HawkeyeMS
Ryder Cup Winner
Extract from his post round interview...
Was the 5‑iron at 6 close to being a really good shot?
TIGER WOODS: It was one yard. One yard. Yeah.
Q. Obviously at the time did you think you could get it over the lip?
TIGER WOODS: The problem is if I played left I wasn't assured I could get it to the gallery and get it out of that slope because if it rolls back in the bunker and I'm on the downslope then I've got no backswing. So I had to be able to blast it into the gallery, and I didn't think I could get it into the gallery because of the sand, how it piled up on the right side of the ball.
So the game plan was to fire it into the bank, have it ricochet to the right and then have an angle to come back at it. Unfortunately it ricocheted to the left and almost hit me.
Then I tried to play an interesting shot after that and ended up three‑putting.
Q. How do you assess exactly what happened?
TIGER WOODS: You know, I was right there, the game plan was to shoot under par going out. And with the wind the way it was blowing, I was right there in position. I was even par through 5. And 6 is reachable today. Sorry, 7 is reachable today. And obviously 9 is playing easy. So I was in position to do what I wanted to do and then turn home and shoot maybe 1‑ or 2‑under par on the back nine and I would have posted an 8‑ or 9‑under par. And I thought that was going to be the number to win the golf tournament. I thought 8 was a playoff, 9 was to win outright. Unfortunately I just didn't do it.
Q. Did you plan on 13 and 14? You were laying back, today you birdied 12, you get to 5. Did you think about hitting drivers, trying to get further up on either hole?
TIGER WOODS: No, I don't know where to go on that. And it's just a normal 3‑iron or 4‑iron off of 13. Brandt hit 4‑iron off there and hit a little wedge in there. I don't know how more aggressive I could play it. Going down 14 I just stuck it in the ground. It's 297 to the left bunker, 2‑iron reaches with no problem, so I've got to hit a 3‑iron and end up sticking it in the ground. So that's what happened.
Was the 5‑iron at 6 close to being a really good shot?
TIGER WOODS: It was one yard. One yard. Yeah.
Q. Obviously at the time did you think you could get it over the lip?
TIGER WOODS: The problem is if I played left I wasn't assured I could get it to the gallery and get it out of that slope because if it rolls back in the bunker and I'm on the downslope then I've got no backswing. So I had to be able to blast it into the gallery, and I didn't think I could get it into the gallery because of the sand, how it piled up on the right side of the ball.
So the game plan was to fire it into the bank, have it ricochet to the right and then have an angle to come back at it. Unfortunately it ricocheted to the left and almost hit me.
Then I tried to play an interesting shot after that and ended up three‑putting.
Q. How do you assess exactly what happened?
TIGER WOODS: You know, I was right there, the game plan was to shoot under par going out. And with the wind the way it was blowing, I was right there in position. I was even par through 5. And 6 is reachable today. Sorry, 7 is reachable today. And obviously 9 is playing easy. So I was in position to do what I wanted to do and then turn home and shoot maybe 1‑ or 2‑under par on the back nine and I would have posted an 8‑ or 9‑under par. And I thought that was going to be the number to win the golf tournament. I thought 8 was a playoff, 9 was to win outright. Unfortunately I just didn't do it.
Q. Did you plan on 13 and 14? You were laying back, today you birdied 12, you get to 5. Did you think about hitting drivers, trying to get further up on either hole?
TIGER WOODS: No, I don't know where to go on that. And it's just a normal 3‑iron or 4‑iron off of 13. Brandt hit 4‑iron off there and hit a little wedge in there. I don't know how more aggressive I could play it. Going down 14 I just stuck it in the ground. It's 297 to the left bunker, 2‑iron reaches with no problem, so I've got to hit a 3‑iron and end up sticking it in the ground. So that's what happened.
