home jobs contact us
Our Clients:
Browse by Sport
Find us on ASAP sports on Facebook ASAP sports on Twitter
ASAP Sports RSS Subscribe to RSS
Click to go to
Asaptext.com
ASAPtext.com
ASAP Sports e-Brochure View our
e-Brochure

THE HONDA CLASSIC


February 28, 2014


Brendon de Jonge


PALM BEACH GARDENS, FLORIDA

MARK STEVENS:   Like to welcome Brendon de Jonge, nice round today, one off the lead going into the weekend, talk over your thoughts on today's round and then your thoughts going into tomorrow.
BRENDON DE JONGE:  Yeah, obviously very pleased with today's round.   Got a little bit tricky out there around the turn.  The breeze did start picking up, and I think we were a little bit lucky towards the end when it died.  But you know, it's a tough golf course and as I say, thrilled to death.

Q.  You've been on the TOUR a number of years, you haven't won yet, is it a feeling that you're on the cusp here?
BRENDON DE JONGE:  It's early.  It's only Friday afternoon.
You know, obviously it's something I'm starting to think about a little bit more and more but as I say, it's still very early.

Q.  Just read about you got a putting tip from Nick Price recently and next thing you know, here you are, so it must have been a pretty good tip.
BRENDON DE JONGE:  I think so.  Obviously so far everything's working.  I spent a couple hours with Nick on the putting green Tuesday afternoon, and just had them watch me putt for a little while and see if he could see anything.  You know, he gave me a few things definitely to work on but overall kept it pretty simple.

Q.  Anything major or just‑‑
BRENDON DE JONGE:  No, as I say, kept it pretty simple.

Q.  And how has your putting been this week?
BRENDON DE JONGE:  I've putted beautifully the first two rounds, so hopefully keep it going.

Q.  Owe him a check for that or anything?
BRENDON DE JONGE:  No, not that I know of (smiling).

Q.  As I recall last fall, you came down to the end as one of Nick's choices; what did it do for to you have that vote of confidence from him and then to play in The Presidents Cup?
BRENDON DE JONGE:  Yeah, you know, obviously it does wonders for anyone's confidence being picked, and then to play in The Presidents Cup and play well in The Presidents Cup was great for my own confidence.
You know, hopefully it's something that I can carry forward.

Q.  Was there any one or two keys to today's round that you could point to or turning point?
BRENDON DE JONGE:  I made two really nice par saves on 16 and 17 that kept the momentum going.  That was definitely the key because I made probably two 8‑ to 10‑footers right at the perfect time for me because I had got off to a great start.

Q.  Were you thinking about the lead coming in, seeing Rory at 11, were you thinking about that as you went along and was it important for to you match that or would you rather chase?
BRENDON DE JONGE:  No, I mean, I was obviously just trying to shoot the lowest possible score.  As I said it's still Friday afternoon.  Yeah, we were a twosome today, so we had a lot of time to look around and wait around, so I knew exactly where I stood.

Q.  How comfortable do you feel when you're‑‑ you haven't spent a lot of time that high on the board over your time, and obviously Rory is as good as there is out there.  How comfortable do you feel in that stratosphere so to speak?
BRENDON DE JONGE:  I feel very comfortable.  I've been out here long enough now.  I've played quite a bit with Rory.  I know obviously what a great player he is.
No, I feel very comfortable.  I'm looking forward to tomorrow.

Q.  What did you have, 120 in on the last?
BRENDON DE JONGE:  A little bit more than that, 125.

Q.  Gust or something?  What happened?
BRENDON DE JONGE:  I don't know if I got a little bit of a wind switch.  I didn't think I had hit that bad of a shot and it obviously came up ten yards short.  I think I might have got a little bit of a switch in the wind.

Q.  You're staying with Nick this week?
BRENDON DE JONGE:  Yeah.

Q.  What's the banter been like in the evenings with him all week?
BRENDON DE JONGE:  It's been great.  He's a great guy to bounce ideas off.  He's always entertaining people, so there's people coming and going.  It's been fun.  It's been fun to get back there and also get away from golf, as well.  We've got a lot of common interests, and talked a lot about shooting, fishing and it's been great.  That's always a fun week staying with him.

Q.  Is this how many years in a row up there for you?
BRENDON DE JONGE:  That I've stayed with Nick, probably five or six years.

Q.  Getting back to you and Rory, do you recall any particular times you've played with each other?  What's your assessment of where he's at?
BRENDON DE JONGE:  The first time I played with him was at Memorial I think 2010.  And then we played again‑‑ played a couple times.  We played again last year at The Barclays and he was starting to hit it really nicely again last year at The Barclays.

Q.  How disappointing was that last bogey, and will you be able to kick it out of your mind overnight?
BRENDON DE JONGE:  I certainly hope so.  Yeah, it was obviously disappointing.  I hit a great tee shot and made a very soft bogey, but there's a lot of good work done before that that I'm going to look back on.

Q.  Was there one shot today that stood out or that you were most proud of executing?
BRENDON DE JONGE:  I birdied the 10th hole.  We played that straight back into the wind.  I hit a hybrid in there about four feet, which was a nice way to start.  Obviously I'm sure that's going to play the toughest or one of the toughest holes today.

Q.  You might have won a skin on that one.
BRENDON DE JONGE:  Maybe.  Maybe.

Q.  Have you played a lot with Nick over the years?
BRENDON DE JONGE:  A fair bit.  I wouldn't say a lot but I've played some with him, yeah.

Q.  Down here at all?
BRENDON DE JONGE:  Yeah.
MARK STEVENS:   Thanks for your time, good luck tomorrow.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports




About ASAP SportsFastScripts ArchiveRecent InterviewsCaptioningUpcoming EventsContact 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