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OMEGA DUBAI LADIES MASTERSDecember 12, 2011Melissa ReidDUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES THE MODERATOR: How does it feel to be back at the Omega Dubai Ladies Masters? MELISSA REID: Yeah, it feels good. It's one of my favorite tournaments of the year. I came here a little earlier this year. I've been here since Tuesday working with my coach at the course. So it's been good, just getting ready for the tournament. And like I said, it's one of my favorite tournaments of the year, so it's always nice to be back. THE MODERATOR: Why is it one of your favorite tournaments? MELISSA REID: Obviously the weather helps in December, and just the way it's run. I think golf in Dubai do a fantastic job, and they really do know how to run a tournament, and yeah, everything about it is very well done. THE MODERATOR: Okay. So what's your mindset coming here this week? MELISSA REID: I'm not really expecting too much. Obviously I'm not really putting any pressure on myself. I'm quite aware of like the money list, and Caroline winning last week has definitely made it a battle this week, but I'm just here to win a golf tournament and to really focus on what I can control, which is my own game. Q. Ai Miyazato has won only one tournament and she has won almost the money list. Is it tough for somebody who has played 17 tournaments? MELISSA REID: Yeah. Q. Do you need to have more money? MELISSA REID: I think we definitely need more money. No, I do. I definitely do think the girls, we all feel that we would like to be playing for prize funds like this every week and sometimes more, but that's not the way it is at the minute. But yeah, it's just the way it is. It's just the way ‑‑ the Evian Masters is obviously a big prize fund, and if you're a member of the tour and you win that event, you're pretty much guaranteed to win the money list. So it is a little bit frustrating, but at the same time, you know, Ai is still entitled to win the money list, because she's a member of our tour. Q. If you reflect on your season this year, to be tied for second place, does that actually keep the motivation up for you? MELISSA REID: Yeah. I mean I've won a couple times this year, so I think if you win once in a year, you've had a good year. I've played consistent this year, and my game's improving, and you know, obviously Solheim was fantastic this year, just to be there and to b leading the points list going into that. So I've reached a lot of my goals this year, so that's what I mean by there's no expectation this week really. I've kind of achieved everything that I wanted to and now I know that I can't win the money list because I can't catch Ai, this week I can really just focus on my own game and really enjoy this tournament. Q. You've often been reported as saying that you want to be the best in the world. Do you feel you have the confidence and the temperament and the game for what is required to be No. 1? MELISSA REID: Yeah. I hope so. I think I'm certainly doing ‑‑ you know, I feel like I'm growing up every year. You know, and I certainly feel that with me and my coach and my team around me, that we're just kind of trying to do the right things all the time, and yeah, I think definitely, hopefully one day that hard work will pay off and I will be hopefully world No. 1 and that's what we're all striving for here. Q. How confident are you going into this tournament? MELISSA REID: My preparation the last few days with my coach has gone well, better than expected, because I had a few weeks off. So I'm really feeling I'm actually swinging it probably the best I've swung it all year. So yeah, I'm actually feeling pretty good going into this week. I might be a little bit rusty because I've not played a tournament in six weeks, but yeah, my actual preparation the last few days has been very good, so hopefully we can play well this week. Q. Are you keeping an eye on Caroline? MELISSA REID: Not really, no. Like I said, she's had a fantastic year. She's won four times, and you know, at the end of the day it's not really going to make that much difference who finishes second or who finishes third. We've both had very good seasons, and like I said, if she finishes second or wins this week or plays very well this week, then fair play to her. She's had an incredible season, and she really deserves to be up there. But either way, we're both going to finish second or third, so that's a pretty good season. Q. In the Solheim Cup, you played with Laura Davies. In that match Laura Davies became the highest point scorer. It was quite historic. But Laura has not won. What actually do you think is the reason for that? MELISSA REID: I think Laura has been playing well. She played very well at Solheim and whenever I've played with her this week, she's played very well. You know, I get along very well with Laura, and obviously to be part of the match where she got the points to be in the history books at Solheim was very, very special for me as well, but I think she's just maybe just struggled a little bit on the greens this year. But she's been hitting it really, really well, probably the best I've seen her hit it in the last couple years, yeah. So it's nothing to do with her long game. It's mainly she's just struggled slightly on the greens, but the greens look fantastic here this week, so I'm sure that she'll putt well this week. Q. You have played practice rounds here. What do you think will be the winning score here? MELISSA REID: Yeah, it's a tough one because it's playing tough. Obviously the field is stronger this year. The greens are fantastic, so I mean, it would probably be around 12‑under, I would say. Q. We have nine players from the United States playing in this tournament. It's become very global. MELISSA REID: Yeah, it is. It's great for us to play in such a strong field, so yeah, I think this tournament has grown a lot in the last few years, and to get the field like it has done this week is amazing really. Like I said, it's fantastic for us, and it's really coming to a very, very strong tournament. Q. Melissa, obviously coming back to last year here, you were in contention, obviously, and Iben had a little bit of a fairytale finish, but you were in contention, Anna was in contention, Michelle was in contention. Is it nice to come back to somewhere where you've come close to winning, so you have that comfort that the course suits you? MELISSA REID: Yeah. I think I've finished top 11 three out of four times, so I've always felt very comfortable here. I just love the way the course sets up. I love the way it looks to the eye. It's certainly one of my favorite golf courses to play, so yeah, I'm always looking forward to play here, and I just feel very, very comfortable here in Dubai. Q. Going back to Viren's point, I understand you've played 18 tournaments. You've finished Top 10 in ten of them, which is very consistent form. I mean we saw yesterday how consistency can be rewarded. I mean do you almost feel like a more credible person to be almost winning the Order of Merit as it were, in a way? MELISSA REID: Obviously I would love to be winning the Order of Merit, but yeah, I would say I'm a very consistent player. I think last year I had nine Top 10s, or ten Top 10s as well. I mean I do play very consistently, but you know, I just don't get ‑‑ you always get somebody in a year that wins four or five times, and Lee-Anne did it last year, Laura did it, and this year it's been Caroline, so unless you do that, you're not going to win the money list. Obviously if Ai wasn't in the picture, then it would definitely be a battle this week, but it's not. Neither of us can catch her, so neither of us can win the money list. Obviously the exemption rankings, but I mean that probably isn't going to affect either of us too much. Q. Just on The Solheim Cup, that was a big boost for European golf. From that, do you think more LET members will challenge in America a bit more? MELISSA REID: EuropeÂ’s very strong. The only thing that isnÂ’t as strong is the money, but we are probably the strongest weÂ’ve ever been. WeÂ’ve got some fantastic young players coming up and the actual strength and depth of European golf is very strong. Q. In terms of your year, are there improvements that youÂ’ve made to be more strong? Is it about length? What have you been trying to fine tune? MELISSA REID: I think our courses are relatively short that we play in Europe and you go to America and youÂ’re hitting four-irons into par fours. I donÂ’t think length is an issue but to win more in Europe you need to practice your wedge game. It is like that everywhere but more so in Europe. You hit a lot of mid-irons to wedges into par fours. That is really what IÂ’ve tried to work on all year, is my wedge play. In the last few days me and my coach have found there was a certain shot we wanted to get rid of and thatÂ’s mainly what weÂ’ve been working on. Hopefully we can put it to good use this week and hit more consistent golf shots than the last couple of tournaments. Q. You missed the Hero WomenÂ’s Indian Open. Was a rest almost better than playing and was that a deliberate decision? MELISSA REID: I felt very tired after The Solheim really. We took a couple of days off afterwards but I had four tournaments on the bounce and after that I really was quite drained. I took a few weeks off, went on holiday and didnÂ’t touch the clubs for three weeks and started practising again for 10 days. The last six days weÂ’ve worked very intensely, with my coach, weÂ’ve put in a lot of hours and just crammed in a lot of work that we couldnÂ’t do in England due to the weather and stuff. Q. You were at the World Championships. Do you like watching menÂ’s golf and do you pick up things from menÂ’s golf? MELISSA REID: Of course you do. I do like to watch the guys, Rory and stuff, the way they play golf. Obviously itÂ’s very different to the way we hit a golf ball with their power and their strength, but I just love watching golf. For me to watch any sporting event and especially golf, is always a little treat. I love watching the men and love how they hit a golf ball and what they do with the ball. Q. Is the womenÂ’s game getting more powerful and is it mimicking the menÂ’s game in that regard? Is it good to see Luke, who is not the longest hitter, show everyone how it can be done? MELISSA REID: The girls are getting fitter and stronger and it is getting more like the menÂ’s game in comparison, everyone is always in the gym and the girls do exactly the same as the guys. We do the hours and put in the gym work. WeÂ’re pretty much exactly the same but not as strong and donÂ’t hit it as far. Q. The name of your coach? MELISSA REID:  Dave Ridley. WeÂ’ve been working together for about two and a half to three years now. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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