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WGC ACCENTURE MATCH PLAY CHAMPIONSHIPFebruary 22, 2012Dustin JohnsonMARANA, ARIZONA COLIN MURRAY: Dustin, thanks for joining us here in the media center after a victory over Jim Furyk, 20 holes to I believe your first victory of the Accenture Match Play Championship. Talk a little bit about the day and we'll get questions. DUSTIN JOHNSON: It was an up and down day. I gave a lot of holes away, especially early. And then started playing a little better on the front side. I missed a short putt on that, an easy putt on that to win a hole, but played well on the back. Jim pitched in I think on 13 and I pitched in right after to win the hole. So then I chipped in again. He hit it close on 16 and I chipped in and he missed. So it was kind of a crazy match. I'm happy to get my first victory here at the Accenture Match Play Championship. Q. Just expanding on that, you hadn't won a match and were 3‑down going into 15. What's going through your head at that time? DUSTIN JOHNSON: Well, I knew I had a lot of golf left.  I hit a poor shot on 3. Hit good shots on 1 and lost the hole because I three‑putted. 2, played all right. 3 I hit a poor shot. 4 I had two really good shots and made a bogey. I don't know how my ball ended up down the hill on the left. But I hit two good shots in there. I knew I needed to keep plugging along. It's a funny golf course, anything can happen. And I just hung in there and kept‑‑ made a few‑‑ I got‑‑ Jim gave me a hole on 11. I was 3‑down going into 11 and hit it in the desert.  And he was in the bunker. So we were both in poor positions off the tee. And then I hit it in the desert again after that, and I had to take an unplayable. And he was in the fairway. I was looking like I was going to lose a hole again but ended up winning. So I got a big break there. And then just kind of clawed my way back. Q. Did you just go into a little more detail on your two chip‑ins and how neat was that exchange where you did it on top of each other? DUSTIN JOHNSON: Well, yeah, I think it was 13, par‑5. He laid up in the bunker, which is definitely uncharacteristic of Mr. Furyk. And then kind of hit a pretty decent shot out of the bunker, but he had 90 yards, which is probably about the‑‑ if you ask any golfer, it's probably the hardest bunker shot you can have, is when you have a sand wedge out of a bunker, 90 yards, it's tough. Kind of spun it off the front. And it was still his play. He had a great pitch and made it for four. And I was down just kind of pin‑high right in two. And obviously‑‑ Q. What are you thinking after he knocks that in? DUSTIN JOHNSON: Well, I need to hit a good shot, here (laughter.) I didn't want to‑‑ because I was looking pretty good after our second shots and then even after he hit his third shot I was still looking really good. And then he pitched it in. So I just kind of took my time. Obviously I wanted to make it. But I was just trying to give my ball a chance to go in. And I guess I hit a great pitch. I couldn't see because I was way down in that hole. Q. It went right in, no problem. Did he say anything after that shot? DUSTIN JOHNSON: Nice shot. He started laughing, actually, like he was going to throw my ball into the crowd. Q. How about the second chip in, a little more difficult or not? DUSTIN JOHNSON: No, it was a lot easier than the first one. I was just off the green on 16. He was in there about ten feet. I was just‑‑ I hit a good shot in there, just kind of rolled off the side and I probably had maybe 20 feet and pitched it right in. Q. Have you felt like the match play format had given you issues in the past or just had lost some tough matches, before getting the first one here today? DUSTIN JOHNSON: Yeah, all my matches, I think I lost here, have been pretty good matches, I think. I just haven't came out on top. But this golf course, like I said, anything can happen. On any hole you can hit it in the desert and lose the hole. So it's not‑‑ this golf course, I don't think it favors any one person as far as if you cut the ball or draw it or hit it long or short, I don't think it favors anybody. So it makes it pretty fair. You've got to hit really quality iron shots to get close to the hole. Q. A couple of things to clarify for the record. Have you always left on a Wednesday night and kind of red‑eyed to Florida? DUSTIN JOHNSON: Yes. Q. So tomorrow will be the first time you've ever been in Tucson on a Thursday? DUSTIN JOHNSON: It will be. Q. Was there a time today where you thought for sure, not for sure, but it looked bleak, you thought you were going to lose? DUSTIN JOHNSON: No. 11, I knew I was in deep stuff on No. 11, especially after I got a free drop, dropped in where I wanted to. But then I didn't quite check my backswing I guess good enough, because when I took it back on my second shot it kind of got stuck in cactus. And then I chucked it a little bit and didn't get it quite out of the desert. So at that point, like I'm going to have to make something happen. 3‑down and I'm hitting‑‑ I think I was hitting four from the desert, and he was hitting three from the fairway, and it wasn't looking too pretty. But that was kind of the turning point of the match there. Q. What about the tee shot on 2, on the extra holes? DUSTIN JOHNSON: I didn't feel like I hit it that bad. I hit it good, it just kind of kept sailing to the left. But then still to have my ball end up where it did. It was just over a big rock. And kind of in between the rock and the bush. So I had to take unplayable. And then hit a pretty good shot, just shorter right of the green, just on the front edge. And then Jim was in perfect position. So I figured I was going to have to make four. But I guess anything can happen on this golf course. Q. Can you imagine taking the drop you did, playing your third and thinking that par is going to win the hole? DUSTIN JOHNSON: No. I thought I was going to have to make four to tie, for sure. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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