|
|||
|
|||
|
 |
|
|
QUAIL HOLLOW CHAMPIONSHIPApril 27, 2010Lee WestwoodCHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA MARK STEVENS: We'd like to welcome Lee Westwood to the interview room. Lee is going to be making his third appearance at the Quail Hollow Championship and his first since 2007. Lee has not played since his second place finish at the Masters, so maybe if you could talk a little bit about coming back to Quail Hollow and what you've been doing for the last two weeks since the Masters. LEE WESTWOOD: Well, it's nice to be back at Quail Hollow. It's a golf course I enjoy playing. It's a golf course that's got a major championship feel to it, if anything, I'd say. It's an old, traditional course, makes you think a lot. You have to drive the ball well. All your game has got to be in good shape. And once you get on the greens, this week there's some really fast putts out there. These are as quick as anything I've seen all year, I think. It's good to be back. As for the last two weeks, I have not done a lot. I feel a bit rusty. After the Masters I sort of sat down and felt like I needed a bit of a rest, and as I built up to the Masters since, well, the end of last year, really, so I've been switched off the last couple of weeks and just a bit rusty coming in here. Not hitting it quite as good, but I think I'll sharpen as the week goes on hopefully. Q. Can you talk about it being a major championship venue? Could you see a major being played on this golf course? LEE WESTWOOD: Well, I think if the people here want a major championship then they could get one. The range and all the facilities and the infrastructure, I guess, but more -- more that I was talking about was the golf course. You know, there's not the rough up that you would associate with a major this week, but if I can imagine in the rough gets to four or five inches around here and it firms out, then you're playing later on in the year when it's hot and the ball is running maybe a little bit more, because it's a little bit soft out there at the moment, this would be a really, really tough test. I mean, it's a tough test as it is. But there's room out there for really stiffening it up. Q. I read some stories about you over the last week or so. I guess it must have been some comments you made overseas about maybe being the best player in the world at the moment. Where were you when you -- LEE WESTWOOD: No, I didn't make any comments like that. I was asked a question. That question was put to me, and it wasn't that question. It was tee to green do you think you're the best player -- Q. That's what I was wondering, what was the context of that? LEE WESTWOOD: Somebody asked me, tee to green do you think you are the best player in the world at the moment, and I said, the way I played at Augusta, which is the last time I played and the last time all the best players in the world got together, I led the greens in regulation. So it was very difficult to argue against that the last time we all played. Q. Was it conveyed the way you thought it should have been conveyed? LEE WESTWOOD: (Laughs.) I've been out here long enough to know that things get just twisted around slightly to suit people. Q. That's kind of why I asked the question. LEE WESTWOOD: Was I upset about it? No, I wasn't upset. Little things like that don't bother me. But at least when I'm talking to you here now I can tell you the question I was asked and what I replied. Q. I don't know that you've got to necessarily put a limitation on it. You might be able to present the case that you might be the best guy in the world. LEE WESTWOOD: Well, I wasn't the last nine holes that I played just now. (Laughter.) I was everywhere. But you can only go on your last performance, can't you, I suppose. Q. Augusta was pretty good. LEE WESTWOOD: Yeah. I led the greens in regulation, so I answered the question accordingly. Q. Do you get any crystal for that? LEE WESTWOOD: No, I did make an eagle for the first time ever on the 2nd there. First eagle I've ever made at Augusta, so I'm going to save that crystal, yeah. Q. You told a great story about your boy and the comments he made at Turnberry. Did you get any comments from the kids this time? LEE WESTWOOD: No, I think it was long past their bedtime, so I weren't even aware that I finished second. Q. Getting back to the idea of this as the feel of a major, you've been off for two weeks; coming back and playing in a field like this, does that kind of get you I guess anxious to knock the rust off and get back after it? LEE WESTWOOD: Yeah, very much so. I came out on Sunday to try and give myself an extra day to warm up and get some good preparation in. You know, the quality of the field here is fantastic. You've got the two best players in the world, strong field all the way through. It's right before THE PLAYERS Championship next week obviously, as well, which attracts players there. So you know, in regards to me coming over, it's a great two weeks to come over and test myself against the best again. You know, it's a nice tournament at the moment. Q. How would you rate in terms of more importance to you winning a PLAYERS Championship or a World Golf Championship, and do you think that opinion depends on whether you're a PGA TOUR member or not? LEE WESTWOOD: Yeah, I think it depends on whether you're a PGA TOUR member or not. I think THE PLAYERS probably used to be regarded as the fifth major, and it felt that way back in the late '90s. But since the invention of the World Golf Championships, I think it's actually stepped back from that. They have to go in now before THE PLAYERS Championship. So what is it, eighth on the list now? It's still a big tournament, very prestigious, you get a great field, and it's one that everybody wants to win, including me, myself. Q. How do you stack up the Green Mile here, 16, 17, 18, against finishing holes at other courses? LEE WESTWOOD: It's a great test, a great finish to the golf course. If you hit the ball well and you hit it in the fairway, then 16 gives you a chance at birdie, but obviously there's lots of danger there. And then 17 and 18, if you walk off those two with two pars then you're really happy. 17th is just a tough hole any time whether the wind is blowing or not, and 18 is a difficult drive and difficult second. If you're going in there with a one-shot lead and you make a couple of pars or three pars on the last three holes, then you're going to give yourself a big pat on the back. Q. They're hopeful of getting a Ryder Cup here at some point. How would you see those closing holes for that? LEE WESTWOOD: Well, I mean, having played under the pressure of the Ryder Cup and knowing what the finish is like when you're all square with a few holes to play, then that'll be an interesting finish. It will conjure up a few different and interesting scenarios, I would think. But no matter what tournament you play around here, it's always going to be a tough finish. Q. Did you ever play, have cards on both Tours simultaneously? LEE WESTWOOD: Yeah, for about three years. I found playing 15 events over here too demanding on my time. It's four more than I'd ideally like to play. Q. Was that all there was to it? I know it's got to be a tough balance flying back and forth. I don't know that you ever had a house here -- LEE WESTWOOD: No. Q. So you'd live in a suitcase -- LEE WESTWOOD: Yeah, my kids are at school back in England, and I don't like to spend more than three weeks away from home, which if I played 15 here, that would mean I'd have to do that more, which you don't want to do. I'm at the point in my career now and the age where I'm at a standard where I can play pretty much where I want, when I want. That's how it is this year, apart from one event where I haven't been able to get an invite. So I just don't see any reason in joining. The FedExCup is nice and it's exciting to watch on TV. I even tune in when that comes around in August, but I tune in because I'm on holiday with the kids because it's their summer holiday. It's not something that means enough for me to want to join. Q. Did you give your two cents' worth on McIlroy since he's kind of a stablemate of yours on doing the balancing act, or did he seek your advice? LEE WESTWOOD: No, Rory should do whatever he wants. That's something I've learnt over the last few years. If Rory wants to play on this Tour and be a member of this Tour, then he should do it. He shouldn't listen to too many people. That's what you can do when you start to hit sticky patches where you start missing a few cuts and things you don't like, you start to listen to too many people and take too much advice on board. He should just be his own man, which is difficult when you're only 20 years of age. It's easy to listen to everybody. I did it when I was 27, 28 and 29 when I was going through a bad patch. But having been through that, then I would say to be your own man and listen to what your head and your heart is telling you. Do your own thing. Q. I know he's been a little bit hurt, but I guess since this is his first year over here and everything is kind of new, every place he plays mostly it's the first time, you're probably not surprised if it might take a little while for him to get ramped up in the States? Fair to say, even with all his talent? LEE WESTWOOD: Yeah, I think it's -- everywhere is new to him at the moment because he hasn't been out here that much, but even more so over here, and there's always that pressure of expectation when you've had a good year the year before. Other people's expectations, and more so your own, so that can put a little bit of pressure on you, as well. But I think he's a good enough player not to worry too much about that, and he's a level-headed lad. Q. How was vacation? LEE WESTWOOD: I didn't go on one. I was scuppered by the Icelandic volcano, like many other people. Q. Which event was it that you couldn't get an invite to? LEE WESTWOOD: The one in Memphis the week before the U.S. Open. Q. Does that preclude you from the FedExCup? LEE WESTWOOD: I have no idea. It's not something that worries me. Q. Could you rate the 16th, 17th and 18th holes at Sawgrass, TPC Sawgrass, while we're talking about finishing holes? LEE WESTWOOD: Do you want me to go through them? Q. No, just how do you like them? How do they stack up for drama? LEE WESTWOOD: Well, they're full of drama. They're a 10 on the drama scale. 16 gives you a chance, but obviously there's a lot of water in play still. You can see how you can quickly make a 6 as you can make a 4. 17, I played with Nick Price there years ago, and he said, just try and hit it on that mound in the middle of the green there and then try and two-putt from there. That's basically what you should be thinking about at 17. And 18 is just a really tough finishing hole. The wind is normally off the left, so you have to hold it against the wind and into that fairway. You can obviously shape it that way, as well, but with the water down the left obviously it doesn't really set up nicely. And then it's a difficult second shot, depending on where the flag is. Obviously if the flag is round the front edge where they want it, then it gathers in there, but you can still make bogey from there. So it's a tough finish. There's a couple of hard finishes coming up these next two weeks. Q. Just curious after you got home how much if any you dwelled on Augusta. Was it easier this time because of Phil, the way he finished? LEE WESTWOOD: Yeah, I didn't dwell for too long. Obviously I was disappointed not to win it. I had a good chance. I felt like I played all right the last day, but Phil hit a lot of good shots and won the tournament, really. It wasn't like I gave it away. So you know, there's not really any need to dwell on a performance like that. It's something you just use as a positive again and move on, look forward to the next major championship or the next events. Q. What were your plans before the volcano? LEE WESTWOOD: I was going to go on holiday last week to Barbados. Q. You got caught in England? LEE WESTWOOD: I was in England, yeah. They shut the airports two days after I got home and only opened them up last Thursday. Q. You had those two rounds at the British last year with Tiger, and was it Ishikawa and 9 million people inside the ropes -- LEE WESTWOOD: And 120 photographers, yeah. Q. And pretty much everybody in this room. LEE WESTWOOD: Yeah. Q. When you're playing with that guy on a big stage, you seem to enjoy it. Obviously it didn't bother you; you finished third. What are the pros and cons of it, if there were any pros? How do you get through it, and does it dash you by the time the week is over? Do you get anything more out of it than if it were Furyk? LEE WESTWOOD: I think it's mentally a little bit more draining. You have to back off a few more shots and you have to be sure you're 100 percent committed to the shot. Obviously you do that all the time, but there are a few more distractions when there's a lot more going on. But other than that, no, not really. I've never really found it too much of a problem. Q. Do you have to make that adjustment? LEE WESTWOOD: Well, it's something you make yourself aware of before you actually even tee off. I played with Tiger the last round of Torrey Pines where there was plenty going on, so it's not like I haven't experienced it, and at Ryder Cups and stuff like that, there's plenty going on, as well. It's the benefit of having experience in situations like that. That can come as a bit of surprise to come people, all that's going on. But you get used to it over the years. MARK STEVENS: Thank you, Lee, and good luck this week. End of FastScripts |
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
About ASAP Sports •
FastScripts Archive •
Recent Interviews •
Captioning •
Upcoming Events •
Contact Us
FastScripts | Events Covered | Our Clients | Other Services | ASAP in the News | Site Map | Job Opportunities | Links |
|
ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297
|