	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

THE RYDER CUP

September 29, 2010

Ross Fisher

NEWPORT, WALES

GORDON SIMPSON: Ross, welcome to first interview of your first Ryder Cup. What's your initial impressions of being here this week? You know the golf course, but it's the first time you've been in the team room. What's been happening that has been -- what makes it so special?
ROSS FISHER: I think we have just got a great bunch of guys. We have got a lot of experience in the team room. And then there's a lot of youth and inexperience. I think we have got a great balance. We have guys that are really coming into form. I think everyone on our team is playing really, really good golf. It's just a real relaxed family atmosphere in the team room.
We have had some great team talks in the evenings. We have had stuff to take our mind off of it. But obviously we are here to do business and we are here to try and regain the trophy back.
GORDON SIMPSON: It's going to be a fairly long slog out there the way the weather has been the last 24 hours.
ROSS FISHER: Yeah, it's going to be very long. We were out there today in the rain, so it's playing long, but the course is holding up superbly well. You know, all credit to the greens staff here at Celtic Manor. The course is in great shape. You know, the rough, if you miss fairways, is very, very penal, which is what it should be.
Premium is on hitting fairways this week. The greens are in great shape. They are rolling beautifully well. And I think everyone in the team room really likes the feel of the course, and we really like our chances and we are really looking forward to it.

Q. What are your first memories of watching The Ryder Cup? And secondly, how much has the reality lived up to what you thought of it when you first saw it?
ROSS FISHER: Probably the first Ryder Cups I remember would have been, I would guess, was it The Belfry, which would have been '85 or 1987. I think was it Sam Torrance holing that putt on 18.
GORDON SIMPSON: How old were you then?
ROSS FISHER: I would have been four going on five. Yeah, it was obviously very special as a real youngster, getting videos and stuff for Christmas, Ryder Cup videos. Obviously having the relationship at Wentworth and seeing Bernard Gallacher up there; he actually brought the trophy into the pro shop for a couple of weeks in '95 when they won it in the States. That was pretty special, as juniors to have watched Ryder Cups is one thing, but to see it there in the flesh and have a chance to have your picture taken with it, it gave me goosebumps.
That's what we strive to do; you practise hard and hope that one day this will come. Obviously for me, it's here. It's a dream come true. I think it's everything that it's lived up to, and more. I mean, it's a very, very special week. Like I say, I'm part of a lead group of golfers in Europe and I feel very proud to be in the team room. We have got a great bunch of guys and team leader in Monty, Mr. Ryder Cup, and even the backroom staff, a lot of Ryder Cups between those guys, Sergio and Thomas, Paul, Darren. It's just a great bunch of guys to be a part of and it's going to be a fantastic week. It's going to be a very special week and hopefully it will be a winning week.

Q. You went out in the last round of the Open and know the pressure of that, but have you been told about the first tee tomorrow or the weekend, what it's going to be like?
ROSS FISHER: I had a brief chance with Clarkey walking up No. 2, and sort of had a chat with him and said, are you good, yeah, I'm good and he said just try and treat it like any other tournament. Obviously it's going to be very, very special but the main thing is, go out there and let your golf do the talking and just have fun, which is what I always try to do on the golf course. I have always try to go out there, have fun, play to the best of my capabilities, try and put a show on for the crowds, especially this week, the home crowd, trying to get their support behind The European Team. The main thing is go and enjoy it.
If I go out there this week and don't enjoy it, I'm obviously doing something wrong and shouldn't be playing golf. Because if you're not going to enjoy this, there's something wrong with you. It's a very, very special event to be a part of.

Q. You've spoken a lot in the last two or three minutes about the great atmosphere in the team room. Two-part question: Is it more atmosphere than you were expecting, and do you think that atmosphere and camraderie of The European Tour together in there can lead to victory?
ROSS FISHER: I think so, definitely. Like I say, the atmosphere is tremendous in the team room. You know, everyone is getting on with everyone, players, caddies, wives. It's a team. We are a team and we are not individuals. We are playing together as a team, and Monty keeps stressing that. We are here as Europe, we are a team and we are going to win this trophy back as a team.
It is just -- it's very, very special. It's obviously a dream come true, and to be part of it, I'm just trying to take every minute in. You know, it's already going very, very quickly. It's already Wednesday afternoon. I think a lot of us now, we can't wait for Friday morning to come around. Everyone is really hyped up, really excited, and I think we just want to get going now. We want to try to get blue points up on that board.

Q. Friday is supposed to be very bad weather. The United States played nine holes today; is there reluctance to play in bad weather give the Europeans any advantage for Friday?
ROSS FISHER: I don't know, we played, we thought -- we had the photos this morning and then we were going to go after straight after, but obviously the weather was there. We just kind of took a rain check and thought, right, let's get out there and see what it's like, because the forecast this week isn't supposed to be too good.
We wanted to go out on the first and play ten holes, and Monty said if guys want to play more holes, you can do. If not, then that's fine. I think everyone was happy just to go out, play ten holes. I think hopefully if the weather is similar to today, I think the Europeans could have an advantage.
A lot of the Americans don't really play too much golf in the rain. Obviously in the States when it rains, it usually is thunderstorms, so you come off the course. Whereas we do get to play in pretty bad conditions quite a lot throughout the year.
So I think it could potentially favour the Europeans. It's obviously going to be a very long golf course, and I think especially around the greens, I don't think the American guys have seen rough quite like it around the greens. And when it gets wet, it's pretty tough to control your ball and get it close to the pin.
Fingers crossed for Celtic Manor and spectators and everyone the weather is decent, because they are going to put on a great week this week, and the stage is set and just want to get going come Friday.

Q. Can you talk about the Molinaris and when you first came across them and their achievement of making it together?
ROSS FISHER: Yeah, I played with Francesco and Edoardo a few times. They are both very good players, but they are both very different. Francesco is probably the more solid of the two. I played with him at Gleneagles, and I think myself and Wobs were joking with him and his caddie saying, "When did you last miss a fairway?" And he probably said something like 1990 or something.
He's a phenomenal player, just fairways, greens. I think if he gets his putter warmed up like his brother, he could be unstoppable.
Edoardo, a little bit more power to his game, and putts very, very well. Obviously as a team, they are a fantastic combination; winning the World Cup the way they did last year was tremendous for them, and it was great for Italian golf.
So I think it's great to see not only Francesco, but Edoardo here. Francesco played very, very steady, deserved his place on the team. Edoardo, I don't think you could not have picked him. He played that well this year. So I think it's great to have the Italian brothers here on the team. They bring a little bit extra to the team.

Q. You talked about some of the things you've been doing in the locker room, and one of the things you said, some other things to get your mind off the golf. Can you give us an example of the sort of things you've been doing in there?
ROSS FISHER: Just basically chilling out, having a chat. We've got in our players' lounge, we have got a PS3 console with the footie on, so a few of us have had a couple of games on there. There's a great jukebox there, so a lot of the wives have been putting some music on in the evenings. We had a good fun quiz last night after dinner. There was a great speech from the Welsh rugby guy, Gareth Edwards he gave a phenomenal speech, talking about his Welsh team, playing for the Lions, quite inspirational. We had a magician there. There's been all sorts.
But it's long days. We are up early, we are playing golf. So it is long days. So any time you can obviously get time to yourself is quite precious. But it's very difficult because you're here representing Europe and you want to try and do as much as you can, if not, you try and do a little bit more than you would normally, because I think everyone on the team wants to win that cup back so desperately. Everyone is putting in, you know, 100 percent this week.
But it's great to be a part of and roll on Friday.
GORDON SIMPSON: Well, keeping on moving and thank you very much for coming in. Have a great week.

End of FastScripts

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297