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IRISH OPEN PRESENTED BY DISCOVER IRELAND

July 31, 2011

Simon Dyson

KILLARNEY, IRELAND

MICHAEL GIBBONS: Many, many congratulations.
SIMON DYSON: Thank you.
MICHAEL GIBBONS: Irish Open Champion has a nice ring to it.
SIMON DYSON: I'm absolutely made up. Absolutely made up. I came in playing some very good golf, but, I didn't think it would be that good. I impressed myself a little bit to be honest.
MICHAEL GIBBONS: What sense?
SIMON DYSON: Just the quality of the shots that I was hitting. I mean, you know, I've got myself into contention, made a good birdie, a good par save at 9. And then to hit two approach shots into 10 and 11 like I did to set up the two birdies, the 4-iron is one of the best shots I've hit all year to be honest.
Yeah, I just kept doing it hole after hole. My caddie just kept saying to me: "You haven't hit a bad shot all week, so just trust what you're doing and keep doing it," and I managed to do it down the stretch, as well.
MICHAEL GIBBONS: Great finish, birdies at 16 and 17.
SIMON DYSON: And to get the two great shots I hit down 18, as well, because that is a smelly hole when you're tied for the lead coming down the last.
MICHAEL GIBBONS: I don't know if smelly is the right word.
SIMON DYSON: It's nasty. If you go in the bunkers, you're probably not getting up in two. And if you pull it too much, you're in the water. So there's no room for error or on that one.
And I managed to hit the fairway and I just said to my caddie, I'm just going to go at it, because I've been swinging my irons beautiful all week and I just went straight at it. Couldn't have pulled off a better shot really.

Q. What did you hit into 16 and 17?
SIMON DYSON: 16 was 3-wood. I hit driver, 3-wood pin-high. And then 17 I hit 3-wood off the tee and then I hit wedge in.

Q. To?
SIMON DYSON: Three-foot.

Q. And how does it feel to win in front of these crowds?
SIMON DYSON: Fantastic. I said in my speech there, it's like playing in an Open again. I only played the British Open two weeks ago; it's like you're playing it all over again.
They were unbelievable to play in front of, they really are. They are so gracious. They clap every shot. They clap you on the tee and into the green and every birdie you make.
Yeah, it's just a pleasure to play in front of them.

Q. How does this win compare with your other wins, previous ones?
SIMON DYSON: Oh, it's right up there. I mean, I would say the -- yeah. Just with how I did it more than anything. Like I say, I surprised myself a little bit. But after The Open, it made me realise that I was quite a good player and I came into this with a lot of confidence.
And, yeah, I mean, it's right up there. Like I say, my form in Ireland has never been fantastic. I think I've had one Top-10 in about 16 travels here. It will be remembered forever now.

Q. Have you already been onto your travel agent and looked at flights to Ohio?
SIMON DYSON: Yeah, I had a flight back to Manchester tonight, which obviously I'm going to miss. So going to cancel, that get my money back on that, and me and my manager, Stuart Cage, we are going to go Dublin to Liverpool tonight. And then I have my travel agent looking at getting me to Chicago tomorrow afternoon and then hop over to Akron.

Q. So you'll celebrate this after Akron?
SIMON DYSON: No, I'll have a couple tonight. Got to celebrate it the proper Irish way, haven't you. My caddie is getting me a Guinness as we speak, and I'm looking forward to it because I haven't had drink DRINK for about ten days now.

Q. Didn't actually produce your best in Akron last year?
SIMON DYSON: Yeah, thanks for reminding me (laughing).

Q. Looking for to it?
SIMON DYSON: Yes, I am.
No, I didn't play that good in Akron. It's not a course that suits me to be honest. But, I knew I wasn't far off, because I finished 12th the following week in the US PGA, so I knew there was -- I knew I was pretty close. Just not quite there. But I mean, it's always a pleasure to play in Akron, and all of the World events. And then I get the pleasure of playing in the US PGA the week after. So, very excited.

Q. I believe this puts you back into the Top-50 in the world, and coming on the back of the Top-10 at the British Open, you must have major ambitions, particularly being so friendly with Graeme McDowell and seeing what he's done.
SIMON DYSON: Absolutely. It can do nothing but spur you on. G-Mac is a good friend of mine, he wins last year at the U.S. Open and then obviously Louis Oosthuizen wins again, all ISM stable; and Schwartzel wins and McIlroy wins and Darren Clarke wins, and they are all in the ISM camp which I'm with. It's been great to be part of that, and watch the boys doing so well, winning Majors.
And it's amazing how it does spur you on because you see what they are getting and you want a bit of it. I worked really hard this week, the last ten days. Went down to Spain with my wife last week and was just running every morning and evening, eating properly, practising. Did the same this week: Running every morning, training in the evening, and just eating properly and it's -- I feel great. I'm looking forward to the rest of the year now.

Q. Do you feel you're ready to move onto that extra level?
SIMON DYSON: I hope so. Yeah, yeah. I definitely have the game for it. I no know that now. Just need a little bit of luck along the way and you never know, could quite easily get into the Top-20 and you never know after that.

Q. A couple of weeks ago, you were worried about your back and having cortisone injections, has that gone away now?
SIMON DYSON: Yeah, I made the decision a couple of weeks ago not to go and have a cortisone. Everyone had told me it was a bad idea. So I went to see a nutritionalist and she got me eating better and drinking better, and she literally said, "If you do what I tell you to do, your bad back will go away."
And, touch wood, I only felt it probably twice all week. And obviously I've been training with my mate back in Manchester, James, and he's doing a lot of things to help prevent me getting a bad back again.

Q. What are you eating that you aren't?
SIMON DYSON: I've just been a lot more careful of, you know, when you've trained to eat properly after you've trained instead of leaving it too long and then just doing everything correctly, as I say.

Q. You said in your TV interview that you were a bit of a scoreboard watcher. Was Richard sort of tearing up the front nine, was that a motivation for you to go for shots that you might have played more conservatively?
SIMON DYSON: It was funny, actually the front nine, I didn't actually pay attention. Parred the first, second, and managed to get a birdie on 8, and that was the first time I looked, on the 9th tee. I'd gone to 12-under and I saw he was at 13, 14.
But I like to have a look. Obviously when I birdied 10 and 11, I knew I got to 14, then that was when I started having a look and I saw he got to 14, and then he got to 15 just as I went to 15. But yeah, I do like to have a look.

Q. It seems on the 11th, I was following their group on the adjacent fairway, that there was a delay before you teed off. Was that people crossing or any issue?
SIMON DYSON: No, I think we were just waiting for the group in front. Me and Steven Gallacher are pretty quick players, so we like to just get on with it. Not everyone's like that.

Q. How close did you hit it to 18?
SIMON DYSON: It was about -- I would say about ten foot.

Q. Did you then miss the putt before?
SIMON DYSON: I just miss-read it.

Q. Did you feel you had blown it at that point?
SIMON DYSON: No. Well, I thought I would be in a playoff at worst. Because it's such a tough hole and it was a smelly pin, and Richard was in the rough, so it's hard to control it out of the rough.
Then he hit the shot and obviously I heard when I was in the scorer's tent, I heard obviously when he hit his putt and there was no great cheer, so I knew we were in a playoff at worst. And I didn't realise he hit it so far past until I got back in. And then we got back in, and it was a nasty little putt he had.
Yeah, but, still, I'd rather have birdied the last to win rather than him do that. But I'll take it.
MICHAEL GIBBONS: Simon, many congratulations.

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