What they said: Wednesday at The Open

The best quotes from Wednesday as the first round approaches

Tom Watson
Tom Watson is playing in his last Major Championship at The Open
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Some of the best quotes from Wednesday at The Open Championship, including comment from Jordan Spieth, Henrik Stenson, Peter Dawson and Tom Watson

Below, we look at some of the best quotes from Wednesday at The Open Championship, including comment from Jordan Spieth, Henrik Stenson, Peter Dawson and Tom Watson.

Jordan Spieth:

- "I don't think there's anything more special in golf than playing an Open Championship at the Home of Golf." - "All in all, I'm extremely excited. It would mean the world to me to try and win this championship and to do it here would be even more special." - "We come over here because we want to embrace the opportunity of handling these conditions. If we wanted good weather we'd go and play in California." - "I don't think that anything should change about a person based on their success and what they do, whatever it is. Why should my entire personality change?"

Henrik Stenson:

- "It's a treat playing The Open Championship to start with, and to do it here in St Andrews just makes in twice as good. I had a great time in 2010 and if you enjoy yourself you've got a better chance of playing well. It might be my last Open at St Andrews so I might as well enjoy it, right?" - "Luck is definitely a factor. I think every time you're inside the top 10 in a golf tournament, you're probably playing good enough to win. That's how tight professional golf is right now." - "I would go to sleep fairly happy even if I didn't win a major. If I look at the big picture, how much I've managed to achieve coming from a little junior in Sweden, dreaming about playing golf worldwide and competing in big events, I think I've come a very long way."

Related: outsiders for The Open

Tom Watson:

- "The Open has defined my career, and there is a certain sense of melancholy. You can sense that. The regret that it's over. It's a little bit like a death. But what tempers that very much are the memories and the people I've met a long the way. There's just a lot of good memories about all of this. But it's time. It's time." - "I hope people say I did the right thing. I hope that people understand how passionate I was for the game, how I gave it 100 per cent, and I don't go blowing my own horn. I hope they understand I've helped some people along the way. That's how I want to be remembered." - "People have asked me this week about how I'm going to feel. I don't know how I'm going to feel. We've got a few housefuls of people coming over for my last Open. It's going to be wonderful having them around, and we'll have a big party on Friday night. I just hope that's in between the four rounds that I play."

Peter Dawson:

- "I don't think there's a one-size-fits-all approach to golf participation. There's no one all-embracing solution." - [On stepping down as R&A Chief Executive] "Perhaps the thing I'm most proud of is the way the team of people at The R&A has developed as we've gone. It's much bigger, more professional, if that's the right word. Will it be emotional? Not sure yet. I'm a bit too busy at the moment!" - "It's borderline absurd actually that to think that an event in just four days of the year is going to make a masssive difference to participation. If it was all year I might listen to the argument rather more."

 

 

 

Nick Bonfield
Features Editor

Nick Bonfield joined Golf Monthly in 2012 after graduating from Exeter University and earning an NCTJ-accredited journalism diploma from News Associates in Wimbledon. He is responsible for managing production of the magazine, sub-editing, writing, commissioning and coordinating all features across print and online. Most of his online work is opinion-based and typically centres around the Majors and significant events in the global golfing calendar. Nick has been an avid golf fan since the age of ten and became obsessed with the professional game after watching Mike Weir and Shaun Micheel win The Masters and PGA Championship respectively in 2003. In his time with Golf Monthly, he's interviewed the likes of Rory McIlroy, Justin Rose, Jose Maria Olazabal, Henrik Stenson, Padraig Harrington, Lee Westwood and Billy Horschel and has ghost-written columns for Westwood, Wayne Riley, Matthew Southgate, Chris Wood and Eddie Pepperell. Nick is a 12-handicap golfer and his favourite courses include Old Head, Sunningdale New, Penha Longha, Valderrama and Bearwood Lakes. If you have a feature pitch for Nick, please email nick.bonfield@futurenet.com with 'Pitch' in the subject line. Nick is currently playing: Driver: TaylorMade M1 Fairway wood: TaylorMade RBZ Stage 2 Hybrid: Ping Crossover Irons (4-9): Nike Vapor Speed Wedges: Cleveland CBX Full Face, 56˚, Titleist Vokey SM4, 60˚ Putter: testing in progress! Ball: TaylorMade TP5x