	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

AT&T NATIONAL

July 4, 2010

Tiger Woods

NEWTOWN SQUARE, PENNSYLVANIA

Q. Tiger, I know you're disappointed with your performance this week overall because a W is always what you're looking for, but that disappointment I think has to be tempered what when you look at the crowds out here, the golf course, the way the military has been treated this week. It has to really warm your heart the way it's been received.
TIGER WOODS: Well, everyone here at Aronimink from the membership, AT&T, all the people that come out and support our event, it's a tremendous week for what we're trying to do for the local community and our charitable efforts. We couldn't do that unless a lot of people come out and support our event.

Q. There's probably nothing more fitting on the 4th of July than to celebrate the military.
TIGER WOODS: Absolutely. If you look, they're on 9 tee and 17 tee, and it's pretty cool. They deserve it. They're out there fighting, and quite frankly they don't get enough credit.

Q. What do you take away from this week's performance and the state of your game as you start preparing for St. Andrews, which is clearly your favorite golf course in the world?
TIGER WOODS: It is, by far. I'm really excited. I've driven the ball better this week than I have in a very long time. It's fun to hit the driver that way. I hit driver as many times as I possibly could because it felt so good. I just wanted to keep hitting it. That hasn't been the case lately. So it was nice to get back dialed in and obviously need to get my putter working a little bit better and get rolling.

Q. Completely different set of greens makes a difference, as well.
TIGER WOODS: Exactly.

Q. This is a difficult golf course and you never really got anything going the whole week.
TIGER WOODS: You know, it's very similar to, I think, TPC in the sense that if you're hitting it well, you're going to have a lot of close putts. If you're hitting it just slightly off, you're going to be on the wrong side of the mounds. The TOUR did a great job this week of setting up the pins. They're very difficult, and you had to be on with your ball-striking to give yourself some good looks at putts. You can see the guys who are leading have been doing that all day.

Q. You wore a smile on your face a lot of the week, whether you made birdie or bogey. Some of that has to be due to the crowds. Philadelphia has really supported this tournament and your charities.
TIGER WOODS: I mean, this is a huge sports town, and for us to come out and support our event like this, they were loud, boisterous and extremely respectful, and that's all any tournament would want to have. We're lucky to have them here.

Q. If there's anything to elevate your game, lift your spirits, it's a trip to St. Andrews. Your thoughts on the British Open?
TIGER WOODS: Yeah, I can't wait to get over there. I'm looking forward to getting my lines, my feels, my numbers over there again. I love playing the golf course, and we'll see how the weather is; you never know.

Q. How difficult was playing for you this week?
TIGER WOODS: I was great with the driver. I wanted driver every hole. Stevie tried to talk me out of the driver. I felt like I was driving it on a string all week. Unfortunately my iron game wasn't as sharp as it could be, and certainly I putted awful all week, so it is what it is.

Q. You talk about frustration levels. How is it you are able to manage being able to putt well and not being able to hit the ball well, being able to hit the ball well and not putt well and still move on week to week?
TIGER WOODS: Welcome to golf. Welcome to golf. We do it for a living, and that's the way it is. There are weeks when you hit it absolutely atrociously and for some reason you shoot under par every day. Or you hit it on a string, and you feel like you can't make anything. I just had one of those weeks unfortunately, and hopefully we'll get dialed in for the British.

Q. You hit the driver well this week?
TIGER WOODS: I did, I did. I drove it pretty good this week. That was fun. It's not too often that Stevie is talking me out of hitting driver. I was driving it so good, I just wanted to hit driver every hole. It hasn't been like that in an extremely long time.

Q. Talk about your game tee to green.
TIGER WOODS: Tee to green I felt great. My iron game wasn't as sharp as it usually is, but I did hit a lot of good iron shots.

Q. Talk about your game heading to St. Andrews.
TIGER WOODS: It does feel good to hit the ball as well as I did this week. I just need to get my putter organized a little better and really work on my putter over there. We're going to be tested. There are a lot of long putts. Good shots over there a lot of times end up 50 feet away.

Q. After being out there today, do you think there's any way someone will catch Justin?
TIGER WOODS: If he plays the way he has been, there's no reason why he can't win. Got to go out there and play smart, drive the ball -- if he drives the ball in the fairway here, he'll shoot a good number, and I think that is pretty imperative for him, for all the guys that want to shoot good numbers today. You have to get the ball in play. These are pretty tough pins today.

Q. Considering what you've been through, do you take the same approach to winning a major at St. Andrews that you've done in the past?
TIGER WOODS: Yeah, nothing changes. I know what it takes to be ready, and I know what it takes to win major championships. Just need to get to that point and put it all together at the right time.

Q. You've had great success there. How much confidence do you take with you going into St. Andrews?
TIGER WOODS: I've just always loved playing there. That was my first Open Championship. My first introduction to links golf was in '95; I got to play Carnoustie in the Scottish and St. Andrews. A hell of an introduction. It doesn't get any better than that. I fell in love with the golf course the first time I played it.

Q. What makes it so much more difficult than a lot of the links courses you play?
TIGER WOODS: Well, people think it's so wide open, but it's not, because in order to get to a lot of the flags, you have to put the ball in the correct spot to have angles. If you keep firing left and the pins are tucked, you're going to have 50-, 60-, 80-foot putts all day. It's just an amazing, amazing test of positioning your golf ball. Faldo has won there. You don't have to hit the ball long. It's just about putting the ball in the correct spots.

Q. What do you take from these four rounds here?
TIGER WOODS: Well, I'm excited the way I drove the ball this week, really excited. I felt like I drove it on a string all week.

Q. You keep saying you're close. Is that a bit of an overstatement, or are you very confident with the way you're playing?
TIGER WOODS: Well, I think it's something that you guys have followed me all week and seen the progress I've made.

Q. Is it much more difficult getting your putting straightened out or your long game?
TIGER WOODS: Long game by far.

Q. So you don't feel like you're that far away then?
TIGER WOODS: No.

Q. Is it a matter of just keep putting?
TIGER WOODS: Yeah, keep practicing.

Q. What are you plans when you get to St. Andrews?
TIGER WOODS: Practice.

Q. Are you going to play some links golf?
TIGER WOODS: No.

End of FastScripts

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297