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WGC HSBC CHAMPIONSNovember 2, 2013Dustin JohnsonSHANGHAI, CHINA LAURA NEAL: We would like to welcome Dustin Johnson to the interview room. Perhaps one of your better rounds, even with two double‑bogeys, you have a three‑shot lead going into the final round of the World Golf Championships. Maybe just assess today and your thoughts heading into the final round. DUSTIN JOHNSON: It was another really good day. I played really well. My irons, I was hitting them the right distance and I made a lot of good putts. Obviously the two doubles hurt a little bit. After the double on 10, I came back and made four birdies, finished with a double on 18 and it kind of stunk, especially the par5, it's very reachable for me. Then I just hit a poor tee shot. Q. Does it feel like you have a three‑shot lead? DUSTIN JOHNSON: I don't know, I'm still a little mad from my double‑bogey on 18. Yeah, obviously to have a three‑shot lead going into the last day is good, and looking forward to the challenge. I still have to play really well. Obviously the guys that are right behind me, they are playing very well, too. So it's still going to be a tough day tomorrow. Got to come out and make a lot of birdies. Q. Didn't look like you got a lot of help when the ball went in on 18; did you have to reload or was that just a precaution? DUSTIN JOHNSON: It was really close. So that definitely‑‑ you know, it was too close to be able to tell. So I just re‑teed it. Obviously hit a really good drive after that, and then just kind of drew a bad lie in the bunker over there. Definitely have a little bit better chance of saving at least bogey. Q. 66 is quite respectable for a round of golf in Sheshan ‑‑ and well, considering that the 7 on the 18th, I'm sure you're not quite happy; but if I asked you, would you have taken a 66 before you teed off on the first? DUSTIN JOHNSON: Yeah, I probably would have taken it. It's a good score. I'm definitely happy with what I shot. Obviously I'm just not happy with the way I finished. Making two doubles, there's no excuse for that. Especially the way I'm playing right now, it shouldn't happen. But 66 is still a good day and I've still got to look, I did make ten birdies, so I hit a lot of great shots and drove it well again today. Just hit one bad drive really on 18 and made double‑bogey. But other than that, it was a good day, and I can't be too upset with it. Q. Will you use a different strategy on the 18th tomorrow? DUSTIN JOHNSON: No. Q. What happened on 10? DUSTIN JOHNSON: I hit a pretty good drive. I just pulled it and didn't quite get through the rough and stuck just short in the rough. I actually thought I hit a little bit better shot than I did. I was trying to actually hit it a little past the hole and it came out kind of dead and came down short of the green. Didn't hit the first one hard enough, didn't hit the second one hard enough. I think I hit the third one hard enough to get there. Hit the flag and made about a 12‑footer for six. Q. How do you feel about this course, is this course better for powerful players that hit powerful shots to get birdies easier? DUSTIN JOHNSON: I mean, if you look, I think Poulter and McDowell are right behind me. They don't hit it‑‑ they are not long hitters.  I mean, they are not short, but they are not long hitters. So I think this golf course, it really is going to favor a guy who is driving it straight. You've got to be in the fairway here. That's a big part of playing this golf course is driving it in the fairway, because it's really tough to get it close to the hole out of the rough, and with all of the undulations. So I think it favors whoever is driving it straight. Q. So as the third round leader‑‑ Graeme McDowell and Ian Poulter said that you are a very good player and how do you think about your competition, the other players? DUSTIN JOHNSON: Well, you know, Graeme and Ian are great players, so tomorrow I've still got to come out and play really good golf. You know, it's a golf course where if you're playing well, you can shoot a good score, so tomorrow I'm going to come out and try to do the same things I did during the last two days. You know, just get in the fairway, get on the green and try to hole the putt. Q. At what point did you figure out the course was set up for scoring today, and how important was it to join in? DUSTIN JOHNSON: Well, I mean, you could kind of see pretty early that the guys were playing well. But the greens were receptive, and they are rolling really nice. So if you get the putter going, you can make a lot of putts. So still, I think it's a big key to drive it in the fairway, because then you can control your ball coming into these greens that are really undulated. They like to tuck the flags over in corners or on ridges, so being in the fairway is definitely key. LAURA NEAL: Dustin, thanks for your time. Good luck tomorrow. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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