Alfred Dunhill Links Championship Saturday, September 29, 2019 – Richie Ramsay – finished tied for 10th
Q. Big smile on your face coming off 18?
RICHIE RAMSAY: Yeah, it was great. Obviously walking down 18 at St Andrews here is a brilliant feeling. Luckily I had perfect yardage. I thought it was in — started spinning back to the hole and I thought, that’s going in and it stopped a couple feet short. But it was a great way to finish, especially when there’s a little bit of a logjam at the top of the leaderboard. That just gives me a few more points and a bit more money in the bag, which is important for Race to Dubai because that’s my target.
Q. Moves you up five places, so every little bit helps, doesn’t it?
RICHIE RAMSAY: Yeah, when it comes down to it, I’m sure that final event, Race to Dubai, it will be very tight with the guys around 50. I’ve got to just try to make sure I get in around Turkey and Nedbank, and that will give me huge opportunity to rack up some more points and get in that Top-50 because Race to Dubai was a goal at the start of the year. The last two weeks have been brilliant. More to come, but yeah, definitely moving in the right direction.
Q. The play today, the play overall, must fill you with confidence?
RICHIE RAMSAY: I think I had two bogeys in 72 holes. That’s really good for me. The swing feels good. It’s just a case of resting up the next few days, spending some family time working in the gym. Then next weekend, I’ll get going and on to the Rolex Series Event in Italy, another huge event for us and looking forward to putting in another good performance.
Q. Was there a particular highlight over the four days?
RICHIE RAMSAY: You know, a few weeks ago, there was a reality that maybe I wasn’t going to get in this event. I just tried to enjoy it because when you look around and you play this event, sometimes maybe when you’re in it every year, you take it for granted. Sometimes you only really appreciate things when they are almost taken away from you. This week I really realized how much I love coming out here, playing St. Andrews, Carnoustie, the whole event. You walk around, watch the best players in the world for free, out there, having a good time, the weather has been very good.
Dunhill put on an exceptional tournament from the first tee shot to the last tee shot. They run the event so well it’s probably one of the best-run events on Tour.
Q. In terms of giving you an incentive then, you nearly missed out but you got here. Did that give you added edge over the four days?
RICHIE RAMSAY: I think you enjoy it a bit more because you realize how good it is to play out here. From a mind-set perspective, it gives you a little bit more confidence. You’re probably a little bit more upbeat and happy that you’re here. When you’re happy on the golf course, only good things are going to happen.
Q. You play a lot of your golf in America, as does Rory McIlroy, and he said he finds it quite frustrating that he finishes 15-under, yet way down the field and hinting at the standard of courses. Is that something you understand or would you not quite follow suit?
RICHIE RAMSAY: I think the standard of courses are really good. I think what we’ve got to remember is that, 51 weeks of the year, they are members’ golf courses, so they need to be built that way, and that’s what the Old Course is like.
We play some great golf courses on The European Tour. We’re very fortunate. There was some low scoring today, even though conditions weren’t easy. I think they are very good golf courses. I do prefer the harder ones because I tend to play better. It’s one of those things, and the standard is so good now and so deep that you just need to shoot some better numbers. When you get 22-under winning it, that’s an incredible score.
I think the courses we play are hard.
Q. The players are getting better?
RICHIE RAMSAY: I think the standard has got better. In the ten years I’ve been a pro, it’s a lot stronger and deeper. The top guys are still the top guys, playing in Ryder Cups and things like that. But, I think, the average score is a little bit lower. I think the average age of the players is a little bit lower, and that’s got a little bit to do with the distance guys hit it. I don’t think most guys are young and they tend to just stand up and bomb it.
