	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

WGC BRIDGESTONE INVITATIONAL

August 4, 2009

Danny Lee

AKRON, OHIO

LAURA NEAL: Hi Danny, welcome. Thanks for joining us today. I don't know if you've been told this a million times, but you are the youngest player in a World Golf Championships history. Maybe just tell us your feelings coming into this week and being in this field.
DANNY LEE: It's no pressure at all this week. Even when you play bad, you're going to play your four rounds this week. So I'm really happy for that.
I get really nervous when I'm around a missed cut area after the second round, and I don't have to worry about that stuff. Playing with the top 50 world's greatest players in the world, it's a really special thing. I think I'm going to learn a lot this week.

Q. I understand you came here around Memorial time. I didn't know if you came with somebody or who suggested that or what you thought.
DANNY LEE: I came here because my manager thinks when -- after we played Memorial I had a couple days I can more stay here, and it's not far away from Memorial to here, so I'll come down and we'll see how the course is like and it's playing really long. It wasn't as hard as this week before, but now it's playing much -- greens playing much firmer, and the rough is really thick and long. It feels like I'm in the tournament.

Q. Have you played here outside of that? Is this your first time going to be going around Firestone today?
DANNY LEE: No, I got here like last Friday, after the Buick, and I played a few times after Saturday and Sunday, and I'm going to play nine holes today. I think I've played enough, and I think enough to know what the course is out there. I hit some bad shots out there, so I know where not to hit. So that's the good part.

Q. I know you've played in some big tournaments this year, but when I saw you at the AT&T you said you're better off if you just kind of have fun. Are you going to try to do that this week?
DANNY LEE: Yeah, I'm trying to work on my emotions and trying not to get mad and that stuff. But it's kind of confusing. You know, I've been getting a lot of advice from all the pros and coaches, and now it's kind of confusing what's the right and what's the wrong.
I think the best thing you can do is just trust yourself and just do well and play well. I think that's what I've learned.

Q. Does being the youngest player in the field have any meaning at all? Does it mean anything at all other than the fact than what it is?
DANNY LEE: I don't know. I don't think it means a lot, but it's a good thing I don't have to study. (Laughter). I skipped college. I wanted to go to college, but I skipped that and came out here and play with all the good players out here, and it's really enjoyable and it's really fun, and people are nice out here. It's really fun.

Q. Could you please elaborate on what you said was confusing? Is it how to handle your emotions?
DANNY LEE: Someone gave me advice before the tournaments, and I'm trying to fix that, and I get really confused with that and join tournaments. And like some other players give me the good advice and some other players give me the wrong advice for me because they are them and I am a different person. People are always different out here.
I think I have to learn what's the right answers and what's the wrong answers, and I have to know that I'm -- and I have to remember all the good stuff and bad stuff so I can play better and think better.

Q. Since you turned pro after Augusta, how would you assess your golf?
DANNY LEE: I think it's improving, and then if you look at it the other way around, I don't think it's improving because I had a few good tournaments and a few bad tournaments, and a few good tournaments gives me lots of confidence and a few bad tournaments gives me lots of bad confidence. Now every time I could play, I think, play good where the course is really long and tough and it's really hard to make scores out there. And when I play bad, it's like you have to make lots of birdies and try not to make many mistakes as what usually you do.
I think it's more in the course management and what I think. I think it's improving, and I'm trying to learn, still learn some things.

Q. Considering you're hearing all this advice and everything, have you thought at any point during that where, oh, I should have gone to college or this is a lot tougher than I thought?
DANNY LEE: No, I never thought -- I mean, I knew this way is going to be not easy as what I thought. But it is really tough out there, and there's so many good players out there, and trying to survive from those areas, it's not easy. Well, as my dad says, you're still 19, because I had a birthday like ten days ago, so you are still 19 and you've got a long way to go. You don't have to let yourself down; you've got so many more opportunities coming, and you're going to learn a lot and a lot more. You don't have to let yourself down, you've just got to keep trying, trying to fight with that stuff out there.
My dad and my mom have been really helpful with me a lot.

Q. What did you do for your birthday?
DANNY LEE: I had a little fun with my friends, went out and played a round with them. Yeah.

Q. In Dallas?
DANNY LEE: Yeah, in Dallas.

Q. Is that play around one word or two words?
DANNY LEE: Oh, I don't want to make this too interesting, so.... I just had fun.

Q. Since turning pro what's the best piece of advice you've received and what's the worst piece?
DANNY LEE: The best one is Sir Gary Player told me, you've got a good swing so you don't have to listen to somebody and try to change that; all you've got to do is believe your swing and go out there and play. Sometimes you can have bad breaks and play bad, and sometimes you get good breaks and play good. You've got to make that more consistently and practice harder to come out with good breaks every time. That's the advice.
And I think the worst one is -- it's not bad advice, I'm saying it's not right for me. I think the coach told me he thinks I've got a bad backswing, so I was working on that really hard and I was struggling a lot. I was hitting it awful at the Buick and had a poor performance. So I think that was bad advice for me.
Now I remember what Mr. Gary Player told me. I think it's right.

Q. Did Gary tell you that at The Masters?
DANNY LEE: Yeah, he did.

Q. I know Rory bought a Ferrari. Have you bought anything fun?
DANNY LEE: No, not really. I'm just here to try and enjoy out there. It's my first World Golf Championship event, so I'm going to try to play my best the four rounds and see how it goes. I don't have any fun stuff at all.
LAURA NEAL: Danny, thanks so much. Good luck this week.

End of FastScripts

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297