What is your single career highlight what's the best thing if you if you could give it one thing what's been the best thing that's happened to you in your career well i think becoming world number one you're investing in the world you can sit down in a room like this. And look out into the world and realize there's a lot of people play the game of golf and there's nobody better than you that's that's it's weird to think about it like that. And it's and it it creeps up on you at different times as well i could be walking through the supermarket and i'll think best girlfriend the supermarket that guy that's buying today's golfer i'm better than you i don't know i've got the stats to prove it yeah. But that's crazy because obviously did it did it give you like a huge level of confidence when you're even at events i think you are the best when i became world number one i went out in the tournaments after that. And i finished like second and one one and third and kind of reinforced that you know i had the consistency that would take me to world number one even when i became well number one now the interesting thing comes when you do reach the top the pinnacle you look down you think all these people are after my spot now. So it brings its added challenges of course um you know there's one thing getting there but then.
There's another thing staying there and having everybody try and take your spot what do you think at the moment with the kind of story with like scotty becoming world number one in a ridiculous short period of time well i mean he's had an incredible run when you look back he was their weakest player at the last ryder cup yeah world rankings were 21st. Or something like that i remember when pete when he when he got picked it was like you know really no experience. And you'll know about me i can't remember how he didn't ride a cup but obviously the team did well. But yeah. And then.
I don't think i played him. But and started this year just gone on this incredible run and do you think again it's that mindset of as soon as obviously you win. And you win a couple and you become world number one like you go into the next.
Event think well how can i be how can i be how can i be beaten almost it gives you an added confidence. And one thing it does do as shown is that the world rankings are accurate yeah you know a lot of people question the world rankings i've never questioned him because i know how hard it is to get to the top of him. And he's gone on a phenomenal run won tournaments and has been rewarded by getting to world no one he's done it quickly yeah really. So it's not like i guess they are volatile when you look at them like that when you can get to be the best in the world. So quickly but they don't lie because they're over a two-year period so you've got to play consistently well and when you win huge events against incredible fields guess what you're going to shoot with that world ranking you're beating the best players regularly aren't you in the biggest tournaments well one thing we were saying in our last episode of the podcast is that like certainly this open coming up now there's. So many players who you wouldn't be surprised if they won there's such a strong field out there has is this one of the strongest kind of fields you've ever seen you think in your career. Or has been periods where there's been loads of guys that could win it feels like at the moment there's so many names like dustin johnson obviously scotty sheffler you know john ram spieth etc go ons loads of guys yeah i don't look at it like that now i think you know there's been strength in depth. For the last 25 years you know certainly since target came on the scene he's elevated everybody's level of play and made everybody more professional and that in turn has made strength of fields deeper you know everybody nobody leaves anything to chance anymore since he came on the scene so you know professional golfers are more rounded yeah. And uh you know they tick more boxes now they need to be otherwise they're going to fall back yeah one thing about the the open championship sent andrews gives everybody a chance you know it's not a bomber's golf course although length always an advantage on any golf course if you hit it straight. But you look at winners around there you've got biggers back in you know jack's day jackie's a big hitter tiger john daley and then.
You've got johnson likes to zach johnson louie's not sure but he isn't one of the one of the sort of bombers he's more of a he's i guess he's more aesthetically pleased and then.
He does everything nicely yeah exactly um you know different players have played i think back to faldo winning not the longest. But people in contention with greg norman and payne stewart i think ian baker finch was up there. So it does it it does suit everybody really.
