Brendan Jones Talks: 2009 US PGA
US PGA Tour | 2009 US PGA Championship | Round Two | 15 Aug 2009
Australia’s Brendan Jones shot a second round of 2-under 70 to move up fourteen places to T3 early on day two of the 2009 US PGA Championship. Jones, who hails from Canberra, spends most of the year playing the lucrative Japan Tour, where he has enjoyed considerable success in recent years.
Q: Talk about your round and of course the eagle.
Brendan Jones: Well, today just felt like I did everything pretty easily. You know, you don’t get these days too often and I just felt really comfortable. I had a perfect pairing, Steve Marino and Soren Kjeldsen. I’ve played with both those guys before. I felt really comfortable out there. I wasn’t thinking it was a major championship. I just went out and played and my whole game was pretty solid.
Never felt like I was going to make a bogey and made a good save there on 18. I’m a lot happier than I would have been if I had bogeyed the last but I’m happy to stand here 3-under.
Q: Could you talk about the problem with the wind and when it started out?
Brendan Jones: The wind early on this morning, it was pretty much the same direction it was yesterday for us. And just gradually through the day it just strengthened.
But I tend to think that a little bit of wind around here would probably make this course easier for some reason. Have to use the wind a little bit more and the way it is, it’s only a couple of holes that play into the wind, 12, 1, just holes that if you can get away with pars there then you set yourself up.
And for me I was just trying not to do anything silly out there. And I’ve heard the more experienced players say that this is a game of patience out there.
And this time last year I blew out in the second round and lost my mind and missed it by one. I’m a golfer and I’m learning, which golfers don’t tend to do that much. But I feel comfortable.
Q: Were you finding yourself using the wind on some holes to your advantage?
Brendan Jones: I found it a little hard on these on No. 9 and 18. I’m not a fan of the left-to-right wind. I don’t like to draw my driver. And I missed it right on both of those holes. But you’ve got to use the wind. When it’s there you’ve got to use it as best you can, and there’s no point fighting it because it’s going to beat you.
And I think I’ll manage my game quite good.
Q: Will you be able to avoid it being a major championship?
Brendan Jones: Probably not. I’ve got to be honest. It’s just fun to be able to come to America again and put a couple of good scores together.
Q: (Question about now that you’re on top)?
Brendan Jones: I played full time here in ’05 and ’06 and found it stressful and I wore myself out early each year, and really struggled. But my life is very balanced and I’m very happy with my life. And playing in Japan I’m very, very happy and by playing well there I get into these bigger events. My life’s pretty good right now.
Q: When helped you find that better balance?
Brendan Jones: When I started my professional career in Japan. When I came over here, for some reason I just found it a very stressful place. You’re playing for ridiculous money each week and everyone’s looking at the 125 and top 40s and top 60s and whatever.
But when I went back to Japan, I’ve played great there the last few years and I’m just very, very relaxed. I speak a little Japanese, not much. And the cameras aren’t on you all the time. You just go about your day-to-day life and just go out and play golf.
And that’s really what I like about it. I live in Australia, commute to Japan six to seven times a year and just enjoy being home with my young family.
Q: Do you want to try it again here?
Brendan Jones: To be honest, I wouldn’t want to come back and play full time. You never say never. But I’m just really happy where I am in the world of golf. And I’m not someone that beats holes every day. When I’m not playing I just get away from golf totally.
And I think if I was to come back here I’d have to work on my game a lot more and it hasn’t worked for me in the past.
I’m very, very happy with how I live my life and where I am in the golfing world.
Q: What do you do off the course? What are the other things in your life that give you that balance?
Brendan Jones: My little boy is two now. So when I’m home I look after him, give my wife a bit of a break. I like to get out in the garden. Just catch up with people that I don’t see because I’m away 22 weeks of the year.
But having a two-year-old, you certainly run out of time quickly.
Q: And how will you maintain this relaxed attitude tomorrow?
Brendan Jones: Well, I’ve just got to keep telling myself that I’ve got this far doing what I’ve been doing. And there’s no reason — it’s a the third round of a major and obviously I’ve never been there before, but I’ve just got to go and do my thing. People aren’t expecting me to hang on in there, I guess. But I’ve really got nothing to lose. I’m going to be playing with one of the best players in the world regardless of who it is.
But also I think the Tiger experience earlier in the year, the match play, like that was a pretty big deal for me having four months off and then having a week to prepare to play Tiger.
That was pretty daunting. But I know that when my game is good I can compete. But time will tell how I fare over the next 36 holes.
Q: Is the wind one of the reasons you feel like it was kind of an easy day for you?
Brendan Jones: Pretty much. I grew up on the south coast in New South Wales and it’s very, very windy there. And I’ve grown up in the wind and most of the time I feel pretty comfortable in the wind. And the harder it gets, I pride myself on toughing it out in tough conditions.
Q: If you have a terrific showing here and maybe even win, you’d be content to go back to Japan and to your simple life?
Brendan Jones: Major champion playing in a Japanese tour would be pretty good for Japanese golf, I guess. But I’m not getting too carried away. It’s been two good days. And I’m confident of putting in another good performance on the weekend.
But I’m not going to stand here and say that I’ll definitely come and play here. As I said, my life’s at a good point now and I’m happy playing the Japanese tour. Maybe if I was to win this tournament it would probably be a little bit more of the spotlight on me. But now I’m just having fun.
Source – PGA America
