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SHELL HOUSTON OPEN

March 30, 2010

Lee Westwood

HUMBLE, TEXAS

MARK WILLIAMS: Lee Westwood. Thanks for joining us here at the interview room at the Shell Houston Open. This is your fourth trip here and No. 4 in the world. Just tell us what you like about coming to Houston, obviously the week before the Masters, and what you like about the Redstone Golf Club.
LEE WESTWOOD: I do love the golf course. I think it's a great test of golf out there. If you hit the ball well, you get rewarded. If you hit it poorly, you get penalized. That's all you can really ask from a golf course.
The conditions are normally pretty testing. It's normally a decent breeze blows around here. Hopefully the weather is going to be good all week this week. The forecast it pretty good.
The greens will firm up and they're obviously running very quickly, I think. And they do that to help us with next week in mind. I know last year I was leading after 9 holes and the breeze got up and called us off for a day. You know, it's what they try and do. Yeah, I enjoy playing the place. Seems to suit me.
MARK WILLIAMS: Before we have questions, is that one of the main reasons you like to play the week before the Masters, is because it's here on this golf course and the conditions are that similar?
LEE WESTWOOD: For me, yeah. That's one of the reasons. I think that's why they got such a strong field this week because it's a great -- I don't want to call it a warm-up for the Masters but it is reflective of next week's golf course.
I think the Shell Houston Open is a big tournament in its own right and, you know, a great one to win, one of the older tournaments with a great history and good champions. It's one you look to win but it does prepare you very well for next week.
MARK WILLIAMS: Let's have some questions for Lee.

Q. What's your game like at the moment, Lee?
LEE WESTWOOD: My game is pretty good, yeah. The weather isn't too bad. I was at home two weeks. I played at home. I certainly played more when I had breaks the previous part of the year and played at Augusta on Sunday and Monday, which kind of gets you focused in a little bit for play and, yeah, I'm looking forward to this week and feeling in pretty good shape.

Q. Are you concerned at Dubai, it hasn't quite lived up to that?
LEE WESTWOOD: Not really, no. I haven't really worked on my golf game that much. Done a lot of training in the gym but when I've gone home and week off, I haven't played you know, the week between Dubai and Match Play.
I didn't have a chance to practice because the weather was poor. Similarly, the Match Play and all was over and before the Honda, I -- weather was poor. Even I had a knee injury as well. I couldn't hit balls for ten days going into the Honda and managed to finish 9th.
I've obviously set high standards last year and 3rd in Qatar and Dubai. I suppose looking at finished 9th and 30th and think that's not good enough.
Still not too bad, is it?

Q. You're still ranked 4th in the world.
LEE WESTWOOD: Yes.
Q. With Augusta next week, are you ready for it?
LEE WESTWOOD: I fell more ready for the Masters this year than ever before. It was good to get out there with nobody there, no crowds there and just be able to wander around and I never thought about doing that before. It really is a big advantage to be able to get out there and do your work with nobody sort of watching you.

Q. Was it that trip that makes you feel more prepared than before?
LEE WESTWOOD: No. Just the way the first part of the year has gone. Historically, I'm not that sort of a quick starter in the golfing year and I feel like I've started pretty strongly this year.
I've certainly had more World Ranking points than I had done in previous years and, you know, winning more than I have been in previous years. I'm quite happy with the way the start of the season has gone.

Q. What aspects really do you need to focus on this week do you think? Is there anything in particular?
LEE WESTWOOD: I think short game is vital around Augusta. I think putting on these greens being so fast will be a good preparation for next week, too.
Got lot of imagination around both of these golf courses. These are undulating in places. When the greens get that quick you have to factor in the breeze and all sorts of different things.
On and around the greens is where I've been working most the last couple of days over there and this week when I'm not playing, I think most of my time will be dedicated to being around the chipping green.

Q. How have your preparations changed for Augusta over the years? You played ten Masters. What have you done in previous years and what are you doing this year that's different?
LEE WESTWOOD: I haven't really done that much different, you know, I haven't really -- too many chances to win. I think this year finally seeing the light and tried something different and I think it will pay dividends.

Q. Going there for the practice days, Sunday, Monday, was the first time you've ever done that?
LEE WESTWOOD: First time I've ever done that, yes. I've normally arrived on Sunday evening and played Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday. It's quite a demanding place mentally.
If you're having to take everything in when you're playing practice rounds, just before you're about to play, you can be drained by the time the tournament starts.
I think that's why mainly most people go a couple weeks before so they can have a couple of weeks just kind of thinking about what they're going to do the week of the Masters, sort of 30, 40 percent for two weeks rather than going in Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday before and then having to be thinking a hundred percent about everything that's going on and it draining you.

Q. How much are you here to win the Shell Houston Open and how much are you here for Augusta?
LEE WESTWOOD: It's my primary reason for being here. Like I said earlier, it's a big tournament in its own right with a rich history and great winners, played on a great golf course. You know, it's 12 years since I've won on the PGA Tour. I'd like to do that again.

Q. Lee, with what they're doing here, you know, firming up the greens, obviously you can't mirror Augusta. Is that really beginning to catch on with people, I mean with the great fields that are coming and the preparation, even though it's different grass and different undulations?
LEE WESTWOOD: I think the people appreciate this golf course because it's such a stiff test. It really does test you. You need to hit the fairways, to have the control on the ball going into the greens. You need to have good distance control.
When the breeze starts blowing, picking up a bit, there's some really tough shots. The water is quite close and the pin is close to some of the edges. You got those roll-offs into some tricky spots and even roll-offs into water.
So it really does focus your mind on this golf course. I think it's probably one of the stronger tests on this Tour and you have to play really well to win this week.

Q. Did you see what Ernie said about you in watching you play?
LEE WESTWOOD: Good or bad?

Q. In the Honda watching you play and watching you swinging.
LEE WESTWOOD: Did he tell you about giving all the tips that he's gone on to win? Watching him made me work hard. I hope I'm able to do it so quickly. It's nice that he said things, yeah. I've always gotten along very well with Ernie.
We played quite a bit. I'm assuming he's talking about when we played at Seminole a couple of weeks back the Monday of Doral, the CA, and -- I thought his game was in great shape, you know, the way he played that day.
He had a lot of control and it was no surprise for me to see him win that. I would have put him -- if I had to pick three, four players I would have put him in that four.

Q. Who do you see as the favorite for next week?
LEE WESTWOOD: Well, I don't think you can look far past Phil, Tiger, Ernie. Paul Casey has got a great there for there. Anybody with a fantastic short game. Paul, because he hits it high. I'm quite confident about my own chances.

Q. You think Tiger can win or is that absurd?
LEE WESTWOOD: You have four, you can do them each way, can't you?
MARK WILLIAMS: Can you talk a little bit, tomorrow, you're involved in the Caddy for the Cure participating tomorrow. Do you know anybody about the person who donated to this worthy cause to caddy for you tomorrow or are you in the dark about that?
LEE WESTWOOD: Yeah, I'm in the dark about that but I've been auctioned in Pro-Ams in Europe before for different charities when they've come along and said can you give us some help?
It's quite a good way of raising money. The people bid in auctions and they get to see firsthand really on the day before you actually get competitive what the course is playing like and get to know us a little bit. It's a bit of sort of money can buy, obviously, because it's kind of a money can buy sort of opportunity.
MARK WILLIAMS: Pretty good situation. Did you get contacted about that awhile ago or did you just offer to do it?
LEE WESTWOOD: I offered to do it. I heard a couple of other guys had been doing. I saw Jack Nicklaus was doing it at the Honda. I think somebody paid a fortune for that, as they would.
Then I saw like their ambassador, Chris, I think his name is, and we stood on the back of the range with a guy that used to caddy for Bernhard Langer, Russ, and I got Russ over, "If you ever want to auction caddying for me on one of the Wednesdays, I'd be glad to do that. I'm playing in Houston. You want to get it together and do that?"
Just came about like that. Billy likes a day off.
MARK WILLIAMS: Is he going to have a day off?
LEE WESTWOOD: He'll be walking around but won't be carrying the bag.
MARK WILLIAMS: Any other questions?
LEE WESTWOOD: Plenty of balls and the guy builds up some leg strength.
MARK WILLIAMS: Any further questions? Okay. We appreciate you coming in and all the best this week.
LEE WESTWOOD: Thank you.

End of FastScripts

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