TOM CARLISLE: Obviously a proud moment, having the opportunity last year, without COVID restrictions this year, we've got spectators, friends and family can come down. How much have you been looking forward to this, having had the experience of doing it last year, how much more prepared do you feel?
DANNY WILLETT: Yeah, last year was good fun, like you say, to get an insight into a few of the roles and how it kind of played out.
Unfortunately we didn't get the fans in after COVID restrictions. So yeah, this year, fingers crossed, 50,000 people through doors over the next four and a half days, and yeah, just going to be a really special moment to be able to have friends and family down celebrating.
It's a proud thing, because not only you're hosting and trying to help the Tour out, and obviously Betfred have obviously been great sponsors again but it's a pretty cool way of kind of showing what you've been able to achieve over the last 12 years on Tour.
So yeah, it's going to be a nice week and once again, yeah, pretty proud moment in my career.
TOM CARLISLE: What was it like arriving at The Belfry, seeing the setup, just outside the putting green, you have the grandstand on 18 and the little bridge next to the first tee, the Willett Pavilion as well. Seeing your name in rights, what's that like?
DANNY WILLETT: Yeah, it's nice. Like you say, the infrastructure, no putt in putting it up last year because no one was here. I think it just gives that little bit extra to an event when you're able to pop the grandstands up, and it frames a few of them key holes, especially coming down the last.
You know, you're going to get a nice few people around that first tee with how they have raised it up and I think for such an iconic golf course in European golf history, it's a pretty intimate venue. Crowds are going to be quite close to players, and I think it's going to give people some really good atmosphere and should play pretty well.
TOM CARLISLE: A quick word about your chosen charity and the support Betfred are offering.
DANNY WILLETT: The chosen charity again is Prostate Cancer UK. Betfred once again have been massively generous and Betfred are going to donate 1,000 pounds for every birdie and 2,000 points for every eagle. So fingers crossed, make a few. And then if anyone is fortunate to make a hole-in-one on 14, Betfred are going to give us 50 grand to Prostate Cancer UK.
Again, shows their massive support over these last two years, with me being the host and the even the previous three or four years before that in hosting the British Masters, they have been tremendous in it, during COVID to still keep up the sponsorship and prize fund as they have, they have been amazing.
Yeah, fingers crossed, guys, like I said with 50,000 people through the door, fans can go down to the tented village and can chat with representatives from Prostate Cancer UK and find out more information. And yeah, fingers crossed I can play pretty well and we can get some money made.
Q. How is the game at the moment? How would you sum up the season is far and state of your game as we come into the week?
DANNY WILLETT: It's been pretty steady to be honest. I think we've missed one cut in the last kind of seven or eight and that was at Valspar by one, and apart from that, we've had a lot of nice mere kind of 20th, 30th finishes. Obviously 12th at Augusta was a really nice week,.
But yeah, just nice. Everything is in a nice place. Nothing sparkling has happened yet. None of them little glimpse of what you get and you're going to have them really good weeks. Yeah, we are just working hard to kind of do them more and more often, and fingers crossed, we can get into contention a few times for the remainder of the season.
Q. Having done hosting duties once, is it a bit easier this year or to know what's going to happen or have you still been busy?
DANNY WILLETT: It's because year this year obviously because there really wasn't anything crazy to do last year because no one was here in person. At least knowing how it kind of goes, obviously guiding me through last year, and this year, yes, you know what's going to happen but yeah, it's a little bit busier. Been a busy couple of days.
But from tonight onwards really, you know, it's kind of get your head down and kind of get ready to play golf because you're hosting but to really host well and to do that, it would be really nice to be in or around that leaderboard on Sunday.
Q. That consistence you were talking about, is that a good thing for you to see, because the last few years you've had massive wins and then done nothing, and then another massive win. Sort of feast and famine it's been, hasn't it.
DANNY WILLETT: Yeah, I quite like that at times. This last five months have been quite too even keel for me. That's what we went for, even after Dunhill, you look at the results leading up to it, you probably wouldn't have had your finger on that. But I do like them golf courses and that place.
And yeah, me and Foles that's one thing we wanted to do over the winter period was to get that consistency back in ball flight and how things feel on a day-to-day basis.
So you know, you talk about little gains and little ticks of what you're trying to perform every day and kind of we're gaining nicely in that position where we are there it. I have no issues getting in contention and knowing that if I get in contention, I'm going to be fine. It was the getting in contention that I was struggling with before. So hopefully this is going to give me a few more bites at the cherry.
Q. You're not scared to win when you're there, are you?
DANNY WILLETT: No,, ever since amateur days, I've always enjoyed being and around a leaderboard, the feelings that you get. Knowing that you've done the work and that's kind of not what you deserve, but that is what you work and practice for.
So I've always been pretty good in that situation, because again if you're in contention on Sunday, you're playing pretty well. Your game should be in a nice place. It's just more about controlling your emotions and knowing that if you do the things well; I've done it enough times now, I've not really not got much scar tissue of losing a lead or whatever. Most of the time it's been pretty good. All we were trying to do was get the consist levels up there so I had a few more chances through a year to be in a position.
Augusta we were there or thereabouts. Most of the week we were on the leaderboard which was lovely to see exactly where you stand and exactly where everything is and it was nice to get them juices flowing again there, so yeah, fingers crossed over the next three or four months we get a few chances.
Q. What will your next three or four months look like?
DANNY WILLETT: Busy. We head back straight to Dallas after this and I will basically have to play a hell of a lot in America until the end of the FedEx to kind of keep the points up there and stuff like that. I'll come back for The Scottish Open and The Open and kind of have a little re-jig after the end of July, really, and see where we are at, and like I said, into the FedEx, see where you finish and then no one really knows the back half of the season.
Depends on the event, if the PGA TOUR are playing the Fall Series the same as normal or if you're going to come back and do what I usually do and play the nice little run from kind of Crans onwards, which I've always really enjoyed obviously with the family and the results we have had in the back half of the season in Europe.
Q. So the Centurion is not on your radar?
DANNY WILLETT: No, it's not. It's a week off. We've got friends in America coming over.
Q. What is your attitude to the LIV Golf series overall? What's your take on it?
DANNY WILLETT: I think it's a very difficult one to say. You think you've got guys in massively different situations in age, career, what they have achieved, what stage they are at. And I think it definitely suits certain people.
So if you feel like you call into that category, then that's on you.
Q. So do you see it as a sort of predominately older players will go for it or were you tempted? What discussions did you have about it?
DANNY WILLETT: We've not really had many discussions. My main focus was to keep my head down and try to get as many points in the FedEx and in Europe as possible, because I think it was a distraction for a few guys at times. I think you did see a few guys fall off in form because maybe they weren't concentrating on what they were trying to do.
So no, my main goal was to try to focus on what I was doing in golf and kind of see what happened with everything else.
TOM CARLISLE: Danny, thank you for your time. Good luck this week.
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