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THE PRESIDENTS CUP

November 17, 2011

MELBOURNE, VICTORIA

JOEL SCHUCHMANN: From the United States Team, Dustin Johnson, Jim Furyk, Bubba Watson and David Toms.
DUSTIN JOHNSON: We had a great match today, we were down all day and we played really well. We had a few putts here, a few putts there and we could have been even or so going into the last few hole.
But we hung tough all day and we hit some good shots coming down the stretch and got a half a point, which being the last match of the day and knowing your guys are all done and supporting you, that half a point is huge sometimes. It feels like a win, especially when you're 2-down with two to play.
JIM FURYK: I was really proud of that last group, DJ and Matt going out there, all eyes on them, a couple down with two to play. To hang in there, fight it back and get it back was a big half a point for us. It was a good start.
It's only day one, a lot of points out there. We have a lot of work ahead of us but it was a good start today and happy we are in the position we are in.
BUBBA WATSON: It was a good match, we made a lot of birdies and I don't think we made a bogey. The other team was the same, it was just two good matches and two good teams and luckily we came out on top this time. It's a tough day out there. The greens are getting pretty hard and pretty fast.
DAVID TOMS: It was a good, solid day. The key to our day is we got off to a good start, birdied the first three holes, and after that we kept the pressure on with getting the ball in the fairway and hitting the ball on the green and didn't give much to them. It helps.
Like I said, getting off to a good start in this type of format, when everybody's emotions are running high and you're a little bit nervous out there, wondering how the week is going to go or how the matches are going to go, and to get off to a good start, that always helps. Certainly it was a key to our match today.

Q. Happy for any of you to address this, wondering how scary the greens are, and how they would compare to, say, Augusta?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: I'll start. You know, the greens out there, they are really fast, but it seems -- Augusta, they are quick, and you can kind of navigate your way around there. We play there a good bit, so we kind of know the breaks and where to hit it.
But out here, these things are so firm. It's not how fast they are; it's how firm they are. It's really hard to control the golf ball coming into these greens and get it close to the hole.
And then, you know, you feel like you hit a great shot and you're ten feet behind the hole, and then you're trying to putt it down there where your partner can make it. If you don't make the putt, it seems like you have 4- or 5-footers all day long.
JIM FURYK: Yeah, there isn't a shot -- I don't think any one of us hits one shot today without first thinking where the pin is and how to get it around on these greens. It starts from the tee box, you're looking where the tee is trying to figure out a way to attack the hole and get some sort of angle into the green because you can't stop the ball or spin it on these greens. It's very challenging.

Q. Your thoughts on playing with Tiger tomorrow? He's got a great Presidents Cup record; have you had a chance to talk him up, and how is he feeling?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: I played with Tiger on Tuesday and Wednesday, and he's hitting the ball great. So I feel great about our pairing tomorrow. You know, we wanted to play together, especially in the best-ball. I think we make a great team and I know he's excited about it and we are going to go out there and try to get an early point for our team in the morning.
You know, this is a weird game. They played okay today. I think just Adam and K.J. played really well. That's how it goes, especially in alternate-shot. You can get it going just a little bit sideways and you're going to get killed.

Q. Just wanted to ask you, you and Webb, two young guys, I think you were 7-under today. What happened to the nerves, the pressure and how do you shoot 7-under in alternate-shot like that?
BUBBA WATSON: I have a great partner. He's 9th in the world. It's easy. Just rely on him. Cheat a little bit, too. Freddie said it was okay if we can cheat. (Laughter).
I'll probably get in trouble for that one. But you know, it was just a good day. He was a good partner to be with. He can make putts. We were both laughing out there, both joking around. We were just having a nice stroll on a nice golf course. Firm and fast greens, had to play safe on some, not worry about your partner but just worry about your own game. At the end of the day, we added it up, we were 7-under and they were 3-under I think. It was two good teams out there and a great match, and it just fell our way today.

Q. I wanted to ask DT, also, you've been on a lot of teams, Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup, in The Presidents Cup, it just seems like the U.S. Team pretty much always gets off to a good start, that first day, you guys hardly ever lose the session, maybe being a little bit of an underdog here because you're on the road but you come back and you're 4-2. That has to feel good.
DAVID TOMS: First of all, we have a great group of guys. We are having a blast away from the golf course. We seem to be having fun on the golf course. We have been doing that all week.
Obviously it carried over to today. It sure looked like everyone was fairly relaxed this morning before we all played so we can have a good day. You never know in this format, it's all about how you play golf. But certainly having confidence and feeling good going in helps.
I think it just goes with the group of guys that we have that are getting on extremely well. A couple of big halves there in the end that made the difference in our day today. So you can tell, this thing is going to be tight in the end. Very well, you know, could be decided there in the last nine holes of the event.
We look forward to going out there again tomorrow, playing hard. If the conditions worsen, it will be tough. But we just have got to go out there and keep the pressure on.

Q. Jim, the Aussie guys, Greg has basically split all his guys up who have played here in a northerly or northwesterly, which is the wind that will come tomorrow, and put them with a guy that has not. I don't know if any of you guys have probably experienced that wind, but it makes the golf course obviously feel -- play differently. What do you do to prepare for that because we have not had that wind all week.
JIM FURYK: I think it's a lot of going through your yardage book, looking at the wind direction, trying to get an idea of how the golf course will play.
We have had now -- a lot of guys were here on Monday so we have had four days to go over the golf course. And having that experience around it and getting to see it will be an advantage. But, you know, we have to -- we have done our preparation, and we'll have to figure out how to get the ball around the golf course.
But I think a lot of it is just looking at the pins in the morning, looking at the yardage book and getting an idea if this hole is playing downwind, it could severely change the club I'm hitting off the tee. But by this point I think we know how to get it around and how to attack the golf course.
JOEL SCHUCHMANN: Thank you.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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