Bowditch Ready to Defend First Title


Steven Bowditch wasn't exactly on fire in the final round of last year's Valero Texas Open. But, after starting with rounds of 69, 67 and 68 to take a three-stroke lead into Sunday, the Aussie still managed to eke out a one-shot victory despite a closing 4-over 76 on the tough Oaks course at TPC San Antonio.

That was the highest final-round score by a Tour winner since Vijay Singh carded a 4-over 76 in the 2004 PGA Championship, and the highest in a non-major since Fred Couples had a 5-over 77 at the 1983 Kemper Open.

But a win is a win, and the 31-year-old Bowditch, now a resident of Dallas, got his maiden title after edging Will MacKenzie and Daniel Summerhays.

On Wednesday, when asked how the Greg Norman-designed layout will play this year, the defending champion told reporters, "I'll know more after I get out in the pro-am today. The golf course just doesn't give you too much, there's no let up out there. Every hole - you can make a birdie, hit a good shot.

"But every hole is a bogey and double, all around. Just finer points, ball running off the green, the rough is sticky around the greens, it can be hard to get it up and down. So I would probably say under and over probably be about 10 under, pretty similar this year."

Bowditch hasn't played particularly well this year. After earning $1,734,693 and finishing 59th in the FedEx Cup standings in 2014, in 11 events so far he's made five cuts, with his best finish a runner-up at the Frys.com Open last October.

"Just trying to get some good vibes back in the game," he said. "The results of late haven't been great, but, in saying that, they weren't real great coming into last year."

The victory turned Bowditch's career around, giving the former journeyman a two-year PGA Tour exemption and all the perks of a season winner. He's enjoyed the ride the past year. "It's obviously a wonderful experience to be able to come back. This is the first time defending a PGA Tour event. It's a great experience and a great feeling."

Bowditch will be paired in the first two rounds with Jason Dufner and Derek Ernst. Here's what else the native of Newcastle, New South Wales, had to say to the media on the eve of the Valero Texas Open.

MODERATOR: Well, we'd like to welcome Steven Bowditch, our 2014 Valero Texas Open winner. Steven, maybe you can get us started before we open up for some questions. Just talk about the experience over the last year, being a tournament winner for the first time and coming back here as the defending champ.

STEVEN BOWDITCH: Yeah, it's obviously a wonderful experience to be able to come back. This is the first time defending a PGA Tour event. It's a great experience and a great feeling. Just trying to get some good vibes back in the game special spirit. It's good.

MODERATOR: How is your game coming in here now?

STEVEN BOWDITCH: It's not too bad. The results of late haven't been great. But in saying that they weren't real great coming into last year. So all in all it's another week. The course is in magnificent condition again. And just love being here. The whole resort, everything about it. It's just a great feeling.

Q. Steven, one of the things you kind of battled through last year, and I know this happens a lot on the PGA Tour, is the pace of play. But it seemed like we were getting a lot of slow play warnings. It might have happened in your group in the last round. What is it about this place, is it more so here than anywhere else you play? And how was that struggle last year with trying to get through with a rules official telling you to hurry up?

STEVEN BOWDITCH: You deal with it a lot out here. It's not any different this week to other weeks. Some go fast, some go slow. You learn to adapt to the situation. I think this course a little bit more so with every hole seems to be some sort of trouble out there. An errant tee shot nearly on every hole, it can really slow up the field in general. So it's just one of those places, too, the wind, the way the greens set up. The greens are so fast and so complex that you just sort of need to take a little more time in that respect, too. So it's just, I guess, a gathering of little things, little increments that slow things down.

Q. Steven, how did winning here last year change your life? I know you probably played in a lot more tournaments now. Do you get more recognized? How has it changed your life?

STEVEN BOWDITCH: It hasn't really changed much, in those regards. My schedule is pretty much the same. I've been lucky to play a couple of majors and that type of thing. All in all nothing has really changed. I guess I do get recognized a little bit more, but I can still pretty much fly under the radar.

Q. You look like you've slimmed down a little bit, lost some weight. Did you do anything during off season?

STEVEN BOWDITCH: Just bigger clothes (laughter.) Yeah, I've changed a little bit. I hired a trainer, a personal trainer, and he's able to come with me full time. So that's been a life change at the moment. I'm still going through those things. I just didn't - I felt like I was just getting older and the body wasn't holding up as well as it had been in the past. So I felt like it was maybe time for a change. Over that 30 mark, what they say, and I definitely started feeling it.

Q. You talked about the course being in great shape. There was some recent rains here, do you see any effect from that at all?

STEVEN BOWDITCH: Not so much. I mean maybe the fairways are a little more softer or forgiving, if that's what you want to call it. There's good and bad things to that. It tends to make the golf course fraction water, because the ball doesn't run out on the same lines. But it makes it longer, too. I think it's playing a little tougher this year already, just because the greens are a little firmer. The ball is not going as far and especially with the weather coming for the first couple of days, anyway, it's going to cool right down, so that will make it even longer. I think all in all the scoring, depending on the wind I think the scoring will pretty much be similar. But the greens being so perfect to putt on, if you get your putter rolling, you might come from anywhere.

Q. I was going to ask you, I guess having won here last year, your expectations are high.

STEVEN BOWDITCH: A little bit, I guess, it's just like, you know, in growing up you sort of learn to win in your field or in your placing, in your golf life, so to speak, at every level. And it was nice to be out here for a while and be able to do that, to be able to win at every level. I've sort of competed and grown up. And I guess the expectation does rise a little bit inside yourself.

I slid inside the top 100 in the world thousand. If I can gradually just keep getting better and keep my expectation rising - reset goals and all that kind of stuff hopefully I can keep getting better and learn to - I think my next sort of step forward in my career is to compete more often. I haven't had many top 10 places. A good week normally for me is sort of a top 20, top 25, in recent times. So try and get those good weeks in the top 10's rather than top 25's, I think that's sort of my next step. The once or twice a year when I do get everything together hopefully I can win again.

Q. You were able to win last year with a pretty high score your final round. Have you given any thought to what it's going to take to win this year? I know every tournament is different, every year is different, any thought to that what it will take this year?

STEVEN BOWDITCH: Not necessarily. I'll know more after I get out in the pro-am today. The golf course just doesn't give you too much, there's no let up out there. Every hole - you can make a birdie, hit a good shot. But every hole as a bogey and double, all around. Just finer points, ball running off the green, the rough is sticky around the greens, it can be hard to get it up and down. So I would probably say under and over probably be about 10 under, pretty similar this year.

Q. After you won last year did you put more pressure on yourself internally and try to be too perfect or more fine with your shots?

STEVEN BOWDITCH: No, I only went the other way. I feel like the pressure come off my shoulders a little bit. And that was something that I'm really now starting to learn and deal with it and adapt to. I've always been one to - I'm always struggling or I'm always, you know, just short of keeping my card, keeping my status, keeping my job. And now this last year has been really - I don't have those worries. So to be able to learn to put pressure on myself again, get the drive in myself again to compete when my life is not on the line, it's a different experience. It's a great learning experience for me.

Q. Can you talk about what it's like playing in the state of Texas, whether it's here at the Valero Texas Open or next week for the Shell Houston Open?

STEVEN BOWDITCH: It's great. I live in Dallas. I've been here for 10 years now. I love playing in Texas. The weather and the golf courses are very similar to where I grew up. The towns are great. The people, Texans in general are some of the nicest in the country, I think, most welcoming. It's a great spot.

Q. You guys played in the Masters last year because of this tournament. Did this turn out to be a really good place to prep for the Masters just two weeks down the road, because it's such a difficult test, and it has a different look than Augusta, obviously, most places do have a different look?

STEVEN BOWDITCH: Yeah, you can kind of - you can kind of see what this golf tournament is developing into. It's definitely going to be, I believe, with the course setup and the way these greens are getting better and better every year, they're borderline perfection right now, which is - it's a great prep week for all the guys down to Augusta. You can just tell by this field, I think there's 13 of the top 30 in the world here, this week, is that they also want to go down there a little earlier to prep, Saturday and Sunday next week, this is the perfect spot to bring their families here. It's just a great place with the greens - preparing for Augusta, this place, I don't think, doesn't get any better in the way of the green complexity and the speed and the firmness that these greens have.

Q. I don't know how well you know Jordan Spieth from Dallas, obviously. Is it kind of shocking how fast he's risen in this game and what he's done already?

STEVEN BOWDITCH: Shocking? I wouldn't call it shocking. He's a superstar. He's a great golfer. He's strong in every aspect of his game. And obviously he's a force to be reckoned with for the next 20 odd years. There's no doubt in anyone's mind or on paper or visually or sound wise, when you sit there and listen, he's got every aspect of the game to be great for a long time. And he's a great kid.

Q. It may not be shocking is the right word, but when you look at the golf swing, there's certain rough spots, footwork and other things. In looking at that swing, is it maybe a little bit more surprising that the guy is on the level that he is on?

STEVEN BOWDITCH: No, not really. If you actually break down his golf swing it's really, really good, what I believe in a golf swing, anyway. Club face control. He's got one of the best club face controls I believe out there. And you can look like a guy like Jim Furyk who to the naked eye, that golf swing doesn't look the prettiest, but when you break it down to club face control, again, it's amazing. When you can control your club face, that's the ultimate thing that hits the golf ball. He's ahead of the game.

MODERATOR: Thank, you Steven. Appreciate it.

STEVEN BOWDITCH: Thank you.

The transcript for the above interview is courtesy of ASAP Sports.