|
|||
|
|||
|
 |
|
|
THE McGLADREY CLASSICOctober 22, 2014Zach JohnsonSEA ISLAND, GEORGIA MARK STEVENS: I'd like to welcome Zach Johnson. Home game for you, Zach. ZACH JOHNSON: Yeah. MARK STEVENS: You've played each of the previous four years. Talk about your thoughts coming into this week and we'll have some questions. ZACH JOHNSON: Yeah, here we go, cliché. I am really excited about the week. It is a home game. I love sleeping in my own bed. I love seeing family and friends outside the ropes. I love everything that certainly this tournament has done, specifically Scott Reid and his staff, everybody with the Davis Love Foundation. You guys are witnessing it. It's kind of a boutique kind of tournament but yet it's almost‑‑ has a little steroid additive. McGladrey does a great job. They've taken ownership of this from day one, which is terrific. I hope there's some longevity there. That would be phenomenal because they've really made this almost a second home, and being one of their ambassadors, it just makes this week that much more fun for me because I see a lot of friendly faces that I get to see throughout the year come to my home. I love it. I mean, once again, I just mentioned it earlier that this golf course is in as great a shape as I've ever seen it. They did some things after last year's tournament with the fairways and a couple other elements out there. They've made the golf course somehow a little bit better. Q. When you look at this is the second season of the wraparound schedule, when you look at where the fall events fall now, what kind of priority are they taking among players? Is it the thought that you get an early start? Is it the thought that this is an off‑season? ZACH JOHNSON: I think it's mixed. I don't think there's any consistency to it. I don't know if there's any common denominator there. From what I can gather, looking at the players, if you had someone that had an average to maybe a year where they made the first playoff event or maybe the first two or what have you, they may play in two or three of these. If they can get into an overseas one, they may even add that, too, because there's a break there that's substantial. After New Jersey or after Boston it's a four‑ to five‑week break depending on the situation. So that seems to be consistent. If someone has played a lot of the FedExCup, whether it's a cutoff after that or something else, they seem to play in maybe one or two at the most, and followed by maybe something in late November, early December. Obviously the rookies are going to play in as many, if not all of them, if they can, right. That's what I've seen. Now, opinions, I don't have any idea. I don't know where they stand on it. I mean, I think what it is is just a great opportunity. Personally I think it's a lot of golf. I'm going to play in this one. This will be the only one I'm going to play this year. I played in Vegas last year. I don't remember why I played, but I enjoyed it. But I did play. I know exactly why I played. I played the Presidents Cup, and this tournament was really late. Obviously I'm going to play here. So rather than having‑‑ I think it would have been five weeks off in between, maybe six weeks off, might have been seven, from Presidents Cup to McGladrey, I decided to add one in there, and Vegas fit. I think everybody's schedule is different. I like to take some time off because I play a lot in the summer, I play a good bit in the spring, as well, and I need a break at some point. So McGladrey, and then I'm going to play in Orlando in December, and that's going to be it for me. Q. When you call this a home game for you, how does it compare to when you play in the John Deere in terms of maybe pressure you put on yourself or the atmosphere? ZACH JOHNSON: Yeah, you know, a good question. I think it's comparable. A lot of parallels. One, they're both sponsors of mine. Two, I kind of feel like they're both home events. I sit on the board of the John Deere tournament, so there's a lot of communication and discussion with that event. I'm not on the board here necessarily, but Davis is one of my best buddies, Scott Reid, the tournament director is a great friend, Mark love is a great friend. They may bounce something off of me or I may come into them. In that regard I care passionately about both events. As far as pressure, I don't feel it anymore. If anything it's the opposite. I actually really relish and enjoy the opportunity because what I've learned, and probably because of the John Deere Classic giving me sponsor exemptions when I didn't have status is I've learned it doesn't matter if I shoot 80 or 60 in front of friends and family. They don't care. I know they want me to play well, but my point is it seems like the pressure mounts or comes or stems from or even builds when the numbers each hole, each round, tournament round, or tournament numbers, matter too much, and if anything I've thrown that out the window. I just go out and play. That's my approach each and every week and certainly is this week. Q. The PGA of America announced the Ryder Cup task force last week. As someone who played on this year's team and has been on other teams, what is your thought on what they might be able to accomplish, and is it necessary? ZACH JOHNSON: I think it's tremendous. Irony behind it is I remember having a discussion with my manager two or three days, three or four days after the event, and we were just chatting it up. You know, I mean, I wasn't venting or anything, I was just chatting it up as to what took place and what I think needs to happen, and I said, what needs to happen is we've got to have individuals that make some decisions and have open lines of communication with other individuals that have been inside the ropes and know what it's all about. We just haven't had that. I think the communication between those that play and those that are potentially leading, I've experienced positive and negatives in both sides, so I think with what we're establishing now is just a nice template to build off of. I don't know if it's going to translate into Ws. Obviously we've got to play better. You've still got to win. You've got to go out there and win it. You've got to hit quality shots. But in the long runny think it probably adds just a little more‑‑ I don't know what the word is, maybe expectations are kind of set as to how we're going to approach it as a team but as a nation. I love the individuals that are associated with it. I mean, I think they're all obviously worthy and capable and equipped to make some decisions, and I mean, I applaud the PGA of America certainly for taking the initiative because obviously they want to shake it up and see if we can maybe do something a little bit different. Yeah, I'm excited for it. Q. Curious as a follow on that, do you feel, just the way it's structured now, that the U.S. goes in there as a slight disadvantage before a shot is even hit? ZACH JOHNSON: No. This year, yes. But I also think that their team was one of the best teams ever assembled if you're going to go by numbers. I mean, they had four of the top five, I want to say six of the top nine in the world. Does that sound right? And I want to say eight of the top 12, eight of the top 13, something along those lines. So you're talking about one of the best teams ever assembled as far as World Ranking goes. But if you go two years ago, we keep forgetting what we did there. We were up 10‑6 going into singles, could have been 11‑5 if I would have made a putt, 10?‑5?, and we're in the same position‑‑ the point is we weren't that far off, and that was in tandem. We had the lead in tandems and we got beat in singles, which isn't normal. I don't think‑‑ you can pick it apart as much as you want. Each session, each type of session, every two years it's just totally different. Going into '12 we were highly favored because of the year our team had had. Going into this year certainly they were favored. But they mounted up in '12 and obviously won it on Sunday. I feel like we kind of lost '12 and I feel like they won this year. I got over '14 really quick. I don't know if I'm completely over '12 yet, probably because I feel bad for Davis. Q. You mentioned how impressed you were with the golf course. Can you cite some specific examples about things that you noticed? ZACH JOHNSON: Sure. Well, first of all, this is the fifth year. The last four years, I mean, I remember maybe two or three days where it's been windy and difficult, but the first year if you guys were here, I don't remember if you were or not, but it was like Palm Springs every day. It was like 75 to 80 and it was perfect. That's not normal. But my point is the weather has been great. We haven't had any rain, and occasionally we'd still get mud on our balls in the fairway and minimal roll, even though there was no rain. A lot of that has to do with you want it to be healthy and you want it to look good on television, etcetera, etcetera. What they've done is added a lot of sand to the fairways over the last year and it helps with the drainage, helps with the run‑out and that sort of thing. I played here about a week ago, and we had an inch and a half of rain, and I was getting some‑‑ we had an inch and a half of rain. That's a lot of rain. I was getting some plugged lies. I played two days after that and I played nine holes, and it was starting to roll out already. They've done some nice things with the fairways. The greens have always been perfect. They're difficult because they're undulated and they're kind of table‑topped somewhat, but they still hold, so it's going to be a great test. The rough is brutal. Q. So did you automatically notice a difference in the way balls go in the fairways? ZACH JOHNSON: Yeah, especially since the middle of last week, but now I think if we get dry conditions, which is expected, knock on wood, I think we might see some roll in the fairways occasionally. Q. What do you think about adding Plantation next year? ZACH JOHNSON: Yeah, I haven't really given it a whole lot of thought yet. Davis mentioned that to me. I mean, personally, selfishly, I like preparing for one golf course. That goes without saying. Multiple golf courses take more time and preparation. I say that but I do play Humana, so take that with a grain of salt, right? And if anything, I should have a minor advantage because I've played that course‑‑ I don't know how many times I've played it, but I've played it, and this is where I live. In that regard it's probably a positive. The other positive would be more opportunities, more playing opportunities. I think you can probably add at least 10 to 12 to the field. We're at 144 right now? Q. 132. ZACH JOHNSON: That's right, it's fall. So you're talking about a number of more opportunities there. So I can see the positive obviously there. Truthfully if McGladrey wants it, if the TOUR wants it, my guess is that they've weighed the pros and the cons and the pros outweigh the cons. That would be my guess. You know, it would be just one more day on a different golf course. I can handle that. It's not a bad golf course. Q. What about the potential move to November, a later date? ZACH JOHNSON: I think it is. I don't think it's potential. I think it is later next year. It's the week before Thanksgiving? Yeah, Davis Love and I and Brian Harmon were talking about that last week. It stinks as far as what could happen, but it could be perfect. Chances are in October you're going to get a great week. It's one of the best months to be here, if not the best month to be here. November, it could be perfect. It could be 60 to 70 every day. I mean, it could be 55 and rainy and blowing like you‑know‑what. It is what it is. I don't think it's going to detract away from the tournament. Tough conditions are tough conditions for everybody. Q. Is that like a one off? ZACH JOHNSON: I don't know that. Q. Is it going to be moved around? ZACH JOHNSON: That's a good question. Last year it was in November, as well, and it was wonderful. It was cool in the mornings, like 50 to 55 in the morning, but midday it was 65 to 70 every day. And that's probably the average. Q. Chris Kirk was in earlier talking about building to the next level, contending in majors. Your career was always built from the Hooters Tour to the next level, the next level, majors. As you look back, what are some keys there to pushing a guy through to the next level? ZACH JOHNSON: Well, I think for me, regardless of the level, regardless of the tournament, it's just that week. It doesn't matter‑‑ the magnitude of the event should be for the most part irrelevant. It's all about the preparation and the process you're going through. Sometimes it takes a couple bad weeks to have a good week. Sometimes it takes a kick in the you know what in a big tournament, so when you get in that position the next time, you're prepared. For me it's all about preparation. I mine, I don't look at any week bigger than the next. I mean, obviously you feel that, you embrace that because you're playing Augusta or you're playing the Open Championship, whatever. You're going to feel that. Fortunately now I've essentially been in every arena, and I've felt all those feelings, and certainly I've embraced them but I relish them. I want them. Knowing Chris, that's not going to be much of a problem. He's gritty, he's fiery, he wants it, and yeah, it wouldn't surprise me if he's in contention in bigger tournaments for the next so many odd years. Q. So you talk about the magnitude needs to stay the same, but isn't it like growth as a player, just comfort level wise, confidence wise? Aren't you a lot different as you have those experiences? ZACH JOHNSON: Yeah, experience is huge, and that's really what it boils down to is how often are you in those positions, how often are you in those tournaments, how often are you on a Friday in a big tournament where you've got to make the cut or if you're climbing up the board on a weekend, how often can you get yourself in that position, and that's really why you work, right? So yeah, the more often you're in those positions, certainly the better off or the more you're going to learn next time around. You're going to lose some, you're going to win some. You know, just got to take the good with the bad I guess in that regard. Q. Do you know Hudson Swafford well? ZACH JOHNSON: Yeah. Q. He's played pretty well the first two tournaments. What do you think about the way his game is coming along? ZACH JOHNSON: Yeah, no surprise.  I remember a couple years ago he was coming off the Web.com, and he played good in the beginning of the year, and then I don't remember what year it was, but he basically was in and then the pressure of maintaining his spot on the Web, I think he finished 26th out of 25, and it was literally by minimal money, if you will. So great learning lesson for him. Was last year his rookie year? Yeah, last year was his rookie year and obviously not his best start, but he learned a lot, and he's a great ball striker. I know how hard he works. Obviously he's very stable now. He's got a great wife and they're just a young couple, so traveling with your wife always makes it fun. Yeah, I think he's going to be around for a while. He's a tremendous ball striker. He's got a great attitude, and he comes from that Georgia pedigree, right, so you're talking about‑‑ his buddies and his close peers are all guys that are winning out here, so I'm sure he's got some added motivation. Q. Last year you were ready hot this time of the year. You won BMW, you won Tiger's thing, then you go on and you win Kapalua. Did you almost feel like you peaked too soon and weren't able to sustain it the rest of the year? ZACH JOHNSON: That's a good question. I never thought about the peaking part of it. I certainly was playing well at that time. I don't know if I would have wanted to peak later than that. I mean, I'll take it whenever it comes. I'm not particular in that regard. I feel like every week is big. Every week is a great opportunity. Any time you're in contention or can win, it's massive. What I do remember most about last year was things starting to click around John Deere in '13. Had a good week, had a great opportunity to win it and lost in a playoff, and then it just kind of led into the latter part of the summer, but I put myself in contention numerous weeks. I don't know what it was, seven out of eight or eight out of nine top 10s where I had numerous chances to win on Sunday, and I just didn't, and eventually BMW I broke through, and it felt phenomenal. That added confidence just bred momentum from there. I took a good break after Humana last year I want to say, or this year, or whatever, last season. I don't know where‑‑ top 5 probably, right in there somewhere, and I took like four weeks off, but I usually do that. I don't know if that just kind of put a stall in my game. I felt like I was still playing okay, I just wasn't seeing the results. So yeah, hopefully‑‑ I know what I was doing then. I know what I was doing last year to get me to where I was, and I'm not saying I'm not trying to do that, but you know, there's little things that I'm trying to key in on and those feelings are starting to come. My short game was great. I mean, I was pitching it great, chipping it great and obviously putting it well. My ball‑striking is pretty consistent. I drive it straight and hit a lot of greens, so it's really just about chipping and putting. That's where my focus will be this off‑season. MARK STEVENS: Thanks for your time, Zach. Good luck this week. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
About ASAP Sports •
FastScripts Archive •
Recent Interviews •
Captioning •
Upcoming Events •
Contact Us
FastScripts | Events Covered | Our Clients | Other Services | ASAP in the News | Site Map | Job Opportunities | Links |
|
ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297
|