	products recent interviews FastScripts archive about ASAP Sports

Our Clients:

Browse by Sport

Find us on

Subscribe to RSS

Click to go to
Asaptext.com

View our
e-Brochure

MASTERS TOURNAMENT

April 7, 2016

Tom Watson

Augusta, Georgia

Q. Beautiful day out there.
TOM WATSON: Yeah, the wind was an issue, sure it was. As I said over there, 12 is going to be an issue with this wind. This wind is coming up through 13 and around those trees there. They can be playing downwind, in your wind, and you won't know.

Q. You hit a nice shot on 18, had a 4‑wood out, is that where you're thinking I need to be ‑‑
TOM WATSON: Yeah I told Lee, I said walking up there, I just didn't have that shot, that soft 3‑wood over the corner like Charley hit in there.

Q. What happened on the 7th green?
TOM WATSON: 7th green I putted my ball down about a foot and a half and put my putter behind it and my ball moved. I caused it to move so I had to move it back.

Q. No wind involved in that at all?
TOM WATSON: No, the wind was coming this way, and the ball moved that way. So my putter made it move.

Q. Did you have some sense, was the crowd with you a little bit today?
TOM WATSON: Yeah, they were very nice to me. A lot of nice applause, hats off, thing like that. It was a nice day out there.

Q. As much as you're locked into playing, did you find yourself appreciating that and maybe engaging?
TOM WATSON: Of course I did, of course. I’m very grateful to be able to play again at the Masters and have the crowd react that way. I've been around a long time. All these people, they know me. A lot of the kids don't, but a lot of the older people do.

Q. You mentioned being around a long time. Ernie 7‑putted the first hole. Can you fathom that, how difficult these greens can be?
TOM WATSON: That’s hard. No.1 is right up on top of the hill. It can really blow right up on top of the hill. It's probably the windiest green on this golf course. These greens can get away from you possibly, with a lot of wind. They're trying to get them so they don't, I know that. But they know it's going to blow really hard, so I wouldn't expect that they're going to get them too fast or too dry. They may dry out, and that's tough.

Q. I think you said earlier in the week that making the weekend was your goal, do you think you're still in with that?
TOM WATSON: Yeah, I'm still there. I think 74 is not bad for old folks. I can't complain. Every round of golf I've ever played, though, I've always said it could have been better. It could have been worse, too, in some respects. I made a long putt at 3. I made some good putts that I was very happy with.

Q. Did you have a little time on 13 to reflect?
TOM WATSON: A little bit, yeah.

Q. How hard is it walking that line between trying to be competitive, trying to make the cut, and trying to enjoy yourself?
TOM WATSON: I really haven't changed my preparation for this tournament. I just‑‑ again, I don't have the tools. I don't have the length to be able to play this golf course. Like 14 I hit a good drive and hit a 5‑iron, and downwind with a 5‑iron, it's not going to stop. The green is pretty soft, as it is. If it gets drier this afternoon, it's going to be harder to stop. I could have done better with my third shot, knocking it nine feet by, and missed the putt.
Especially 18, you look at 18, I'm hitting‑‑ I hit a drive, but I've got 205 yards to the front of the green. And they're 60 yards ahead of you, good 60. And Bill, Lee Westwood's caddy said there are guys that hit it forty yards past Lee.
So it's a game. It's a game of length. I used to play, when I was a kid, I was one of the longest out here. I had my advantage. That's the reason I played well here in Augusta. I had length and height. I could hit that ball softly into these greens on the par 5. That's what you have to do.

Q. Good height on No. 12?
TOM WATSON: Heck of a 7‑iron, it should get in the air.

Q. What was your highlight today?
TOM WATSON: The putt on 3. I made a great putt at 3. I hit it in the left bunker off the tee trying to cut it. I hit a double cross, pretty good shot with a 9-iron, I thought I had a big swinging putt down to the hole and made it.

Q. The cut on 17?
TOM WATSON: That was a good one too, that was nice. About 20 feet.

Q. How far do you think the one on 3 was?
TOM WATSON: It was probably‑‑ it was a good 45 feet.

Q. Coming right after the bunker, too?
TOM WATSON: Yeah, when you make a 45-footer when it breaks about eight feet, it’s not like it was a straight uphill putt from three feet. After making a mistake off my tee, hit a pretty good shot out of the bunker, felt like I was stealing a little bit on that hole.

Q. When you had that on No.7, what is the emotion? How quickly do you forget it and move on?
TOM WATSON: There's nothing you can do. You just move on. I learned a long time ago that if you start whining and crying about things that happened in the past out here, it's going to make you a worse player. You're not going to be much of a success. You've got to just carry on. When I was making doubles I said come on, let's carry on.

Q. Were you able to feel the love from the patrons today?
TOM WATSON: Yeah, the fans were very nice to me today.

Q. You took your hat off at 12 and really seemed to give back to the fans--
TOM WATSON: Again, there were a lot of nice applause‑‑ there was a lot of nice applause throughout the golf course. It was a pleasure to be able to play in front of them. I wish I'd played a little bit better, get in a little bit better position to make my goal, making the cut. Who knows what happens tomorrow.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297