Q. What are your thoughts on 17? Do you like it? Do you
think it's a good golf hole?
SERGIO GARCIA: Yeah, I think it's great. Any golf hole that --
we usually have so many 150-yard shots, that you are thinking about
hitting it to this (indicating six inches).
Any golf hole you get to the tee and you think, "Just hit it
on the green, from 150 yards," it has to be good. It makes you think
a lot.
Yeah, I think the green is fair. I think for the hole it is, it's
a fair green. And it's tricky, with the wind and everything, it gets
around your head. It's good.
Q. Just taking a whole picture, you're looking at a section of
the green, aren't you?
SERGIO GARCIA: Where?
Q. Any par 3. Take Bay Hill, for example, No. 2, if the pin
is left, you're looking --?
SERGIO GARCIA: I don't know how to hit it. I can't hit it on
that green. I don't think anybody can hit on that green.
(Laughter.)
Q. Nobody did. But normally a par 3, are you looking at a
section of the green, if not the stick? You don't do that at all on
17? You're not looking at --?
SERGIO GARCIA: Of course. When the pin is on the front, you
know, you're looking at hitting it -- probably trying to make birdie
that day, if you hit a good shot and get it back down the hill. But
then, as soon as the greens start to get firmer and they put the pin
on the back, it starts getting tricky. Because if you hit a little
soft and it bounces on the slope, it's going to stay short; and if you
bounce it on top too close to the pin, it's going to go on the water
probably on the second or third bounce. So it gets tricky.
But that's the beauty of the hole. If that hole would have no
water, it would be nothing. It would be so easy. It would be just a
soft 9-iron or just a hard wedge. But that way, it makes you think so
much, and actually, you could hit what you think is a great shot and
make double-bogey.
Q. Just pretend there's no water there.
SERGIO GARCIA: That's what you try. (Laughter.)
Q. Do you think it's fair, though, that a guy could be playing
terrific golf for 70 holes and have maybe a three-shot lead and come
to one hole and it just gets goofy and end up with a very big
number?
SERGIO GARCIA: Yeah. That shows you that maybe he didn't
deserve to be in that position, if he's not able to handle the 17th
hole. Until you make the putt on 18 -- we're talking about 17. What
about 18? That's two good holes to finish with.
Yeah, I think you should be able to handle any hole on the golf
course. I think if the green was unfair, then it would be -- if that
hole was 175 yards or 180 yards, then I would say, "Geez, that's maybe
a little too much." But I think it's the perfect yardage for the kind
of hole it is.
Q. Is your strategy to just make par and get out of there?
Are you trying to hit the middle of the green regardless of where the
pin is?
SERGIO GARCIA: It all depends on how you feel and we'll see how
the greens are. If the greens -- if the greens on Thursday are like
it looks like it might be, the greens are going to be softer; so
you're going to be able to attack it. If the greens start getting as
firm as they usually are, yeah, you make 3 on that hole and you are a
happy man.
Q. If someone told you right now you could have 12 strokes and
be done for the week, you'd take it?
SERGIO GARCIA: I probably would, yeah.
Q. How many times have you been in the water?
SERGIO GARCIA: I think only once. Once in six rounds.
Actually, my first -- my first round, I hit in the water.
(Smiles).
Q. You are a pretty aggressive player normally. When you get
in a tough situation and you have a risky shot, what goes into your
factors for determining whether you're going to go for it, or do you
weigh the pain versus the gain, or do you just say, "I'm going for it
regardless"?
SERGIO GARCIA: Depends on different things. Of course, depends
on what position I am in the tournament. If I have to attack because
I'm behind and I need to make birdie or no more than par, that's the
easiest way to save par. Of course, that can make a difference.
But if I feel I can pull out a shot, that's the biggest deal. It
doesn't matter how tough or how easy the shot it is, if you feel like
you can -- sometimes you just don't feel comfortable hitting that
shot. It's not going to go well.
So, of course, it depends on the position I am in the tournament,
and also, how I feel over the ball and with that shot.
Q. But not being afraid to fail is a big part of it; right?
SERGIO GARCIA: No. You take risk, and sometimes it goes right
and sometimes it doesn't. But you take it with all of the
consequences.
Q. How comfortable did you feel over that shot at
Medinah?
SERGIO GARCIA: That's why I hit it, because I felt like I could
do it. I had a tough shot last year at THE TOUR Championship on the
last round on 13 -- no, actually, on the third round -- on the
fourth round, 13. The pin was back right and I hit it -- well,
whatever. I hit it right with a driver. I'm thinking it was Saturday
and I hit it right with a driver and I had a little gap and I had to
hit like a little low, and then high 7-iron and draw in and carry the
bunker and the pin was just on the slope and stuff. So I wanted to
hit that shot, and actually, Glenn talked me out of it.
But then, I started thinking about it, and I realized that maybe
the risk was too high for what I was going to get. So we actually
ended up chipping it out to the fairway and then hitting a sand wedge
to about six feet and making it for par.
So, you know, it all depends. If you have any doubts about
pulling out the shot, it's better not to do it. Because then you're
not thinking about the shot; you're thinking about what can happen and
that's not good.
Q. What do you think of Mickelson's play on 16 Sunday?
SERGIO GARCIA: I was still playing. I didn't see it. What
happened?
Q. Didn't see highlights?
SERGIO GARCIA: He drove it on the right, didn't he? What did he
hit?
Q. He had to go up the leaves and kind of under and around the
tree with a 4-iron.
SERGIO GARCIA: And he hit in the water.
Q. Yeah.
SERGIO GARCIA: I don't know. If he felt like he could do it --
he wanted to skip it over the water. (Laughs) I don't know, I mean,
you have to be in that position to see. Maybe he had a shot and
didn't hit a good shot and just hit in the water.
Q. Sergio, is it my imagination --?
SERGIO GARCIA: Is it has to be. It has to be. (Laughter.)
Q. This is the first of a two-part question. Have you gotten
taller and a little stronger, bulkier looking? Are you working out
more?
SERGIO GARCIA: You think so? Thank you. (Laughter.)
Q. Tell me about it.
SERGIO GARCIA: Actually, you're not the first one that tells me.
Yeah, somebody a couple days ago told me if I got a little taller; I
don't know. I haven't measured myself.
I have been working out a little; so I'm a little heavier than
what I used to be. So, yeah, a little bit.
Q. Second question. Somebody told me that as you learn how to
serve really well in tennis, it will increase your driving accuracy;
is that true?
SERGIO GARCIA: That's the first time I've heard that.
(Laughter.)
I'm not serving that great on tennis, so I don't think so.
(Laughs).
Q. The first week of the year which you won and you were
talking about being the leading money winner on both tours, what sort
of progress are you making towards that? Do you think that's still a
possibility? Here we are in March.
SERGIO GARCIA: It is. I said it there and I said it before, and
I always said, it's tough. But it's possible.
I just got to win the right tournaments. But I do think it's
possible. It's difficult, and I said it there, too, if I don't win
both, of course, I would like to win one. One would be great. But
the goal is that one and that's the one I'm going to try.
Q. Are you going to play Seve Trophy, or is that going to get
in the way of the Money List?
SERGIO GARCIA: Actually, I'm going to go play Hilton Head.
Q. Obviously, you can't concern yourself too much with Tiger,
but last year he wins Bay Hill and then comes here and then at
Augusta; and you see him win Bay Hill last year, somewhere in the back
of your mind, do you think, "He's at it again"?
SERGIO GARCIA: No, because if he does it, he'll win Atlanta.
That would be the week . (Laughter.) So for the Masters, I'll be
okay.
Q. Do you think that he's on his game?
SERGIO GARCIA: He played better last week -- well, the first
two days, I don't know, he hit nine greens on the first day and shot
67. That's pretty good stuff. Then on the second day, he played
unbelievable at Bay Hill. But then the third day, he got a little
shaky; started missing fairways again. I don't think that last day he
played as great as he played on the second day.
But for sure, he's playing better. You know, he's very beatable.
I really felt like last week, I could have got him quite easily if I
would have been able to hold it on Saturday, and after shooting
4-under par on the front. Then I 3-putt 11; you know, wasn't able to
make birdie on 12; and then I think I bogeyed 14, I think.
So, I did have my chance. Unfortunately, I didn't take it. You
know, it looks like he's playing a little better.
Q. I think you made the statement something to the effect a
few weeks ago that, you know, the rest of the Tour, maybe you feel
that about your game, that you've caught up to Tiger and the point
where you feel more comfortable in situations where you're
head-to-head with him?
SERGIO GARCIA: Yeah, for sure. Myself, I do feel that way. I
think I've improved a lot, and because I'm comfortable with myself.
When I'm on the golf course, I know sometimes of course I hit bad
shots like everybody else, but I really feel like I can pull the right
shot almost every time.
Q. How often do you plan to play in Europe this year? Do you
have any leeway in your schedule if you look towards the later part of
the season that you could win the European Money List? Do you have
room for maneuver that you could add in a European event if that was
still a goal?
SERGIO GARCIA: That's a good question. Well, hopefully, I'll
get myself in that position; and if I do, then I'll have to think
about it.
But as many tournaments I'm playing all over the world, you know,
I have my 11 planned to play in Europe, and depending how it goes,
we'll see what happens. I don't know yet.
Q. Have you told Seve yet about not playing?
SERGIO GARCIA: Yeah.
Q. What was his reaction?
SERGIO GARCIA: It was okay. He understood. That's the way it
goes sometimes. Unfortunately, if I have a clone, I'll be able to
play everywhere every week, but unfortunately there's only one Sergio
Garcia.
TODD BUDNICK: Thank you, Sergio.
SERGIO GARCIA: Thanks.
End of FastScripts....
