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TURNING STONE RESORT CHAMPIONSHIPSeptember 30, 2009Adam ScottVERONA, NEW YORK MARK WILLIAMS: Adam, thanks for joining us here at the interview room at the Turning Stone Resort Championship. Obviously you've been out there this morning in the Pro-Am in some pretty foul conditions, so we appreciate you coming into the warmth. This is your first Fall Series event. Obviously getting into the Presidents Cup team, that probably influenced your decision coming to play here, having not played for a little while. Just talk about what you're looking forward to here at the Turning Stone and then maybe some comments about the Presidents Cup and we'll open it up for questions. ADAM SCOTT: Yeah. It's a great opportunity for me to come here this week in preparation, I guess, for the Presidents Cup, but also a good chance for me to put in some work over the last few weeks that I've been off and try and get my game back up to the level where I wanted it to be all year and just haven't been able to get it there. So yeah, it's a great preparation for the Presidents Cup, but also it's another opportunity for me to perform here on the PGA TOUR how I haven't been this year, and wanting to get back up on the top of the leaderboard. So you know, really two good things for me this week. I really want to get stuck into the tournament and be competitive, and I think that will only benefit me for next week at the Presidents Cup. MARK WILLIAMS: And your opinion of the golf course? You've seen it, I guess, for the first time. I don't know if you played on Tuesday or not, but what are your thoughts on the golf course? ADAM SCOTT: Yeah. I mean the golf course is, yeah, a really solid, nice golf course. I mean it's just very hard to get a good education of how it really plays when, you know, unfortunately the fairways are just all casual water at the moment. And today, it was so cold this morning, it was playing extremely long as well. But you know, it's a very appealing-looking golf course to the eye. I mean it has a lot of nice holes. There's nothing hidden. Everything's pretty much right out in front of you, which is a good thing when you're playing. You know, there are no tricks, so you just gotta go out and play well. MARK WILLIAMS: We'll have questions for Adam. Q. Adam, you said you've been working on some things. I was reading that you were working primarily on your putting. Is that true? And what have you been trying to do with it? ADAM SCOTT: Yeah. I've been working on everything. I mean we always work on everything, I think. You know, there's probably not a golfer in the world who's satisfied with their game completely, but I've been working a lot harder on everything lately. Absolutely my putting, just really about getting my hands a little higher, and making that feel comfortable, and that just comes from more practice and getting used to it. And so that's feeling good. And similar in my golf swing, just getting into good posture at address, and that's where I've really struggled with this year. So once I get into good posture, I generally make a good swing, and it's just a matter of doing that and getting it to feel comfortable as well. When you've been in a habit somewhere else, when you change something, it's just a little uncomfortable, so I've been working on that. Q. Adam, do you feel added pressure this week put on you, because of this whole Presidents Cup and with Captain Norman picking you, to come out and perform well even in these brutal conditions? ADAM SCOTT: I don't think the pressure is on me to perform well this week from a Presidents Cup standpoint. I think that's probably more pressure on me next week to perform once I play in the team. But for me, this week is about trying to have a highlight for the year on the PGA TOUR, and I can carry some confidence in. But you know, ever since, even just being picked on the team was good for my confidence. You know, the way I practiced the last few weeks, you know, I felt much more confident out on the golf course. And you know, I'm confident I'm going to play well here, and I'm confident I'm going to play well in San Francisco as well. Q. Where do you feel the change was from where your game was to try to get back to that point? Did you lose something along the way? Is it just a very subtle difference between being top of your game to just being just barely beneath that? Can you put your finger on it? ADAM SCOTT: You know, obviously I've thought about it a lot this year, and I mean I can give you a long, drawn-out answer, but you know, the simple answer is, you know, just some habits of mine got out of hand, and it was hard to fix them while still trying to play. And just -- I just didn't manage it well enough, I think. And you know, you've gotta go back to basics, and you know, for me that's fairly easy. I have a fairly straightforward golf swing when I swing the club well. I've just gotta get myself in position to do that, and that's basically what I said, my posture was not allowing me to swing it how I should. Q. Adam, when you're out there this weekend, do you foresee yourself having next weekend in your mind thinking, just try to -- you know, whether it's making shots to prepare you for next weekend, or what's the mentality like? ADAM SCOTT: No. I'm here to play this event, and you know, play my way into contention to win this golf tournament, just like I tried to any other week. I don't think there's anything I can do here, other than play well, to help myself for next week, so I'm just worried about getting myself into good position over the weekend here. Q. How excited are you for next weekend, though? ADAM SCOTT: Next week? Yeah, I mean, it's kind of a sweet ending to a rough year, but it's been great for me, and I think it'll be great for my golf, but it's been good for me the last few weeks to stay out and keep practicing and not just go home and put the clubs away for break, you know, because I was getting closer to where I wanted to be, but I was ready for break as well, and this has kept me out on the range and on TOUR, and hopefully see some of that hard work over the last few weeks pay off here and then carry on to next week. So I think only good things will come from, you know, being a part of that team next week. Q. Two quick things. I remember reading recently that Greg Norman's one of your heroes, and I didn't know if you could mention something about that. I mean I watched you in '05, because I was working at Robert Trent Jones, play the Presidents Cup, and it was a lot of fun, and I'm sure you're excited for that, but being with Greg Norman, that's gotta be a thrill as well; as well as Marc Leishman was in here yesterday, a fellow Aussie, talking about how he actually enjoys playing in windy conditions just because that's what he grew up playing. I know obviously this rain is horrendous, but would that offset your golf game or is that something you're comfortable with, playing in the wind? ADAM SCOTT: Yeah. Well, the first part, obviously, just a couple years ago or 18 months ago when Greg was named captain, it was a goal to make that team, and you know, either way, how I got on the team, I mean it's a great honor. It's almost more of an honor that he actually picked me than if I just played my way on and played under Greg as a captain. But I think for me and any other Aussie on that team, it's pretty much a dream come true. We all grew up watching Greg in Australia and what he did for the game down there and the game around the world. He's been a great ambassador for the game. So I think he'll be a great captain as well. I think he's going to bring something different to the Presidents Cup this year than we've had in the last few years, which happens with every new captain, and I think the guys are really excited. I mean the international team needs to win one of these things here and make it a real competition, and we haven't been able to get it done the last few times. And you know, I've been lucky to be on three teams already, and I mean every time it's been an incredible experience. South Africa is one of my favorite experiences in my career, playing on the team that week, and the energy around the event. I can't compare it to the Ryder Cup because I haven't been involved, but for us that's our team event, and that's the one week of the year that there's that team atmosphere, and the camaraderie of the guys, and we all get together and really pull hard for each other. So definitely looking forward to that, and obviously, you know, really, you know, humbled a little bit to be picked by Greg, and you know, like probably everyone else on the team, honored to play underneath him. But as far as playing in the wind goes, it's good. I mean I've grown up in the wind, too. Most of Australia's population is on the coast, so it's windy, and certainly spent a lot of time playing in the wind as a kid. Played in some pretty bad conditions on Tour over the years, too. So it's something I feel pretty comfortable with, absolutely. Q. Will your performance this week determine whether you play after next week or are you going to shut it down no matter what after the Presidents Cup? ADAM SCOTT: Yeah. I'll see how I play the next two weeks, but my plan is to -- I'm thinking I'll play well and keep playing a couple more events. I have three events in Australia to play at the end of the year, and also thinking about playing the Singapore Open. No, I'd like to start playing well and keep playing. There's no point to shut it down if I'm playing well. Q. So this is your only Fall Series event that you're planning on playing? ADAM SCOTT: At the moment. That's completely up in the air still, but for right now, yeah. Q. Adam, in today's Pro-Am, do you go out and -- I didn't watch many of the holes, but do you try to track the greens a little bit? What's your approach when you're playing in an event like this? Do you treat it as a practice round or do you just try to have some fun? ADAM SCOTT: Well, yeah. This was my only opportunity to see the course today. Yesterday I played two holes, but I thought it was not really worth continuing. But yeah, really, today you know, the course is straightforward off the tee and to the green, but you know, try and get a feel for the greens. The greens are so pure, they're rolling very well and true, so it's just a matter of having a little bit of knowledge of the slopes on the greens for getting shots in and knowing how the ball's going to react. But you know, it's just a matter of surviving out there this morning. It was freezing. I wasn't really prepared. I didn't come here this week with too many warm clothes. Q. (No microphone). ADAM SCOTT: I've got it all now, I should be good. Q. Adam, I know you said that you worked on your game over the last few weeks, but was it good to sort of step away from the Tour a little bit and get some time to yourself? You were in Europe, from what I understand, and sort of had a little bit of a personal life and sort of forget about some of the troubles you've had out here on Tour? ADAM SCOTT: Yeah. Absolutely. I mean I think at times it's always good to be able to step away from the Tour for a little bit, and unfortunately for me it was a forced break. I had no events to play in, which was too bad. But yeah, I mean I was having a rough few weeks, and you know, when it's close and not happening or not close and not happening, it's frustrating to be out here. It turns into a grind, and you know, you hear guys talk about that all the time. And it was nice to go back to my home in Europe and be in my own environment and do my own thing and practice the way I wanted to practice. So it was, yeah, it was really good to clear the head, and like I said, being picked in the Presidents Cup also filled me with some confidence as well. MARK WILLIAMS: You talked a little earlier about Captain Norman and every captain of the Presidents Cup brings something different to the table. What are some of the specific things that you think Greg Norman will bring to the table for the team that will make him different from other captains? ADAM SCOTT: Well, I think, you know, it seems like, you know, when Greg takes charge of something or gets involved with anything, you know, he does it 110%. I'm not saying that other captains didn't do that, but he grabs the bull by the horns, and you know, he's going to get in there, and I reckon he'd play the shots for us if he could. You know, he wants it just as bad as all of us players do. And you know, I think some of his passion for the event certainly will rub off on us, and you know, I'm pretty sure it's going to be I'd like to say a bullshit approach with the team. You know, I'm looking forward to seeing it, getting the guys fired up a little bit. I mean not that we need it, but sometimes in certain situations, if we're down or if we're up, you know, you need to be spurred along a little bit and keep it going or get it going. And I think Greg certainly has the ability to do that. You know, he's one of the most intense competitors the game's had, you know, so I think that'll be good to rub off on all of us out there. MARK WILLIAMS: If there are no other questions, I think we're done. Thanks, Adam for joining us. I appreciate your time today. ADAM SCOTT: Thanks, guys. End of FastScripts |
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