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VOLVO MASTERS ANDALUCIA

October 27, 2004

Luke Donald

SOTOGRANDE, SPAIN

GORDON SIMPSON: Luke, welcome to the Volvo Masters Andalucia. You say you played here in your England Amateur days but not since then. Tell us a little bit of your thoughts on this golf course.

LUKE DONALD: This is a very good golf course in my mind. I enjoy playing around here. I think you really have to guide your way around this course. You can't just get up there and hit it off the tee without thinking.

The greens are pretty slopey and pretty fast, and it's important to be on the right side of the hole. Otherwise, three putts are easy to come by around here.

But it's a good course. You have to really place it well off the tee and be a good putter.

GORDON SIMPSON: And looking at this year in total, it's been a fairly momentous six months, hasn't it, when you think of what's happened?

LUKE DONALD: For me it's been a great year. I started off pretty solidly in the U.S. and then came over here and played very good golf. You know, coming over here has kind of turned my year around almost. Well, not turned it around but it's made my year improve after winning a couple of times in Europe and having the Ryder Cup. So, it's been a good last, what, three or so months.

Q. Will that have any impact on your schedule next year?

LUKE DONALD: I'll be coming over and playing the 11 again next year. You know, six months ago, I probably wouldn't have said the same thing. So it's definitely changed my mind. I've had a lot of fun playing over here. I've rekindled some friendships with people that I had not seen that much and I've enjoyed the cities I've gone to and just kind of the lifestyle here.

Q. Would it be fair to say that you've rediscovered Europe?

LUKE DONALD: I suppose so. When I turned pro, I got my card on the U.S. Tour and it just seemed the right thing to do was to play out there and concentrate out there. I mean, I had a lot of success as an amateur playing in the U.S. and my game was obviously well-suited to that kind of golf. But, you know, things happen for a reason and I decided to join European Tour and things have worked out really well. It's nice to play in the U.S. and play here, to kind of have a mix.

Q. You said things happened for a reason; is that reason was the Ryder Cup?

LUKE DONALD: That reason was the Ryder Cup. That's why I joined.

Q. Before you rejoined, how many events had you planned to play in Europe this year, and would this have been a target for you, or was it a question you would be here?

LUKE DONALD: If I had not rejoined, it's doubtful I would have played hardly any events in Europe outside of the majors. It would not have made much sense. I would have just tried to concentrate on the U.S. Tour and making THE TOUR Championship and that kind of stuff. Obviously in that respect, it's hurt me somewhat. I haven't made THE TOUR Championship. I've only played, really, half a schedule, two-thirds of a schedule maybe. It looks like I'm going to miss out by about five or six spots for the TOUR Championship.

All in all, I can't really grumble because it's been a great year.

Q. You weren't tempted to go play in the States last week which would have got you in?

LUKE DONALD: I went to Greensboro. I thought that would be a better course for me. I played both Greensboro and Disney before. I didn't play that badly at Greensboro. I was a bit untidy. I think I was quite tired from the two weeks in our open and flying back. I just didn't put very well. I was very untidy around the greens and that's why I missed the cut. Disney is a little bit of a putting contest. Suits the longer players and I just thought I would have a more chance at Greensboro to play well and have a chance to make THE TOUR Championship.

If I play both of those and then come over here, I would have been exhausted. So I had to take one week off.

Q. What's been the most successful aspect of your game this year, anything you can point to?

LUKE DONALD: It's probably tee-to-green has been really good. I haven't done a lot wrong off the tee. I've been working on my swing. My bad shot is usually a shot that goes left and I haven't done that that much this year. I worked hard on that. I think my iron play has been as strong as it usually. So I still feel like I can improve a lot on the greens. I've had weeks where I've hit the ball great and just got nothing out of it. Like American Express was one I played very well there, just didn't have a round where I had under 30 putts. I think I had 33, 32, 31 putts or something for the four days. If I putted well, I could have competed.

Q. Why is the swing so much better? Can you give a brief description of the changes?

LUKE DONALD: It's stuff I've been working on for a while. I tend to get a little bit far away from the ball. I sit into the shot a little bit on the way back and get my hands high and flippy a little bit. Because of that, I hit a shot that goes left, starts left and goes left. It's a shot I've always struggled with a little bit. But, you know, my swing is -- I've just been working quite hard on it, and it feels a lot more comfortable now and I don't hit that shot so much.

Q. In your England Amateur days, did you come here for training or competition?

LUKE DONALD: England Amateur training. It must have been before Ryder Cup was here. So '95, '96 I would have thought.

Q. And what do you remember of it?

LUKE DONALD: The golf course? It's very similar to what it was then. I just remember it being quite a tight course. But, you know, very well reknowned in Europe. It's a good course with pretty good greens.

Q. That was considered a huge treat, was it, coming out to here?

LUKE DONALD: Absolutely, yeah. It was a good, I guess a treat for making the team or making the squad.

Q. Do you feel it suits your game in particular?

LUKE DONALD: I think tee-to-green it does. You can't really overpower this course. There's a lot of placing off the tee. There's a few holes obviously, if you can hit it far it helps. But there's quite a few holes where you're hitting 2-irons or 3-woods off the tee and, you know, it takes driver out of your hands, and you really have to place it well and be quite straight and then be very conscious of where you're hitting it into the greens. An 8-foot downhill putt is sometimes harder than a 20-foot uphill putt. You really have to be accurate with your irons off the tee and into the greens. Someone who putts well this week obviously is going to be -- going to have a great chance because the greens are quite slopey in places, and if it doesn't rain anymore, they are quite fast.

So, if I can put well, I think I'll have a good chance.

Q. Have the powers that be of the Tour actually sat down with you and talked about staying a member? Because it would be easy for you to say, well, it's not a Ryder Cup next year, until September anyway, and then just go back to the States.

LUKE DONALD: I had not thought of it until someone said I don't have to join the Tour. I could just play off exemptions. No one from the Tour has actually really sat down and asked me to join.

But I've decided that I think it's going to be a great thing for me to do. I'm in a different position now than I was at the beginning of the year. Obviously I'm well inside the Top-50. I'm going to play all of the majors and all of the World events. To play another four or five European events is going to be fun for me and I want to do that.

The Tour is not going to have to talk me into that.

Q. Your girlfriend is going to continue to travel or has she started her own career now?

LUKE DONALD: Well, that's up to her. I think she's going to get bored of it eventually. She's a very bright girl herself. She got a good degree at Northwestern, which is one of the top academic schools in the nation. So at some point she's going to want to get a job and do her own thing I think. But so far, she's having fun traveling.

Q. And Christian?

LUKE DONALD: Christian, yeah, still on the bag so far. So we'll have to see. Everything runs its course, but so far it's been very good. I don't see that changing anywhere in the near future.

Q. Are you somebody that when you go to a European city, you actually make a point of seeing what the city is about?

LUKE DONALD: It's hard, because you don't have that much time. It's hard anywhere you go, really, if you're spending a lot of time at the golf course.

But, you know, I think the European Tour makes an effort to have dinners. In Munich we went out with a lot of the guys. Sweden, again, a very good, I've been fortunate to go to some of the better cities I think. Crans was a lot of fun and I experienced some of that town. But, you know, it's hard to see the city, it really is. But I try my best.

Q. So it's more the camaraderie of the circuit that attracts you?

LUKE DONALD: Yes, I think the cities are an attraction as well. As I said, I've gone to some good ones this year. I think Munich was a really nice city to go to. Quite a few of the U.S. tour events are in quite small cities. There's not a lot to do but play golf.

At least you have the option in Europe to actually experience some of the culture of some of the European cities.

Q. Are you someone who likes to give yourself a break at the end of the season and has a complete shutdown, don't touch the clubs for a couple of weeks?

LUKE DONALD: A couple weeks, at least two or three, maybe four.

No, I do. I'm very good at taking breaks. I think it's important. It's a very long, long hard year, and for me it's important to take breaks. I'll be playing the World Cup and that's all for me. I had a chance to go to Hong Kong and decided it's going to be too tiring to go there for one week. So I'm going to have at least a good six weeks off. I probably won't touch the clubs for three or four of those.

Q. And would you spend that time at home or in America?

LUKE DONALD: Well, I have a home in Chicago that I live with my girlfriend over there. I'll spend most of the time there. My family is coming to Chicago for Christmas, so it will be fun.

Q. You'd willingly spend a winter in Chicago?

LUKE DONALD: Yeah, as I'm not playing golf, as I said, the clubs will be away. The weather isn't too important to me. I will spend a little bit of time in Florida, a couple of weeks getting ready.

Q. What's the usual temperature, Christmas in Chicago?

LUKE DONALD: Probably about -5.

Q. Big music city, isn't it?

LUKE DONALD: It's pretty famous for jazz, I suppose. I'm not a big jazz fan.

GORDON SIMPSON: Blues.

LUKE DONALD: Jazz and blues, sorry. No, it's a fun city. There's a lot to do.

Q. If you lived in Florida, would you want to be on the golf course every day during the winter or does it suit you?

LUKE DONALD: I would not want to go every day, no. I think I do like to take breaks and if I was in Florida, I would be tempted to play. I'd probably pick up the clubs earlier than I would in Chicago, and I think that's one reason why I stay in Chicago. I've got no excuses, or I've got more excuses, I guess.

GORDON SIMPSON: Well done, Luke. Enjoy your winter.

End of FastScripts.

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