Australian Adam Scott says his caddie's jibes at Tiger Woods had been blown out of proportion, and hopes his clubs will do the talking this week at the PGA Championship.
Scott won the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational on Sunday with Woods' former caddie, Steve Williams, recently fired by the former number one, enjoying vocal support from the crowd.
After the tournament, Williams was controversially interviewed by television before holding an impromptu news conference in which he rated his win with Scott higher than any of his victories, including 13 majors, with Woods.
"I kind of think it's been blown out of proportion, unsurprisingly but I guess its newsworthy stuff," Scott told reporters.
"Steve was obviously delighted to win, as was I. He was speaking with a bit of emotion probably."
Some critics of Williams suggested he had stolen Scott's moment of glory at Firestone Country Club but the Australian appeared far from irked by that idea.
"I certainly don't think that was his intention to steal my moment at all," Scott said after playing nine holes in practice at Atlanta Athletic Club on Tuesday.
"He was asked these questions and he gave his honest answer I assume. And with a lot of things to do with anything related to Tiger Woods, it's all scrutinised and blown out of proportion a lot of the time.
"So this is no different. He was asked a question, and he gave an honest answer. So, I said, 'That's fair enough'. Hopefully we'll just go and let our clubs do the talking for the rest of the week now.
"Obviously he (Williams) had not won for a little while and he's really passionate about it, and that's what I see. When you're passionate and in that situation ... I think it all got a little out of hand."
Asked whether he had a quiet chat with the experienced caddie from New Zealand, Scott quipped: "Having a quiet word with Steve is not very easy. He's a big guy, you know."
While Scott probably did not welcome the attention on his caddie's post-round interview, he certainly appreciates the experience and advice he gets from his bagman.
"He's one of the best caddies out there, there's no doubt about it," said the Australian world number nine.
"He brings all of that experience from 30 years of caddying, and more recently, all of the experience of being in contention so much at big tournaments.
"He's had quite an insight into my game right from the get-go of what he's seen and what he believes I need to do to be a bit better and win majors and contend in majors on a regular basis, because I told him that's what I want to do.
"He's a very motivated guy. He's out here to win. He loves winning. And you know, I think that's good for me to keep my motivation going; he can certainly push me."
Scott, a winner of 19 titles worldwide, recorded his best finish in a major with a tie for second at the Masters in April.
"So far, he's just brought a lot of confidence toward me in the way - everything he says, and the way he acts," the 31-year-old Australian said.
"Filling me with confidence is a good thing. That's a good thing for a caddie to do to a player. So far, it's been fantastic."
Reuters
Tags: golf, sport, united-states, australia First posted August 10, 2011 09:05:49
No comments:
Post a Comment