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OMEGA DUBAI DESERT CLASSICJanuary 31, 2013Lee WestwoodDUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES Q. How much did you enjoy that round? LEE WESTWOOD: Yeah, really enjoyed it. You never know, start of the new year, I played very nicely. I have a few new clubs in the bag, woods and putter, and they all behaved. Q. One of the reasons you moved to the States, you told us you wanted to keep your game sharp coming into the tournament less rusty; is that the way it felt? LEE WESTWOOD: Yeah, very sharp, made some nice putts, and I played better today than I finished off the last few tournaments so really pleased. Q. How does the golf course set up compared to normal? LEE WESTWOOD: The sort of strange. They seem smaller this year, they have grown the fringe in, seem to be not running very far, I don't know if it was just me, but it's quite soft out there. It played fairly. If you strike the ball well around this golf course, it always plays well and you can shoot a low score and if you don't, you struggle to make birdie. Q. You seem to be enjoying the move to America; do you wish you had done it earlier? LEE WESTWOOD: I tend to not sort of look back in hindsight and have regrets and stuff like that. I'm pleased I've done it now and first signs on the golf course have been good. Q. Your thoughts? LEE WESTWOOD: It was steady, still not made any bogeys this year, so it's good. Three birdies and an eagle and the rest pars and played solid. Q. Take us through the eagle on what can be a notorious hole. LEE WESTWOOD: I hit the driver a bit too far right and finished in the semi rough on the right‑hand side. I had a nice yardage, and I have a new rescue in the bag this week that PING have set up for me, a new G25 and I've struggled with rescues in the past but this one is predictable and I can hit an iron soft when I need to and hit it a long way when I need to, as well, that was a high, floaty one to 15, 18 feet and rolled it in. Q. Not everybody is able to gel with new clubs immediately, have they worked nicely for you? LEE WESTWOOD: I think it's part of the bonus of being with a company for 25 years, they know my game pretty well so when I do need new clubs, I can stick them straight in the bag. Q. No sense of rust; is it all the more satisfying to know that you're competing, as well? LEE WESTWOOD: Yeah, today was very satisfying. I hit the ball well. I didn't miss many fairways, I put the very nicely, when I missed the odd green, I got up‑and‑down and it felt very solid. It didn't feel like the first round of the year. Q. Good foundation for a low‑scoring week? LEE WESTWOOD: If the weather stays like this‑‑ I think the wind is to blow but if you play well on this golf course, we have always known it's there for good scoring. You just have to play well. Q. That was a well‑oiled machine to start the new season, wasn't it. LEE WESTWOOD: Yeah, didn't really have too much trouble out there, didn't put myself under too much pressure and played nicely. I didn't play like I had eight weeks off. Q. It must have been very satisfying given what you've done in those eight weeks, which has always been designed to make starts like the one you've just made? LEE WESTWOOD: It has, and this year, I picked up better than I finished off last year. Feel like I'm hitting the ball better, short game feels sharp and putting feels better, so considering I've changed all my woods and my putter, I'm really pleased with the way today went. Q. That is a wholesale change: You've moved house and countries, you've changed clubs, only one round of golf, but it was an important round of golf, wasn't it? LEE WESTWOOD: Yeah, it's always nice to get off to a good start. The good part of it is, I've come to a golf course that I've got good feelings for, really. I've played well here in the past and I feel like it sets up well for my game. Q. Do you ever get a sense when you've taken the decision, right, I'm going to start sort of maybe three weeks later than the rest of the guys, do you remember get that feeling, wish I was there, or not? LEE WESTWOOD: I didn't this time around. You know, generally whiffed a long period of time off, get the itch when I see guys turn up in Abu Dhabi or Qatar or starting on the West Coast in the States, but I didn't this time around. I felt like I needed a break after last year. I played a lot, and I just needed to get away and chill but still work on my game. Q. And the ability to work on your game as you've done in Florida climate, what has that technically given you that you reap the benefits from today? LEE WESTWOOD: Well, I think I've come from a golf course in Florida where the greens are firmer, they are faster, I've been practising out of thicker rough around the greens and it's been a longer golf course, as well. I don't want to say it felt easy playing in golf course today but I certainly felt like I was coming onto a golf course that I've been playing on my time off. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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