Pebble Beach is a simply unforgettable course. Before I joined the Champions Tour, I played the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro Am there twenty-two years in a row. Its beauty is unsurpassed and it doesn’t matter how well or poorly I’ve been playing, I always get excited at the thought of returning. I’ve won at Pebble Beach five times, which gives a pretty good indication of how much I enjoy playing there.
I’ve always enjoyed travelling overseas as a professional golfer – I realized early on that golf is a global game and playing around the world certainly helped me develop as a player. The different grasses, the different weather – playing in those kinds of conditions really helped me become much more creative with my shot-making. I always thought that’s the reason why the European players did so well at the Masters. The short game thought process comes into play more often at Augusta – another of my favourites – than at any other course I can think of. In Europe, the weather can sometimes get difficult – downright nasty at times – which tests players both mentally and physically. The Europeans were prepared. I came to enjoy the rough weather – and tough links courses especially. I reckoned that half the field was already eliminated and I love it when courses are playing really challenging.
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