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THE SENIOR OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP PRESENTED BY MASTERCARD

July 22, 2009

Ian Woosnam

SUNNINGDALE, ENGLAND

STEVE TODD: Ian, thanks for coming in. Welcome to Sunningdale. You come in on a decent run of form. Links courses, a different challenge, how are you feeling about this week?
IAN WOOSNAM: I should be feel fairly confident but to be honest, except for Slaley Hall. And one club that's been letting me down is my driver. It's been better. I've worked on it for the last three weeks and feel I'm driving the ball a bit better. Around here you want to go use it probably the first, second, maybe the third, and maybe 10, 13, 14, 16 and 18 really.
So there's not that many times you've got to hit the driver. Still hit 3-wood. But still not feeling that confident really, although I'm hitting my irons pretty good. I'll have to see what the day fetches really, or the week.
STEVE TODD: You've had success here before in The European Open, does that help, knowing the course a little bit?
IAN WOOSNAM: Yeah, I think so. I know the course. It's a bit longer now than what it was. It's playing the best I've ever seen this course play really, because sometimes at this time of the year, it can play really like a sea links, quite bouncy, hard and bouncy. But it's very green. The greens are fairly soft. So it's going to be the sort of course that you can attack and really go for it.

Q. I was going to ask you, your thoughts on Sunningdale, this year's venue.
IAN WOOSNAM: I think it's a great venue. Traditionally it would be a sea links course or whatever it is but this is a great venue, great spot and it's a great place forgetting more people here to watch. I think after what happened last week, I think hopefully a lot of people are flocking and coming to watch the golf.

Q. What did you make of Tom Watson's performance?
IAN WOOSNAM: Brilliant. That's all you can say, isn't it. I think always a senior has a good chance in the British Open, or The Open Championship, because it's all about controlling the golf ball. It's not particularly -- you don't have to be particularly that long, because the fairways run and everything.
And I think over the last couple of years, you've seen a couple of guys who can control the ball really well, and I think you're going to see that even more over the next few years.

Q. Bernhard was saying he would like to see people on the Champions Tour or probably The European Senior Tour get World Ranking points, which would enable them perhaps to get into a few more of the majors.
IAN WOOSNAM: Yeah, it's a good point. Someone said to me of winning the Order of Merit in Europe last year, "Why aren't you in The Open Championship?" Good point. You know, that's an incentive to play for really.
Yeah, maybe having some World Ranking points so you can get in. It's a valid point. Obviously 36 holes in one day to try and pre-qualify here is difficult for me. But maybe go up to the other qualifying, which is over two days, might be a different opportunity. Might think about that next year.
STEVE TODD: You touched on the Order of Merit, you won that last year, and you are the first former European Tour Order of Merit winner to do it on The Senior Tour. You said after that that you're looking to now win a major, I guess coming into this week, do you feel this is your best chance of doing it?
IAN WOOSNAM: I think I'm still not feeling very well, and that's the thing, something I've got to work on. I feel tired all the time. Concentration goes a little bit.
Swing-wise, I think it's improving all the time. I'm starting to hit some proper shots like I used to hit, and it is a mental thing for me. I have to sort of play the way I want to play. If I can't draw it, I get very depressed over it. It is getting better all the time. A bit of coaching, same coach as Mark O'Meara, Bruce Davidson, and he's helping a little bit and he's seen the changes over the last two or three months.
Hopefully it's going to get better. I'm working on it in the winter and hopefully come out even stronger next year really. You're going to have your golf swing going with your confidence, and I haven't got either of them going that well at the moment.

Q. Is there any medical diagnosis, the fact that you feel tired a lot of the time?
IAN WOOSNAM: Two or three years, I still can't shake it off, I just feel tired all the time.

Q. It seems very ambitious, if you compare to your younger days, how does it feel today, you're still hungry?
IAN WOOSNAM: Obviously not as hungry as I used to be. You can tell by that, can't you (chuckling).
No, I would sort of shake something off, where you know what, it's like I'm winning the tournament on the seniors in Europe and I'm still sort of a bit wary where I'm driving the ball.
I think maybe I should go and see someone about getting my mind sorted out and my thinking more than the golf swing. It's like my golf ball is made of gold and I don't want to lose it; play a bit too negative sometimes.

Q. Perhaps you can touch upon what the Champions Tour and The Senior Tour has done, where you can still play at the highest level and in majors?
IAN WOOSNAM: Yeah, it's good to see where you are in the game. I've played on both circuits. I haven't done too well in America and I think that's mainly because I haven't driven the ball very well.
As soon as I came back to Europe, it's my style of play, and I could use the iron a lot more off the tee. That's helped me to whip.

Q. Bernhard is using hybrids off the tee.
IAN WOOSNAM: Here? Mine would be a 2-iron. I would rather still hit a 2-iron than a hybrid. Just can't get the feel for it.

Q. Where would you be length-wise relative to Bernhard?
IAN WOOSNAM: Similar, probably with a hybrid, and I've got a 2-iron, it's about 230 yards. I've got a hybrid; it's about the same thing. So one will go a bit higher than the other. All depends what kind of course. I do carry it around with me. If I want to go in with like say in America, I need the ball to go higher and stop quicker, I'll change to a hybrid. It all depends what kind of course you're playing really.
STEVE TODD: Thank you, best of luck this week.

End of FastScripts

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