	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 ACCENTURE MATCH PLAY CHAMPIONSHIP

February 17, 2010

Tim Clark

MARANA, ARIZONA

MARK WILLIAMS: Tim Clark, thanks for joining us at the Accenture Match Play Championship in the interview room. 1-up victory today in the first round over your Presidents Cup team member, Vijay Singh.
TIM CLARK: Any match you get is going to be tough, particularly Vijay. I certainly committed to try to win my matches. But it's a difficult golf course for me. I find it tough to get close to a lot of these holes. If I can make some birdies where I can, and hang on some of the longer holes I'll have a chance.
MARK WILLIAMS: Did you feel your putting was best or your ball-striking?
TIM CLARK: Again, it's tough on this course because you just never have a lot of birdie chances. A lot of the time you're just trying to two-putt. So it's hard to say how well you're rolling it.
I was able to make a few birdies early on. I knew he was going to come back in the match and obviously it looked like we were going to go down the first hole, again. So I really worked -- I was hoping to finish it there on 17 with about a 10-, 12-footer, but, yeah, I definitely thought he was going to win 18, then we'd be going down the first hole.

Q. You must have made some comments about the ball this week from the other players, any comments from the crowd today?
TIM CLARK: A lot of the players haven't seen it, obviously. I just tried to yesterday for the first time. I played nine holes and it seemed all right, so I figured I'd use it, give it a try.
I was a bit worried that you couldn't start with a yellow ball and change back to a white one even though it's the same golf ball. I guess once you start with it you -- I took a bit of a chance and I'm pretty used to it, yeah. It didn't make a difference really for me.
A few people said something out there, but obviously they had about three or four beers in them, so you can expect that.

Q. Nothing funny?
TIM CLARK: Not funny, no (laughter), I didn't find it funny.
MARK WILLIAMS: This is the first week you've used the yellow ball?
TIM CLARK: Second day.

Q. I guess two questions, number one: What's the thing behind the yellow ball?
TIM CLARK: It's just a color. I don't hit it far enough not to see a white one, but some guys it might help them.

Q. So it's not to pick it up in case you go into the desert?
TIM CLARK: No, no. It's interesting, though, you really do see the ball a lot better. A few shots today on the par-3s I was battling to see where Vijay's ball had ended up, especially when the greens have a little bit of a shine to them, which these ones do. So you can definitely pick it up from further away and definitely track it easier in the air.
If not for my benefit, I guess it's for the benefit of the spectators. I don't know how it comes out on TV. I'm not sure if you can tell a difference. But it may.

Q. From a bracket standpoint, this is your, I think, second upset in two years. Last year against Tiger.
TIM CLARK: I was expected to beat Tiger, wasn't I? (Laughter).

Q. Is there something that makes you tougher in match play?
TIM CLARK: Well, if you look at my record, it hasn't been great. I barely got out of the first round the first four or five years I played this. I don't know, I guess my game has gotten better over the years and the last few years I've played good. In this tournament, though, you can have a great round and get beaten. I've lost matches that I've played really good. I probably won one where I didn't play great.
I enjoy the match play format. And it certainly gets you concentrating on every shot and every hole and that's exciting. I enjoy playing golf when there's a bit of excitement to it.
MARK WILLIAMS: Tim, appreciate you coming in. Thanks a lot.

End of FastScripts

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297