![](images/spacer.gif) |
Browse by Sport |
|
![](images/spacer.gif) |
Find us on |
![ASAP sports on Facebook](images/fb_icon.gif) |
![ASAP sports on Twitter](images/twitter_icon.png) |
|
![](images/spacer.gif) |
|
![](images/spacer.gif) |
|
![](images/spacer.gif) |
|
![](images/spacer.gif) |
|
![](images/spacer.gif) |
February 13, 2011
DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
Q. Looking back on the week?
LEE WESTWOOD: Played well today. Hit the ball good. Wasn't easy out there again I didn't think. Played solidly.
Q. 17 probably undid you, yeah, the tree?
LEE WESTWOOD: I'm not sure about that (pausing) ... that's sarcasm.
Q. I'm getting used to it.
LEE WESTWOOD: Yeah. That will piss you off pretty quickly, won't it, sticking it up a palm tree, when you think you've got a chance of winning.
Q. A few weeks off before you go to the Match Play.
LEE WESTWOOD: Six days.
Q. What's the positives that you take away from this week?
LEE WESTWOOD: He been on the Internet again, has he.
Positives are I had a chance to win. First long putt I've made all week was on the 14th. I haven't played my best, and had a chance with two holes to play to post a total that would have been probably half-decent I guess, 10-under, if I could have birdied the last two holes, which, you know, is fine. Plenty to take out of it.
Q. You said at the start of the week that you didn't feel you were hitting the ball particularly cleanly. What about the end of it?
LEE WESTWOOD: I started to hit it a lot better today, yeah, but it's still pretty difficult to tell out there because it was quite demanding with the wind. But I hit a lot of good shots. You know, the birdies I made were from close range. Hit the par 5s in two, and that's good.
Q. So apart from the end, a solid weekend, I think?
LEE WESTWOOD: Yeah, yesterday was very difficult. I thought it was the hardest I've ever seen the course play. This week the wind has not got up quite as much but the greens are firming up, so it's hard to get it close.
I didn't start off great today. Missed birdie chances on the first two, and then 3-putted the third for par. So that wasn't the greatest start. And then missed it from three feet on 4, but then birdied 5 and 6. And then 8 and 9 were playing hard and then got back into it with three birdies in four holes or five holes there -- four holes -- five holes.
And then got a bit shafted on the last two holes. Stick up a tree, you can't do much about that, because it was on a good line and it would have been front edge of the green.
And then on 18, stood over the second shot and a guy took a good shot on his iPhone of me. You know, just wrecked my concentration. My concentration, I was already struggling with a little bit at that stage, and he just finished it off.
Q. The bogeys on the turn, obviously at the end, that's sort of four dropped shots there or five dropped shots. If it were not for that, you would have been in -- like you say you would have been in a really good position to win here?
LEE WESTWOOD: Yeah, there's a saying in England, if my auntie had balls, she could be my uncle, wouldn't she; ifs and buts. You can't think about that. I didn't hit good shots on 8, 9. I got a bit unlucky on 17. That's as it is. You can't think what if on a couple of holes. They were playing hard and you have to hit good tee shots. Had chances on 1 and 12, and 15 had a chance.
Q. How do you assess Tiger's performance? You obviously saw him up close for first two weeks, but there have been flashes of how good he was in the past here.
LEE WESTWOOD: He's not going to ask me about Tiger, having stood here finishing 16th.
Q. I was afraid -- I mean, coming out of this, I mean, you know, you seem a little bit frustrated, Friday and Saturday?
LEE WESTWOOD: Yeah.
Q. You know what I mean, as you come out of here what, do you need to work on?
LEE WESTWOOD: Just the things I'm working on. I'm gradually getting back into it and gradually starting to feel my swing. These are tough conditions this week. And hit the ball pretty good today. Drove it okay. I still enjoyed playing even though finished in a bit of an ambulance at the end there. One of them things. Better to have bad luck this week than a Major Championship; optimistic.
Q. Playing these courses on The Desert Swing, even though it's a different format, the Match Play, does that help you in some way going into Arizona, or not?
LEE WESTWOOD: Yeah, similar sort of course I suppose, desert course. Obviously different form of golf. You could shoot 6-under at the Match Play and lose. So that's always a risk that you take when you have a match-play scenario.
But you know, starting to hit it better. It's a pretty good week.
Q. That's the point, strong field, difficult course, bloody good test overall and your game stood up, hasn't it?
LEE WESTWOOD: Yeah, it was pretty good. I finished the year off well last year and just struggled to get going a bit this year but do I every year. I'm not a great start of the year player. I would like to be stood here 10-under now.
Q. Still encouraging?
LEE WESTWOOD: Yeah, like I said yesterday to somebody, my glass is always half-full. Having been through bad times in my career, much worse than finishing 16th, I enjoy playing golf.
Q. Got much to work on this week or a bit of gym work?
LEE WESTWOOD: Gym work and getting some new orthotics fitted.
Q. How are you physically?
LEE WESTWOOD: I feel quite good, strong.
Q. Calf has healed?
LEE WESTWOOD: Not bad. Feels all right.
End of FastScripts
|
![](images/spacer.gif) |