself, everything is going to have to fall into place. It's a huge time commitment, and I'm willing to put that time in and give it my best shot, whether I get there, I'm not sure.

It is a little bit frustrating seeing Augusta adding length to some of the holes and making it putting it more into more favorable for the long hitters. You know, I'd like to see some courses that are not so long, but tighter with thicker rough, firmer greens that, kind of stuff. Still, the winning score might be 7 or 8 under, but it's not the longest course in the world.

Q. Inaudible?

LUKE DONALD: Well, I didn't win here. I finished second twice. You know, this is the kind of a course that goes against that line of thinking. You don't have to be a long hitter. I proved that twice now to be competitive around here.

Augusta, I'm going to hopefully go out there and play I think the week of Doral maybe, I meet be going out there. You know, it's hard to know what it's going to be like. I've heard of the changes and they sound quite scary to be honest.

Again, I can't really comment until I've gone and seen it, but it's going to be tough. I heard 7 they have lengthened a lot and that green, they used to be a 3 wood, sand iron, I believe before I even played it last year and last year was a drive and an iron or eight iron to a green that's so small, it's meant to be hitting a small iron in there I think. So it's going to be hard to see how you can even hit that green with a 5 iron. You know, I'm going to try my best and try and figure out a way to get around that and I'll do my best.

Q. Inaudible?

LUKE DONALD: I would think there would be, yeah. I'm probably the highest ranked English player right now, I believe, start? I think Monty might be ahead of me. He's Scottish but he's British.

Yeah, I think it's been, what, seven years now since Paul Lawrie won. It's been a while since anyone has won any major.

You know, I think that they are looking for that breakthrough and hopefully I can be that person.

Q. Inaudible?

LUKE DONALD: I've love to, but I'll take any majors. I think being the British Open and being from England, I would love to win that the most.

Q. What do you know about Hoylake?

LUKE DONALD: It's a course I played a number of years ago back when I was an amateur but I don't remember too much about it. It seemed like a very traditional, reasonably flat, good links, a lot of good par 3s and obviously the winds will dictate how low the scores are. It's a good course. Again, I can't remember too much about it, but I think they have redone a few holes since I last played there. It should be a good, solid course, and I'm sure Liverpool is glad that it's coming back.

Q. Last year when you were playing the first two rounds with Jack, it was somewhat overwhelming inaudible now when you go into another major, will that experience teach you something how to deal with expectation?

LUKE DONALD: Absolutely. I don't think you can get a bigger arena in golf almost than playing with Jack Nicklaus in his last open at St. Andrews. So if that didn't prepare me, then nothing really well. You know, that's a good thing that came out of it. I think when I get in that situation again, I'll be very prepared. It was fun, though. I enjoyed it, even though it was a lot of pressure, especially those last two holes. No, I enjoyed it and hopefully I'll be in those similar situations and high profile groups again soon.

Q. As much as you visit with us over here and the writers over there, on occasion, what's the difference in how the Ryder Cup is perceived by the two groups of media? It seems like that's all they talk about, and it takes us awhile maybe.

LUKE DONALD: The Ryder Cup is a huge deal in Europe. I think it's a big deal over here, too. Again I see your point, I don't hear too much talk about it when I'm playing TOUR events over here. I tear more talk when I'm in Europe. I'm not sure why it's a bigger deal. Maybe that we've been successful the last ten years. That we want to gloat a little bit about it. You know, I'm sure it's going to be a fun atmosphere this year at The K Club.

Q. You see it everywhere you go, for example, Riviera, when the British press is here, that will be the first question.

LUKE DONALD: I haven't really noticed that but I guess it is. I guess it's a pride issue. They enjoy competing in it. They have been very successful the last decade or two.

I think I don't know how to answer it. But they do seem to be very interested in it over in Europe. Might have a little bit of reason why we've had some success. People are looking at where they are on the points list and they are trying their hardest to get on that team. It's a huge deal.

Q. Will you be making the points through the Order of Merit or World Ranking points inaudible?

LUKE DONALD: Probably Order of Merit World Ranking, sorry. Just because I'll be playing mostly over here until around the British Open time. So there's not too many events that will count towards that Money List in Europe. Unless I play really well in the World events, then that will take care of it.

Q. Everybody keeps talking about making huge changes in Augusta in 2002, and it's just playing more and more into the long hitters' hands, then in 2003 Mike Weir wins in a playoff, and last year, Chris DiMarco was in a playoff; are intermediate hitters inaudible?

LUKE DONALD: You still have to hit great shots no matter how far you hit it at Augusta. There's so much danger around that course. I think the greens are so sectioned off, you really have to hit it to the correct spots. Where you've got at least makeable putts where you have to hit uphill putts and that takes a lot of ball control. No matter how far you hit it, you have to have that skill.

But it definitely helps to hit it far. I mean, if you're going in with shorter irons, you can control it better on the greens. Those greens are pretty firm. If you're hitting a 5 iron if I hit a 5 iron and Tiger is hitting a 9 iron, you'd put money on Tiger to hit it closer, just because he's got that advantage.

You know, Augusta keeps saying that they are trying to make it harder for Tiger to win, but it feels like lengthening the course is making it easier for him to win because it's taking other players out of it. So I don't really understand that philosophy. It's their tournament and they can do whatever they like, I suppose.

Q. And they do.

LUKE DONALD: And they do.

Q. Inaudible?

LUKE DONALD: I can see both sides. Obviously if it's firm, it's still going to help the people that hit it as far as I do, the average kind of hitters. They are going to get a little bit more roll on the fairways but they are still going to struggle a bit more into the greens.

If it's wet, some of those holes are going to be hard to reach. 4 is going to be monstrous. 7, you're going to be hitting 2 irons into some of these par 4s, and there's only so many good shots you can hit from that distance.

I'm not really sure, when it was very wet, that was the year Mike Weir won, right? And then last year it was rolling okay, so it was firmish.

Q. You said you might go up the week at Doral inaudible?

LUKE DONALD: I don't think I'm going to play this year, no.

Q. Have you played there before?

LUKE DONALD: I played two years before that.

Q. Not your type of course?

LUKE DONALD: It's more just scheduling wise, really. I don't mind the course at all. I tend to play Pebble and The Match Play, and to play four in a row is sometimes a little bit too much.

Q. Just curious, where I was headed

LUKE DONALD: As a World event.

Q. Guys that normally play Doral or whatever inaudible?

LUKE DONALD: I guess that's the way it goes, really. I'm sure that some courses that some World events that people don't like and suit other people and don't suit other people. That's just the way it goes. Probably Tiger is happy it's going to Doral; he just won there. I think I had a top 20 there three or four years ago. It's not a course that I like ors did like. There's a few long par 3s that I'm not very much a fan of, but overall the course is fine.

JOHN BUSH: Luke, thank you. Play well this week.

End of FastScripts.

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