	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

PGA CHAMPIONSHIP

August 11, 2010

Yong-Eun Yang

KOHLER, WISCONSIN

KELLY ELBIN: Defending PGA Champion Y.E. Yang joining us at the 92nd PGA Championship at Whistling Straits. Y.E. is joined by his interpreter Paul Hahn.
Y.E. made history last year by becoming the first Asian to win a major golf championship when he out dueled Tiger Woods and won at Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, Minnesota.
Y.E., welcome to Whistling Straits. Comments on coming in as a defending Major Champion and how the experience has been so far.
Y.E. YANG: The past last year there's been a lot of changes in my life, but it's been a good experience. And this week I'm happy to be back for the tournament, I'm kind of sorry that it's not Hazeltine, but I'm happy to be at Whistling Straits. It's a quite difficult course, but I'm happy to be back.

Q. How exactly has your life changed in the last year?
Y.E. YANG: So after the last year's win it was a big, I had a big honor of playing in The Presidents Cup. And then also when I came back to Korea there were a lot of reporters in the airport, although it was very early in the morning, and also when he went back to my hometown of Jeju Island where there was a big welcome ceremony with the people there, and also a lot of reporters asking for interviews and things like that.
So that's one of the biggest changes.

Q. Wanted to know what your feelings are in the same foursome again with Tiger Woods. I'm sure you've thought of that and do you have memories of the final round of Hazeltine that come to mind right when you think of that?
Y.E. YANG: So this will be my third time around with Tiger after The Presidents Cup, including The Presidents Cup.
Of course Tiger's a very good player, so I'm personally excited and honored to be playing with him. And we have, for the two days that I am around here with him -- it's not the last two days, so I think I'll be able to play kind of with a more comfortable mindset.

Q. I'm just looking around at the lack of people in the room for this, and I'm wondering, do you feel like you're sort of flying under the radar here and that maybe there's less pressure for you to defend than some of the other previous champions?
Y.E. YANG: It's been a year since my PGA win, so maybe I'm kind of out of the spotlight a little bit. And for the past year, I haven't been doing that great and maybe people think that I may not win this one again. So in that respect maybe that's why kind of I am flying under the radar.
But I'm trying to focus -- well, my task at hand is to focus on the game tomorrow and the days afterwards. So I kind of figure the reporters that haven't -- that are not here today probably are busy somewhere else.

Q. Compare your game now with what it was a year ago.
Y.E. YANG: Last year when I was playing I wanted to win and I was very confident about my ability to play. Compared to that, this year I feel I may have lost my rhythm a little bit and my confidence may not be as high as it was last year.
But I have won in the PGA TOUR, so I think in the next four days, I'll try to do my best.

Q. You mentioned Hazeltine; what was it about that golf course that fit your game?
Y.E. YANG: I mentioned that I wish it was Hazeltine just because I'm quite fond of the course, because, you know, I had some good memories there, basically.

Q. What is your impression of this course and what do you see out there that is particularly difficult?
Y.E. YANG: It feels a bit more difficult than Hazeltine. The rough is I think a bit longer and there's a lot more bunkers; so if you're not careful you might not get very good scores.
So in that aspect I think it's a bit more difficult than Hazeltine.

Q. I think the most symbol-like incident of your last year's win may be last night's Champion's Dinner. Back in Korea you are a national hero, and even the menu itself was coordinated with the help of Korea's First Lady, so there's a lot of national interest. How do you feel about that?
Y.E. YANG: When I was told that I had to host the Champion's Dinner this year, and they told me to come up with a menu, I asked what to do to a close friend of mine who is a quite a famous singer in Korea.
Anyway, he introduced me to an organization in Korea that works to promote Korean food globally, and through that organization I was able to come up with a Korean. Menu and I'm kind of glad and proud that I've been able to kind of showcase Korean cuisine to the champions last night.

Q. What was the menu?
Y.E. YANG: Well, you have got the basics, the Kimchi and the rice, and also it consisted of a lot of popular dishes such as Kai bi, which is kind of a beef marinated in Korean barbecue sauce. Also there was an assortment of vegetables that were prepared Korean style, and also a desert that was kind of a style that a lot of Koreans enjoy.
KELLY ELBIN: Could you expand a little bit upon what it was like to host the dinner, what it was like to be in front of 15 other PGA champions, including the likes of Tiger, Phil, etc, and the history that came with it.
Y.E. YANG: Last night's dinner included the likes of greats from the'60s, up to players that are playing in the tournament today, as well as the PGA president and his wife, and also like the CEO of Kohler.
So it was kind of surreal to realize that I am introducing Korean food the home of my country to these extraordinary people and myself, and I'm sure all the people of Korea are very happy that we were able to kind of introduce our traditional cuisine to a host of wonderful people last night.

Q. For Paul, what kind of experience has this been for you personally to kind of go through this with Y.E. and have the questions and just the attention and everything? Just on a personal level and in that line how long have you been Y.E.'s translator?
PAUL HAHN: Well, some of you may know, but I'm working with Y.E. kind of temporarily because his regular agent, Ryan Park, has been unable to attend.
My experience with Y.E. goes back a year to Hazeltine when I visited Ryan who was a close college friend of mine, and I visited him without too much expectations, just to check out the PGA tournament and then things got kind of crazy when Y.E. won. And amidst all of that excitement, I was invited over to his house and stayed there for like three or four days. And that's when I first got to know Y.E. from Hazeltine.
And why Ryan couldn't make the trip over this year, Ryan and Y.E. kind of asked me to help out. So for me, it's been quite a ride. It's been my second PGA Championship experience personally, but I mean compared to last year the media attention and you know the fans coming up and Y.E.'s greats with the fans, he would always do tons of autographs when he's doing on the course and stuff, so personally I've been excited to just see Y.E. kind of being loved by so many fans. So it's been quite a ride. Thanks for asking that, too.

Q. I wondered if you can share with us any funny stories or anecdotes about going back to South Korea where you're a national hero. Did you go back to the golf course you first learned to play on, and just how crazy did it get?
Y.E. YANG: So when I went back to my hometown in Jeju Island, for safety reasons, I had about six bodyguards that were assigned to me. And as we were in my hometown, I was walking up front and the bodyguards kind of couldn't catch up, couldn't follow-up. So I was kind of trying to figure out what was going on.
And it turns out all their jackets and suits were all ripped up because there were so many fans that wanted to get my autograph. I mean, no one was hurt during the process, but it was kind of funny to see those big body guards and their clothes getting ripped up like that. So that was interesting.
KELLY ELBIN: You're paired tomorrow first two days with Tiger Woods and Vijay Singh. What's that going to be like do you think for the first two rounds for you personally?
Y.E. YANG: Well, I'll be playing with two legendary golfers, one who has one here on Whistling Straits, and they're top golfers. So it's personally an honor to be playing with them. So I think the next two days are going to be one that I'll remember for the rest of my life. So I hope to go out there and kind of have fun and enjoy the experience.
KELLY ELBIN: Defending PGA Champion, Y.E. Yang, thank you very much.
Y.E. YANG: Thank you.

End of FastScripts

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297