Categories
Highlights Tours

US Masters 2022: Paul Casey withdraws just before tee time

Paul Casey had to withdraw from the tournament shortly before his tee time for the first round of the US Masters 2022 due to an injury. He would have started at 4:53pm alongside Bryson DeChambeau and Players champion Cameron Smith and withdrew just minutes before. This means Casey, who is one of the best players without a win in one of the four major tournaments, will miss out on a chance to win one of the big titles. At already 44 years old, the Englishman is running out of time to hit the big time. On the Wednesday before the Masters, he still took part in the par-3 contest with his family.

Paul Casey already injured before the US Masters 2022?

Already at the end of March at the WGC Dell Match Play, Casey had to concede his first match after two holes due to back problems. He then did not play in any of the other matches. All three matches of the group phase were scored for his opponents. Nevertheless, he received 40,000 euros in prize money as the last player in the group. “The pain I feel is in my lower back, on the left side, it’s like a cramp,” Casey explained at the time. According to the physiotherapist, it is the gluteal muscle.

“The back issues are persistent and thus preventing me from being able to compete. I shall now focus on my treatment and recovery so I can return to competitive form as soon as possible,” Casey explained his withdraw from the US Masters 2022.

Since the US Masters is an invitational tournament, there is no list of players who advance if someone else withdraws, as is the case with normal tour events. So at least Casey cannot be accused of having made his decision earlier.

Categories
PGA Tour

WGC – Dell Technologies Match Play: Paul Casey gives up all three matches

Paul Casey played two holes Wednesday at the World Golf Championship-Dell Technologies Match Play before withdrawing from his match against Canadian Corey Conners because of back spasms. At that point, it was not yet clear whether Casey would be able to play his other two matches. On Thursday, however, he withdrew not only from his match against Alex Noren but also from Friday’s match against Louis Oosthuizen and is thus out of the tournament. Casey’s opponents will each receive the point for the match and Casey, with zero points from three matches, will receive at least $40,000 from the prize pool.

WGC: Back cramps force Paul Casey to retire

Casey took his time until his tee time on Thursday to make a decision. “The pain I’m feeling is in my lower back, on the left side, it’s like a cramp,” Casey explained. According to the physical therapist, it’s in the gluteal muscle, “It’s just one of those things when you’re approaching 40. But I think that’s what’s causing the pain and the cramping in my back. I’ve had them, I’ve had them probably four, five times in 20 years, but it’s, so it’s not an injury, it’s just, what is it? Fatigue? Could still be from the PLAYERS and the cold weather and everything and traveling.”

“I felt it on the chipping green and didn’t get past a 9-iron.”

With no chance of advancing into the weekend after missing two matches for Casey, he also decided to cancel Friday’s match against Oosthuizen. I mean, I can’t go through, so it’s kind of like, there’s no point. I hate to just give a guy a match, and that would be Louis tomorrow. I guess that makes it even, doesn’t it, I’ll give one to Corey, I’ll give one to Alex.”

The point doesn’t help Oosthuizen either, however, who lost his first two matches and is out like Casey, as only the group winner advances to the weekend. So Alex Noren and Corey Conners will make that decision between themselves on Friday. The winner of the match advances, the loser is out.

Categories
European Tour Knowledge Reports

Every Birdie Counts Campaign – European Tour group’s Golf for Good raises £125,000 for UNICEF

The European Tour group’s Golf for Good raised a total of £125,000 for UNICEF through its season-long ‘Every Birdie Counts’ campaign. The campaign, supporting UNICEF’s work as part of the COVAX Facility, raised sufficient funds to help the children’s charity. The did so by delivering 50,000 vaccines to some of the world’s most vulnerable and hardest-to-reach nations.

‘Every Birdie Counts’ is an integral part of the European Tour group’s overarching CSR Programme ‘Golf for Good’ during the 2021 season. Also, it raised a minimum of €1 for UNICEF for every single birdie made during the campaign, with €10 donated for every eagle and €1,000 for every albatross.

DP World Tour Championship boosted up the total.

The season-ending DP World Tour Championship in Dubai gave a significant ‘Birdie Boost’ to those numbers. Then, the European Tour group’s Golf for Good pledged €75 for every birdie made at the final Rolex Series event of the season. This was to mark UNICEF’s milestone 75th anniversary as well as World Children’s Day, which coincided with day three of the prestigious tournament.

There was a total of €77,451 raised prior to the finale at Jumeirah Golf Estates, thanks to 57,641 birdies, 1,681 eagles and three albatrosses across a season which began with January’s Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship.

The DP World Tour Championship, meanwhile, yielded 862 birdies and 19 eagles, raising a total of €66,550 in a brilliant week for Collin Morikawa. Morikawa claimed the title in a dramatic fashion, becoming the first American golfer in the history of the DP World Tour to top the season-long rankings.

The European Tour group’s Golf for Good rounded up the total from approximately £121,250 to £125,000. Of course, the full amount will support UNICEF’s work as part of the COVAX Facility, and its aim of delivering three billion vaccines globally.

Supporting the UNICEF work.

UNICEF is leading the end-to-end supply of vaccines, as well as providing tests and treatments, in low-and middle-income countries. For instance, UNICEF focuses the aim to deliver three billion doses of vaccines in 2021 for frontline health workers, social workers, teachers and those at highest risk.

UNICEF

The commitment of Paul Casey with the cause.

Paul Casey, a 15-time DP World Tour winner and UNICEF USA Supporter, said: “It’s unbelievable what the European Tour group and Golf for Good have done. So much is talked about what we do on the golf course, but I don’t think enough is mentioned about what goes on for every community and country we visit.”

“In this case, it’s the global reach – partnering with UNICEF and £125,000 will go so far in assisting UNICEF’s work as part of the COVAX Facility, rolling out COVID-19 vaccines around the world. I couldn’t be more proud. Things like this make me proud of being part of the DP World Tour.”

“As a father, children are my primary focus when it comes to charity. It was World Children’s Day on Saturday during the final tournament, so I think this is very timely. You have a right as a human being to have access to certain things and children are always the most vulnerable. I tip my cap to all of those involved in getting this off the ground.”

The European Tour shows full support with the most vulnerable.

Keith Pelley, Chief Executive of the European Tour group, said: “We are proud to have partnered with UNICEF in their 75th anniversary year, by supporting their work as part of the COVAX Facility though our ‘Every Birdie Counts’ campaign.”

“As a global tour we committed to supporting communities and worthy causes around the world. Therefore, to that end, this donation is a fitting end to our 2021 Golf for Good campaign. It will provide enough funding to help deliver 50,000 vaccinations to some of the most vulnerable and hardest-to-reach nations on earth.”

“It was also fitting that the ‘Every Birdie Counts’ campaign should finish with such a flourish at an event sponsored by our new tour title partners DP World. They have been supporting UNICEF in the logistics and delivery of the vaccine globally. Our sincerest thanks to UNICEF, DP World and of course all of our players who, through their wonderful golf all season, helped make this happen.”

UNICEF is one step closer to accomplish its mission.

Steven Waugh, Interim Executive Director of the UK Committee for UNICEF said: “If we have learned anything from the coronavirus crisis, it is that our lives are interconnected. COVID-19 does not respect borders. At UNICEF, we know that if we only protect high-income countries, life will not return to normal. If COVID-19 is spreading anywhere, it’s a risk to people everywhere.”

“As part of COVAX, UNICEF is leading the biggest health and logistics operation in history to procure and deliver vaccines. A total of 3 billion vaccines around the world by the end of 2021. In order to achieve this historic mission, we need the help of our supporters and partners.”

“I would like to share my sincere thanks to everyone at the European Tour group, who have helped raised an incredible amount for UNICEF’s work around the world. Your support means that we can help deliver 50,000 vaccinations in low- and middle- income countries around the world.”

Press Release by the European Tour Group Communications Team.

Categories
European Tour

Casey claims Omega Dubai Desert Classic title

Final round report 

Paul Casey stormed to a four-stroke victory at the Omega Dubai Desert Classic, winning his 15th European Tour title at the iconic Emirates Golf Club.

The Englishman started the day one stroke ahead of Scotland’s Robert MacIntyre but increased his advantage to two strokes after birdies on the third and fourth holes.

The 43-year-old finished the front nine in level par after bogeys on the sixth and eighth holes but three consecutive bogeys from the seventh hole ended MacIntyre’s title tilt.

Casey steadied the ship with gains at the 11th and 13th holes and a closing birdie saw him sign for a final round of 70 and a total of 17 under par, finishing four strokes ahead of South African Brandon Stone.

MacIntyre signed for a 12 under par total, two strokes ahead of England’s Laurie Canter and Kalle Samooja of Finland.

The win propels Casey inside the Top 15 of the Official World Golf Ranking for the first time since December 2019 as he joins former and current European Ryder Cup Captains Thomas Bjorn and Padraig Harrington – who finished in a tie for sixth at nine under par alongside Sergio Garcia and Bernd Wiesberger – on 15 European Tour titles.

Casey had this to say about his performance:

Casey: “I’m so over the moon. Not just 15 [victories]. The fact it’s Dubai. It’s an iconic event on The European Tour. You guys all know that. One of the coolest trophies around.

“You know, and kind of the fact that last year, we’re still in the middle of a pandemic, last year was just, you know, like a lot of people, rubbish. I didn’t enjoy last year. This year is still, obviously we’re still difficult times, isn’t it. But yeah, something very cool because it’s not been great. I’ve not enjoyed my golf — I didn’t enjoy my golf in 2020. I mean, I played well one week but that was about it. So this is, yeah, this is really cool.

“It was tough. Didn’t look at scoreboards all day. Got off to a great start. Really only hit one poor shot on the front nine and that was the 7-iron into the 8th I pulled into the bunker. But I walked to the 10th tee and said to Johnny, look, when you can say you’ve only hit one bad golf shot in nine holes, that’s pretty good. And then really only hit one more poor shot on the back nine and that was another 7-iron into the bank on 15.

“I didn’t look at the scoreboards until I got on to the 18th green and then I saw I had a three-shot margin there. It doesn’t really tell the full picture. It was a lot tougher out there.

“And, for the record, playing with Rob today, great player. He’s got a very strong possibility of being on Paddy’s Ryder Cup team come later this year. He was brilliant. So it doesn’t really paint the whole kind of picture.”

(Text: European Tour Press Release)

Categories
Highlights Tours

US Masters 2020: Paul Casey: “It was a glorious day for golf”

US Masters 2020: Paul Casey talks to the media

THE MODERATOR:  Ladies and gentlemen, it’s our pleasure to welcome Paul Casey to the interview room today.  Paul, welcome to the press building.  Paul, you equalled your low round of the fourth round of 2018 here with a 65, and you started 10, you started on No. 10, and with a birdie, and then you followed it with birdies on 13, 15, 16, 6, and you also had the eagle on 2.  Tell us a little bit about what it was like to start the 2020 Masters on No. 10 and build the momentum from there. 

PAUL CASEY:  Let me look at my scorecard.  I don’t see my birdie on 10, but I did birdie 10.  

First, starting on 10 was strange because it’s not the easiest tee shot.  I much prefer starting on 1.  I find 10 a tricky tee shot, but I actually feel fortunate because I feel like if I teed off on time at 7:44, those conditions were pretty tough.  

I was not relishing the challenge ahead waking up in the rain this morning, so I felt like, to be honest, that was a very good break that I capitalized on because it was a glorious day for golf, really, after that.  The guys that had to play a couple of holes this morning, I think they got a little bit of a rough draw but only for two holes. 

It was a great round.  I got through Amen Corner unscathed, and picked one up on 13.  And yeah, it was just very, very solid golf.  And for me the difficult kind of key holes out there, holes like 1 and 5, 7, you have to hit a good tee shot.  

I did the right things when I needed to, and to be honest, you rarely walk off this golf course going, it could have been two or three better, but it kind of felt that way.  I don’t want to be greedy.  I’m very, very happy with my 65. 

[gpalbum id=5487]

Q. Obvious stuff here, Paul, in your 14th appearance, what was the biggest difference?  What was noticeable to you as you were going about, not just the birdies, but everything? 

PAUL CASEY:  You’re talking about this 2020 version of the Masters?  

Q. Pretty much.  

PAUL CASEY:  You know, this is something I’ve looked forward to.  I with as vocal earlier in the year at Harding Park about not enjoying golf in a pandemic.  I’m acutely aware of    I’m in a very fortuitous position.  I still get to be a professional golfer and play championship golf, but I didn’t know how the fanless experience would be.  And so far, I’ve not enjoyed it, and I’ve lacked    I felt like the lack of energy for me.  I’ve had nothing or very little to draw from being out playing tournament golf.  

The Masters, though, this week    it still has a buzz to it.  There’s an energy and a little bit of a vibe.  Yes, it’s clearly a lot less than what we are used to, but there’s something about this place that is still    I felt excited to be here.  

As soon as I stepped foot on property on Monday, I’ve never been to happy to pass a COVID 19 test in my life.  Was genuinely nervous about that.  I don’t know why I was nervous because my protocols haven’t changed.  The kids were denied from going out on play dates last week.  Can’t go on play dates.  Dad’s got to go to the Masters next week.  

You know, the beauty of the place is probably even more so this week.  I’ve been fortunate to play this golf course outside of tournament week, and it’s quite a special experience this week.  

Q. Where do you think the buzz comes from? 

PAUL CASEY:  I guess the history.  I mean, the golf course itself is part of it.  The history of this championship, this tournament.  So many people like myself are just excited to play this.  You know, this is a treat.  It always has been and always will be a real treat.  There’s many great golfers who are not here this week because they are not high enough in the rankings or how they didn’t qualify, and they are envious of every single player in the field.  

So for me, it’s not lost on me.  

Q. When you see, you look at the leaderboard, you probably haven’t had a whole lot of time to look and see how everybody else is playing, you see familiar names up here at this tournament that are kind of up there toward the top year after year after year.  Is there absolutely no surprise to see Westy’s name up there or Woods’s name up there? 

PAUL CASEY:  Zero surprise to see Westy.  He’s so good.  He continues to be world class.  He knows this place better than I do.  Very few guys know it better than I do, but he’s one of them.  

No, it’s no surprise.  I love the fact Paul Tesori was talking    he was talking Webb    he wasn’t talking Webb down, but he’s just like, “There’s no way for my man Webb to compete.”  I think Webb might have played a practice round with Dustin and some other guys, and he’s just seen    obviously Webb’s approach or style of golf is very different to a lot of the guys talked about this week, and there he is, 5 under.  

So what does Paul Tesori know about Webb Simpson.  

No surprise.  Matsuyama, Oosty, this golf course, look, some would say it’s the same old kind of names up there, but this golf course, to me, exposes what a guy has got.  I’m not saying it’s the ultimate test.  There are different types of tests of golf around the world, but this particular test you have to do certain things very, very well, and predominately the best players in the world always rise to the top this week.  

Q. Is there anything special that you have worked with your coach on that has allowed you to play so well in the majors this year?  

PAUL CASEY:  No.  No.  I actually had not seen Peter Kostis for quite a while in the summer.  He was up in Maine, and I was in Arizona, and we didn’t cross paths.  We tried to do a lot of work remotely, which wasn’t massively productive.  And I actually wasn’t swinging it very well through the vast majority of this season.  Since getting back, and all the way through to the last few weeks, poor performances in Vegas and California, and it was like a crash course the last two weeks.  

The last two weeks, I spent a lot of time actually on tempo.  Tempo, big turn, tried to hit the ball maybe a little bit harder than normal, and that was really it.  So the tempo was the big thing, that worked all the way through the game, because the tempo wasn’t the same with the driving and with the putting, and normally for me it is.  

For me, the putting and the chipping, I was a little slow.  Maybe a little quick on some of the irons.  So it was all just trying to get things matched up, and it seems to have kind of paid dividends the last two weeks. 

Q. Following up on that, it was mentioned in the broadcast that you are working with Peter on trying to chase some distance.  How is that going, and what was the impetus to do so? 

PAUL CASEY:  It was more so, rather than anything we’ve been seeing recently with certain players, it was more I hadn’t seen Peter through the summer, and he came back and goes, “You’re not hitting it as hard as you normally do.”  He goes, “You’re hitting it poorly because you’re trying not to make mistakes, you’re trying not to make errors.  I need you to make a bigger turn and smash it like you normally do.”  

I was like, “Are we chasing distance here?”  

He goes, “No, I just want you to hit it like you normally do.  You have plenty of length, speed in there.”  He goes, “Well, why don’t you actually    you know, why don’t you push it a little bit, kind of hit some a little harder, and hopefully you’ll fall back into your regular kind of tempo and regular speed.”  

So it was less about chasing distance.  I’m not    look, I’m not    I’m 43.  I stuck a couple on Instagram last week, a couple of 184 ball speeds.  I think I got one up to 190, which is pretty good for me.  I tend not to talk about it.  I don’t think I can    no, I’m not going to talk about chasing distance.  I just need to hit    guys who play with me know that there’s plenty of length there.  

Q. What was the difference between this year and last year, other than 16 strokes? 

PAUL CASEY:  The first round?  

Q. Yeah.  

PAUL CASEY:  I have no idea.  I don’t know.  Just rubbish.  But I played some decent golf in 2019 overall.  Just not the first round of the Masters.  I don’t know why it was rubbish.  

Q. Speak to us, to the media (indiscernible) dinner, so maybe it was that. 

PAUL CASEY:  Maybe it was that.  Yeah, that’s right.  Nothing was different.  It wasn’t any extra glass of red wine or anything like that.  In fact, I’ve not had a glass of red wine this week.  Maybe that was it.  I don’t know.  

I’m not blaming anybody.  I take full responsibility.  It was rubbish.  As many rounds of golf as I’ve    14 appearances, Doug said.  It’s just one of those things. 

Q. Would you tell us about the conditions out there today, and how much do you feel the softness of the greens contributed to the low scoring? 

PAUL CASEY:  It did.  It’s not just the softness of the greens, it’s the little bit of    some guys have mentioned it, there’s a little bit of bermuda still in there.  So the bermuda has a twofold effect.  One, the greens are very receptive coming in, and there was a shot I hit on No. 2, a 6 iron to that left hand pin that you can’t hit that shot in April.  It was just left of the flag.  It pitched and stopped instantly, and that shot in April would have one hopped over into the Patrons, and probably would have walked off with a 5 instead of a 3. 

So it’s that receptiveness and you can be aggressive with the approach shots, and obviously the putts are not as quick as well.  So there are certain    I hit a couple of shots today, one on 14, I didn’t capitalize on the good shot in, but again that would have released down and finished in the middle of the green instead of staying next to the left hand pin.  

Yeah, receptiveness and speed, but it’s not just the rain.  It’s the bermuda, but that also changes    I haven’t quite figured it out yet; do we have to read a bit more grain than normal?  It’s just different.  Just a different challenge.  It’s still very much the Masters and Augusta National, but just a little different.  

So the guys that know, the guys that don’t know, this is going to be great.  The guys whose first Masters, Jason Kokrak and everyone else, and they will be back, hopefully back in April, they are going to have a rude awakening for how    this golf course is still very, very difficult, but April is just a different difficult and it could be quite funny. 

Q. Did it feel longer out there today? 

PAUL CASEY:  Certain holes, I think I got lucky with the wind.  Certain holes like 8, they kicked up straight into us and made 8 play very long.  Some other holes, like 2, it was downwind.  2 played short.  10 was short.  11 was short, which was nice, because if it turns around on 11 it’s a beast.  It wasn’t too bad.  I think that was just luck of the draw with the wind.  

Q. Have you ever played a round here where you had balls that plugged in greens, and then it seemed as the day wore on, they stopped plugging and started spinning back.  Is it going to be harder from now on in the afternoon than it was maybe when you all went through that stretch? 

PAUL CASEY:  I’m not sure.  To answer your first part, I’m not sure I’ve played a round where I’ve seen balls make such an impression.  Yeah, I don’t think I have.  And that’s amazing amount of    again, grass types and all the rest of it, it just feels very humid out here.  It’s the humidity, ignoring the rain we’ve had fall, there’s just a humidity to this time of year I’ve never experienced because I’ve never been here at this time of year, sticky like it is at East Lake in September or something like that.  

Yeah, it’s a good point you raised.  I saw Tony Finau in our group on the first land the ball 10, 12 feet short of the flag on the first, which is a pretty decent way, I don’t know what the pin is today on the first, it’s 15 or 18 on on the left, and he spun it back into the bunker on a good looking wedge shot.  It poses a very different challenge from what we are used to. 

Yes, maybe that change in condition is going to be difficult for the guys this afternoon.  For me the biggest thing is the greens are just going to have    they are just going to grow a little bit so the speed is not going to be there.  They are perfect, when they are mowed in the morning, they are absolutely perfect.  They are just going to get a little more chewed up in the afternoons. 

Q. Would you walk us through your thinking in how you played 13 and 15.  

PAUL CASEY:  13 for me, I played sort of straight down the hole, so to speak.  There’s a couple of tree trunks that I aim and I try to not run out on the fairway, which I did today.  So for me it’s a 3 wood.  I don’t know the yardage.  

I hit a very good tee shot today, and it unfortunately was just a yard through the fairway into the first cut and leave myself    if I hit a good tee shot, it will be 200 and change to the front, typically, which is exactly what I had today.  Left myself a 5 iron today out of that first cut and hit a glorious shot to 15 feet and 2 putted.  

But that’s the way I will play it all week, unless the wind changes, in which case the club will change, but the style, the way of playing the hole remains the same.  

Sorry, what was the second part of the question?  13?  

Q. 13 and 15.  

PAUL CASEY:  15 to me is bombs away.  I smash it.  I have a small little tree picked out in the distance which is probably all the way up on the 5th somewhere, but that’s where I’m looking because I can see the grouping of trees on the left, so I know where to position it and just don’t go too far left.  

I hit a perfect drive today.  Left myself 210 or something like that, 205, 210.  Maybe a bit more.  I hit a 6 iron to seven feet and missed it comfortably.  That’s the way, again, I’ll play it all week.  

For me, it’s funny, 13 is conservative off the tee and aggressive with a second shot, and 15 is aggressive off the tee and then kind of conservative with the second shot, so they are kind of flipped.  If I mess up the tee shot on 15, I still have an opportunity for birdie to knock it down and wedge it in and I’ll always knock it down there and wedge it in.  And I’ll always knock it down the left side if I have to lay it up so I have got more pitch of the green to hold the ball.  

But that’s the way, yeah, conservative off the tee on 13, and aggressive off the tee on 15.  

THE MODERATOR:  Thank you very much.  We appreciate your time and best of luck the rest of the tournament.  

Categories
Professionals

PGA Tour: Paul Casey Talks Pace of Play and The American Express

PGA Tour professional Paul Casey speaks with the media prior to the start of the American Express about hot topics including pace of play and the passing of Pete Dye.

Paul Casey Previews The American Express after strong open to the 2020 PGA Tour Season

THE MODERATOR: Please welcome Paul Casey to the media center. Paul, welcome back to the American Express. This will be your fourth start here in Palm Springs. How are you feeling to be back?

PAUL CASEY: I feel really good. Yeah, it’s, I love the desert. As you know, I live in the desert not this — well, it’s kind of just down the road, Phoenix. So when was the last time I was here? Was it 2016? Yeah, know. Somebody will know.

THE MODERATOR: 2017.

PAUL CASEY: 2017. Thank you. It’s really good to be back. Season’s already got going. I was in Maui a couple of weeks ago. So game feels good, course looks amazing, condition of it is absolutely perfect. I’ve just played the Stadium Course. And yeah, happy to be here. Got good friends at American Express, so the whole thing is, there’s lots of reasons for being here.

THE MODERATOR: You’ve had a strong start this season with two finishes in the top-20. Is something different working for your game?

PAUL CASEY: No, I feel like my season didn’t really stop because I played all the way through. I had a lot of international commitment. I played the Australian Open, about the first, first or second week in December. So really my off-season’s been very, very short and I feel like I’ve just kind of continued, continued my year, not really stopped, which is a bit strange, but I’m actually fine about it. It’s kind of, I feel like my game is probably, although my results in Maui wasn’t great, for what I was looking for, I feel like the game’s in a really good place. And normally this time of year I would still be trying to get going and learning where my game is at, but I feel like my game’s in a good position, so the lack of off-season, if anything, is probably going to put me in a good position.

THE MODERATOR: Nice. Questions for Paul.

Paul Casey on Pace of Play

Q. Having been on the PAC, have you been part of a decision-making process? Can you talk about the new policy that got revealed?
PAUL CASEY: How did I guess you were going to ask that? Sorry, what was the question?

Q. Thoughts on the new policy.
PAUL CASEY: With all honesty, I need to read it again before I answer, because, yes, I sat in that room and the last time I thoroughly discussed it, I believe was Medinah and we agreed on exactly what was going to be implemented and then it was passed off to the policy board and all the rest of it. I need to refresh myself before I say something where I’m not — because I’m not exactly sure of exactly what it says. I should probably know because it goes into effect.

Q. April.
PAUL CASEY: April. So I’ve got time. There you go. Whew. Thank you for answering my questions. I mean, I sort of know it, but I don’t want to regurgitate something and look foolish.

Q. I know you understand the basics of it, and I guess the idea is they’re going from focusing on the group to focusing more on individuals and maybe changing habits.
PAUL CASEY: Yes.

Q. I guess one of the priorities of the policy is to make sure people, that maybe habitually slow players understand they’re slow, and they’re giving opportunities to improve that. Do you think that can happen?
PAUL CASEY: I hope it can happen, because as we all agreed when we discussed this, we’re not looking for a — I guess there’s two or three things that we’re looking for, that we felt that we were looking for, this is from the players’ point of view. One was we’re not looking for a massive change in — we can’t get around these golf courses that quick. It’s just very difficult to walk some of these golf courses in the time we’re meant to, this time-par thing always frustrates the players a little bit. But we need to speed up. But it’s not a massive change. We’re just looking for sort of 10 minutes here or 15 minutes there, ideally is what we’re looking for. We’re looking for guys to take responsibility, because hitting a standard golf shot and taking two, two and a half minutes to play it is not acceptable. So taking ownership of that responsibility, however you want to phrase it, that’s all about education. And then the perception, then, drastically changes if you do those two things, which are fairly straightforward, fairly painless games, to be honest. And that’s basically all it is, from our point of view. There’s more to it, obviously, the policy. But that was our feeling. It’s just, it should be a fairly simple thing to fix, so hopefully this fixes it.

Q. How big a problem has it become and is it a bigger problem now than it might have been five, 10 years ago?
PAUL CASEY: What, pace of play? It’s been a problem since I’ve played golf. I’m 42 and it’s all we ever talked about. It seems like it becomes — I don’t know — it seems like it becomes more of a problem. It seems like, seems to be a little bit of a trend that players are becoming — they’re not becoming slower. When they come out on TOUR they seem to be a little bit slower than the previous generation, it seems. But that’s our fault, again, because you, a lot of the players who come out, you watch your peers, you watch your heroes and your stars on TV, the guys you want to emulate and you go, Well, he’s taking a long time to read the putt and that’s what I need to do. So we have to take responsibility for that, that maybe we affected, not say we, and I don’t consider myself a slow player, but we’ve all got to take responsibility, that we have affected the next generation that are coming through. But, no, it’s always been an issue, hasn’t it?

Q. To change gears away from slow play. I’m assuming you took up European Tour membership this year with the Ryder Cup?
PAUL CASEY: I think I did. I got a money clip. That came through the post, so I’ll take that as a yes.

Q. How hard is it to balance the two schedules, particularly this time of year when the lucrative events are going on in the Middle East?
PAUL CASEY: Define lucrative.

Q. A Rolex series event.
PAUL CASEY: Oh, yes, one of them is. It doesn’t seem to get any easier. I notice now that, again, I need to brush up on what I’ve read, but I believe there might be a case of, for guys who play both the Olympics and the Ryder Cup, that they only get to count those two events as only one towards the European Tour, however you want to put that, as they only get to count one basically instead of counting two. You might want to check that one. So I look at things like that and I, go that makes it even tougher. You’re penalizing the best players again. And if that is a rule that I read correctly, then I’m not a fan of that because I would like to be in both of those. Yeah, it doesn’t get any easier, because those are my two, two of my biggest goals this year, playing Olympics and playing Ryder Cup. And but I’ve got, but — you know FedExCup’s right at the top of the list, as well, and Majors and everything else. How do you balance it? How do you weigh it all out? I don’t know. I’ve been doing it 20 years and I still haven’t figured it out. Having bigger events, the Rolex series has been phenomenal, and I’ll give Pelley massive credit there. He’s put a lot of money into players’ pockets on the European Tour, and it does make it difficult to miss events like that. Because I also think, if I’m not wrong, that any event opposite a Rolex series event, my World Ranking points don’t counts towards qualifications for a Ryder Cup. Again — you can’t write out facial expressions, can you (laughing)?

Q. With Pete Dye passing away last week, what were your experiences on his golf courses and what did you think of his impact on architecture?
PAUL CASEY: Yeah, I was saddened by that because, for me, Pete Dye has been the best modern architect. Yeah, the greatest. A lot of names are thrown into the ring, thrown into the hat, but Pete Dye was just an absolute genius. And the way I back that up, because nobody, one of the great things in our sport that I always, when I play a great golf hole, indecision is always one of those things which — I love indecision. If an architect or a golf hole can create indecision, and usually it’s the simplest holes, 12 at Augusta, for example, creates massive indecision, such a simple golf hole. And Pete Dye was able to do it time and time again. Predominantly visually, that’s how he would do it. He would give most of us kittens, as we would stand on the tee and look down there and not see a fairway or incredibly intimidating, and then we would get down there and you suddenly see he was very generous and accommodating, and those tricks he would play and those mind games, and the indecision that he would create to the player, all players of all standards in their ability to do that, an absolute genius. The Arizona State golf course, which sadly is now just been dug up, but Karsten was a Pete Dye golf course and that was really my first exposure to it. Not having ever played one of his courses obviously growing up in the U.K. And instantly I thought — yeah, he was diabolical, there were some golf holes on that thing we wanted to blow up, but I loved it. So, yeah, sad, because, yeah, in my question, just brilliant stuff, just genius golf course design. It’s because there’s always flavors of the month or flavors of the decade, but he was the one. Brilliant stuff.

THE MODERATOR: All right. Good luck this week.

PAUL CASEY: Thanks.

La Quinta, California

January, 14, 2020

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports