	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

WGC DELL TECHNOLOGIES MATCH PLAY

March 19, 2018

Dylan Frittelli

Austin, Texas

Q. What's it like to be in Austin now back in this event?
DYLAN FRITTELLI: It's pretty awesome. Last year I was spectating here, so it's a slightly different feel being inside the ropes and obviously having some golf to play. It was fun watching the guys to play. I watched the Friday tournament round and Tuesday practice round. A little different feeling, but it's exciting.

Q. What's it like mixing it up with your old college teammate there inside the ropes?
DYLAN FRITTELLI: It was pretty fun. I walked on the first tee and I guess he followed me from the driving range. I had a nice group for nine holes, kept it nice, loose and lighthearted.

Q. (Inaudible.)
DYLAN FRITTELLI: No, all the way around. I'm Jordan Spieth's teammate. That's the big flier on the PGA Tour and European Tour. Hoping to change that, maybe one day he'll be co-teammate or something to that effect.

Q. But you made the putt?
DYLAN FRITTELLI: People tend to forget I made the putt at the National Championship. But that was six years ago now. So it's long gone in my memory, but it's probably still my biggest moment in golf.

Q. It is pretty interesting that Jordan has had so much success, and people don't realize back here how much success you've had. Why have you been so successful? Where did your game change?
DYLAN FRITTELLI: I had a bit of a downturn 2015, 2016 and I had to dig deep and figure things out. Outside the top 500 in the World Rankings, didn't have a European Tour card. I put a bunch of work in with my coach, Chuck Cook, and my mental coach Jay Branden in San Diego, and basically a year and a half of really solid, hard, diligent work has paid off in 2017. Now heading into 2018, it's really looking rosie.

Q. Was there something specific that changed?
DYLAN FRITTELLI: No, I finally figured out that I need to take time off from tournament golf and practice. I traveled 36 events a year, and my game will be there. You've got to put seven, eight-hour practice sessions in every day for two weeks and get in the gym, do two-a-days, and get your standard up there for it to pay off. And it's sometimes six months, eight months, ten months in advance.

Q. You said you were a spectator last year. What were your thoughts last year?
DYLAN FRITTELLI: I mean I told a lot of people -- I know tons of people, I was running into them. I said I'll be here next year, I'll be playing in this tournament. People looked at me, you're 190 in the world, that's hard to get to 64. It was a goal I set myself. I kept on telling people, and self affirmation. The more I told I myself, the more I started to believe it.

I knew I had some opportunities starting that European Tour season last year, I'd be playing in bigger tournaments and the World Rankings go up. So that was basically the marker for me. I knew what my standard was, and I won a couple of times last year on the European Tour. If I did that, I'd be well inside the top 50.

Q. What's your ultimate goal? Do you want to play on the PGA Tour?
DYLAN FRITTELLI: I want to play the best golfers in the world. They happen to be in the U.S. right now, and that's where I want to live. I'll stay here in Austin, I'm taxed here in the U.S. That's basically where I see myself in the future. I love playing the European Tour, as well. There's some really good tournaments and I can't wait to get back there in the summer.

Q. What are your thoughts on the ACC? You obviously played in it a bunch?
DYLAN FRITTELLI: ACC is a tough golf course. As I told Jordan on the first tee, that I felt it was a course I shot 68, 69 or 75 on, because there's so many opportunities you can make bogey, double, and then there's opportunities you can make birdie. It's almost a perfect match play course in that sense. You've got a lot of action. You got a lot of tricky situations, especially with the wind. The wind was up today. Yesterday it was pretty calm. But I expect a lot of interesting matches and situations. If you follow each match closely, you'll see some cool match play going on.

Q. How do you feel your game sets up for match play?
DYLAN FRITTELLI: Pretty good. I'm known as a ball-striker. So pretty good tee to green, which is handy in match play. You can put a lot of pressure on people, just hit greens, hit fairways and wear them down.

My putting is really improved the last six months. So that's another part of my game that I've been working really diligently on the last five, six months. If I can make a few putts in pressure situations, I see myself good enough to beat anybody out here.

Q. (Inaudible.)
DYLAN FRITTELLI: Well, I mean coming off of last week, Rory is playing really well. I don't know too many renowned match play players besides Ian Poulter, maybe, coming from Europe. You've got to go with the top-10, 15 in the world, guys that played on big stages.

I played my first WGC in Mexico, so a lot of this is very new to me. I do feel comfortable in the surroundings, obviously hometown, home setting, I've been here a lot. But it could be anyone. You can look at the top-10, 15 guys, going back to years past no one outside the top, I guess, 20 or 25 in the World Rankings has won it.

Q. Justin Rose isn't here.
DYLAN FRITTELLI: I didn't actually hear that, that's news to me. I played with Justin four times the end of last year and that's the best golf I've seen, hands down, anywhere. He didn't miss a shot the four rounds we played together.

Q. Austin right now is the center of a massive bombing investigation. Is PGA security advising you guys, you guys' caddies, particularly those staying in residential areas --
DYLAN FRITTELLI: It's different for me, I'm not a PGA Tour member, so I'm not tied into the emails that go out. It's been pretty good so far. I was out here yesterday, typically that's the most relaxed day. But they had security officials on every corner of the clubhouse and on the exterior, as well. It was pretty tough to get through all the protocols. I'm sure they'll have stuff in place.

I walked with an APD officer today, he's obviously watching Jordan the whole weekend, chatted to him a bit about it, and they said they've got their finger on the pulse. I'm staying this week with an ex-ATF agent who's behind you over there. So if you want to ask any questions about bombings and cases and stuff, I'll get you on to Ron.

Q. Is there any chatter among the golfers about what's going on and what the concerns are?
DYLAN FRITTELLI: To be honest, no, I've got my buddy Julian Suri, he's arriving now, he just got a late call up. I'll see what his view is. But I'm not worried.

Q. He made the field?
DYLAN FRITTELLI: Yeah, he's just in. Julian is coming in. I'll have lunch with him. He texted me to say he's on his way to the course. I look forward to spending some time with him.

New Year's we did a fun trip, his Duke buddies came to town, so I came all the way from South Africa to chaperone them around 6th Street.

Q. Anybody can win this, what makes you think you can?
DYLAN FRITTELLI: Just the fact that I've played 50 plus rounds on this golf course. I think that's huge with it being such -- as I described a knife edge type of golf course. The fine lines and what lines you don't want to walk and what lines you do.

I got 18 holes in yesterday, my coach, Chuck Cook, and he reminded me, he said, Dyl, it's match play, you're going to have to take on some shots that you wouldn't take on in stroke play. I didn't like that to be honest, I'd rather consistently hit it on the green, have a 20-footer. But he said be ready to play that awesome shot when it comes your way.

Q. Maybe it's more of a dream matchup for us, but you and Jordan, Sunday afternoon?
DYLAN FRITTELLI: We could be in different groups. We're in different pods, obviously. I'd preferably not like to face him, but we've had one -- we had the Massengill trophy, which is the UT inter-team championship. Coach switched it to a match play my senior year, and Jordan beat me in the final at UT Golf Club. It was 3 and 2. So that was our last matchup, so I'm not too keen to face him again.

Q. Maybe a little revenge, though?
DYLAN FRITTELLI: Maybe. I'm happy to play anybody. Knowing the golf course, being familiar with everything, and again, being in good shape, I can take down anybody, Dustin No. 1 in the world and I'm 50th in the world, I'm not worried.

Q. (Inaudible.)
DYLAN FRITTELLI: I watched a bit of it. Dustin Johnson in his quarterfinal. Was that Saturday, I guess? I watched a bit of that. And then I watched quite a lot on TV. I was practicing in the mornings and then tried to catch the afternoon coverage, that was my typical schedule. But I don't think I gain too much info from watching other matches, to be honest.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297