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BALLANTINE'S CHAMPIONSHIPApril 24, 2012Yong-Eun YangICHEON, SOUTH KOREA SCOTT CROCKETT: Ladies and gentlemen, it's my great pleasure to welcome you to the start of the 2012 Ballantine's Championship. It's very appropriate that the first interview we have is with Y.E. Yang, one of Korea's greatest players, and of course the first Asian player to win a Major Championship. Before we take some questions, Y.E., can I just ask you to give us your thoughts on the week ahead and how you're feeling about your own game. Y.E. YANG: So I just came here from the United States. There is an issue of jet‑lag, so I came in a day early. My condition is great, and I am overcoming my jet‑lag. I will work hard so that I can get better results compared to last year, and I heard that the weather is expected to be great. So I will work hard to give my best game. SCOTT CROCKETT: It is a big week for Korea, Y.E., and Ballantine's put on a very good event here, don't they. Y.E. YANG: So in Korea, we have many KPGA tournaments, but this is one of the tournaments that KPGA co‑hosts with The European Tour. We have many great European players coming into Korea to play this championship. The prize money is very large, and also, this is one of the tournaments that is held at the beginning of the season. I have always believed that players need to have a lot of experience, and I believe that the Ballantine's Championship will be that tournament that provides a lot of help to the Korean players. They will have a chance to play in this very large tournament, and also play with one of the finest golf players out there. So I'm sure that this will help in building the foundation to move their careers forward. I am always happy and I always welcome the fact that the Ballantine's Championship is held here in Korea. Q. During the past four tournaments, the winning trophy has always gone to the foreign players. As a leader and as the oldest brother of the Korean players, what are your thoughts coming into this week? Y.E. YANG: At the Ballantine's Championship, personally I have not had my best game. For me, whenever I come to the Ballantine's Championship, I always have this sort of renewed commitment that I will do hard and give it my best. However, the journey back home has always been somewhat bitter. So since last year, every time I come to the Ballantine's Championship, I thought that I desperately want to win this tournament. I believe that if a Korean player wins or gets good results at this Ballantine's Championship, it will signal a great start to the beginning of the season. So me included, I'm sure that the Korean players will give it their best so that a foreign player does not take home the winning trophy. The Korean players and I this week will give it our best to win. Q. Kim Kyung‑tae and Bae Sang‑moon are doing very well, and following the examples set by yourself and K.J. Choi in America. What advice do you have for these young players as they seek to become world beaters, possibly major champions in the future? Y.E. YANG: I think that these players are still very young, so I hope they will get a lot of good experiences under their belt. I hope they do not hurry themselves. I hope that they take a step‑by‑step approach, because I believe that they are capable to reach their goals, even if they do take this step‑by‑step approach. So I hope they will not hurry themselves or be impatient, and I hope that they will play their game and if they do so, I'm sure that they will be able to get some good results. Q. So I think this is a question that relates back to the question just asked. Like you said, I think players need a lot of experience to become better players. If you look at the PGA TOUR, many young players are joining the PGA TOUR, and it seems that they are taking less time to adapt to the Tour. Can you give us your thoughts on this? Y.E. YANG: I think we can compare it to a family. For instance, I have three children. So in a family if you have three children, you will find that the first‑born child is a little bit slow to adapt, while the second and third child, they are very quick to learn. I think as the eldest in your family, you look at your parents and you learn from them. So it's not like you have your own standards. You look at the world through your parent's eyes. You copy what your parents say and do. So I think in any family, the first‑born child, they are usually quite mature. But for the younger brothers and sisters, they are much quick to learn, because they don't look at their parents. They look at their bigger brother or bigger sister and they look at what they do and what they say. So it's easier for them to learn and adapt. They can look at their older brother or older sister and think, oh, that's how to do it, that's how I should act. So it's easier to learn. So I think we can compare it to a family situation. Q. You've always been titled as the first Asian to win a Major Championship, and so this title that they give you, does that sort of act as pressure when you play your game? Y.E. YANG: So up until now, it has not really been a big pressure for me. But this year, there is somewhat pressure for me, because since 2009, I have not had any wins in the PGA TOUR. I have had some wins in Asia but since 2009, I have had no major wins in the United States. So right now at this point in time, it is somewhat of a pressure because I have grown older and I really feel that it is high time that I really do my best and show my best. Q. Last year you had to go home early. This year, to get better results, what will you focus on in terms of managing the course? Y.E. YANG: Last year I think the green elevations were a little bit high, so it was really hard to putt. And for me it was very frustrating. I think that showed in my score and in my game. So this year, everyone will be playing under the same circumstances, so I will have to adapt to the course and make concessions. By doing that, I hope to get better results than last year, and also play within more of a sort of comfortable composure. Q. So a question about the course. If you look at the course here, the tee shot point is quite high, and also, because of the greens, you have to play your game short. The second shot is always very difficult on this course, and so in terms of getting a good score, do you feel that the greens will be important? Y.E. YANG: Yes, compared to any other course, I think the greens play a very critical part in getting a good score. Of course, you know, you have the tee shot and the second shot, and then with the second shot, even if you get it near the pin, the green undulation is quite severe, so sometimes the green itself will be in two tiers or three tiers. So the second shot is very important. For instance, if the ball rolls down and the green is actually in two tiers, then it might fall from the first tier to the second tier. So it would be very difficult to get one putt or two putts. So I think putting will be very important so we will have to look at the speed of the greens, and also the distances when I putt. I think the greens and putting is very critical in getting your scores and I think sometimes that's been my weak point. With the second shot, you want to get it near the pin of course, but I think what will be critical is the putting. So I am expecting 3‑putts, so I will have to be very careful not to make 3‑putts. I think with this course, the greens are very difficult, so I will practice and try to set my game strategy. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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