THE MODERATOR: Let's welcome the winner of LIV Golf Singapore presented by Aramco, Joaquín Niemann, captain of Torque GC.
JOAQUIN NIEMANN: Thank you.
Q. Congratulations on getting your fourth individual LIV Golf win. You had an incredible round today, shooting 6-under par 65 to finish 17-under par for the tournament, winning by five shots. Can you walk us through your day and reflect on the week for you as a whole?
JOAQUIN NIEMANN: Yeah, starting for today, I feel like today was like a long day since the morning. I was feeling a little bit more anxious when I wake up, knowing that I was playing obviously with Sebastian, my teammate, who I know he's been playing great golf lately, with DJ playing the way he's playing for this week.
Yeah, I was a little bit nervous. You're always nervous before a round about what's going to happen. It's a game where everything could happen at any time, and starting the way I started playing, it really kind of freed me up a little bit for the rest of the round, starting with a birdie on the first hole, and then being able to birdie the third and the fourth.
Yeah, I felt like because of the start that I had, I was able to be really, really free for the whole round.
Q. With two LIV Golf victories already under your belt this season, you're now leading the LIV Golf standings. We've got LIV Golf Miami and the Masters in a couple of weeks away. How confident are you feeling heading into this stretch following your victory here in Singapore?
JOAQUIN NIEMANN: More than confident. I feel like it's just proud of the work that I'm putting in. I mean, I feel like confidence is -- you built confidence, and I feel like you build that confidence through preparation, and I'm pretty excited that I have two weeks. My next two weeks are going to be good preparation for me for what's coming. LIV Miami is going to be a good challenge. I bet that course is going to be in good conditions and really tough conditions. It's one of the longest and toughest courses that we play during the year.
So yeah, it's a good challenge, and then we've got the first major of the year. I'm really looking forward for the next two weeks that I have to get ready and put the best preparation and the most effort so I can build that confidence for those two weeks.
Q. I'm sure that playing in the leader flight there is a lot of pressure. How do you manage this pressure?
JOAQUIN NIEMANN: Yeah, I feel like every experience, every situation is different. I feel like when you talk about pressure, obviously it's a general word, because at the end of the day you feel nervous because of a situation that doesn't really comforting. Whenever you're feeling uncomfortable it's because you're feeling that maybe you're afraid or you're not sure of what you're doing or you're not 100 percent confident of what you are doing or expecting a different result.
At the end of the day, those are all speculations, and I feel like whenever I have a chance to hit a shot, I'm going to commit my 100 percent the best I can to that shot, and that's all I can do. I can't do anything once I hit the ball. I can't ask the ball to do something. Well, I do it a lot of times but it never listens.
I've been loving the pressure. I've been loving new situations, being in that moment where I feel uncomfortable. I feel like I try to be the more often that I can in those situations because I know those are moments where you build yourself and you get better.
Q. You seemed to be in control from start to finish. Was there a moment when you felt that the win was yours?
JOAQUIN NIEMANN: I felt really good out there. I felt more in control of the game. I felt like I was really in control of myself. I felt like I had a few situations where I could have felt a little bit more anxious.
That tee shot on No. 3 is a really tough tee shot and a really scary tee shot. I mean, it may look easy, but inside I was nervous. I was afraid of missing that tee shot and getting in trouble.
But I feel like there's a few other tee shots like that on this golf course where you've got to -- the way I look at it is no other way than just give your 100 percent on that shot, and if it's going sideways, I know I did my best.
Then you look to No. 5 where I hit it in the bunker. It could have gone either way, and I ended up hitting a great bunker shot, made a 4 and was able to make three birdies in a row. It's all about momentum, I feel like, in a golf run, and I was able to get that momentum at the beginning of the year, which really helped me to maybe look in control but to just find my way on those few holes.
Q. Can you just share what you feel has been going well for you and has enabled you to play the way that you've been playing this year and over the past few seasons, as well?
JOAQUIN NIEMANN: The way I've been playing? Yeah, I mean, I look back at it, and it's really nice to see the results. Obviously unconsciously we all work for results and to give the best for myself, for my team, for my teammates, for whoever is helping me to be a better golfer.
Yeah, I feel like I like having that -- I don't say it's pressure, but I feel like I like having that kind of responsibility of trying to do my best for them, for my team, for me, obviously.
But I feel like it's really exciting to do it for a team, and I feel like that's probably one of the reasons that I've been playing great these last two years is because of them, because they've been pushing me to become better.
I get back to my house the next couple days and get back to work and try to get better. There's a few things that I can improve, then go down to Miami and have a chance to win. I feel like that for me is really exciting to become a better player and try to get better every day.
Q. It looks like there has been -- that turned out to be your lucky charm. Did you meet the young fan today?
JOAQUIN NIEMANN: Yeah, Titi, my wife, she told me she was around watching yesterday. She said she was really cute, and she was really cute giving me this and being around and watching golf at that early age, so yeah.
Q. With this win in Singapore, you're obviously closer to punching your ticket to the U.S. Open. How confident are you in getting the job done?
JOAQUIN NIEMANN: Yeah, well, for now, obviously it's one of the goals to qualify for the majors. Yeah, I feel like it just comes. Hopefully I can get that spot before Miami. I feel like that's not my main focus. It's obviously something that it would favor me if I play good golf, but like I said before, I'm here to make my team win, to get a good result for them and motivate them to do those good results.
Q. I wanted to ask you about your fairway bunker shot at 12. Is that the kind of shot that maybe earlier in your career would have given you a little bit more trouble, but now obviously you pulled it off and it seems like that kind of exemplifies how improved your game has been.
JOAQUIN NIEMANN: I think you're exactly right. I feel like -- I was thinking about that after I hit that shot. I feel like it put a smile on my face when I hit that shot.
It was one of the shots -- it was probably one of the toughest shots that I had during the day and I ended up hitting it really close. I would say it was the best shot of the week for me. It was a tricky shot. I had like 165 yards, ended up hitting a 7-iron, and yeah, there's a few stuff that I've been learned through the years, and with my coach helping me right next to my side with hitting those kind of shots and different lies, it was tricky because normally when I have to cut it that much out of the bunker, I like standing like I'm on the fairway, which I normally when I hit a fade, I will open my feet, open my shoulders. Everything will line up a little bit left, and I obviously try to cut the ball.
But now whenever I'm in the bunkers and I want to try to cut it, I almost go the opposite way. I feel like my hips and feet are aiming right of the target and I just try to cover the ball a little bit more. That way I can secure a better contact to the ball.
I've been feeling really comfortable on those shots, on the bunker shots lately just because of the change of posture or different setup on the aiming. I feel really comfortable on those type of shots. I feel like bunker shots have been a struggle for me my first couple years, and now I feel great about it.
Q. You've won now six times in the last 16 months overall. Your caddie calls you the best player in the world. I wonder with this major season coming up, how important is it for you to kind of show the rest of the golf world just what kind of stature you have in this sport?
JOAQUIN NIEMANN: I know it's -- I feel like -- I have it on my mind. I know that I've been playing great out here, and if I look back into my stats, I haven't had a great result in majors. It's something that kind of bothers me all the time.
But I feel like if I see the bigger picture and -- I saw an interview the other day from Greg Norman back in the day when he was World No. 1 and I hadn't won a major yet, and I liked his answer because it's completely true. If you ask me, I'm pretty sure and I'm pretty calm about it because I know it's going to come. I know I'm going to win a major. I know it's going to happen. Maybe not at the Masters this next three weeks, maybe yes. I have no idea. I just know it's going to happen.
All I'm worried about is how I'm going to improve and how I'm going to feel better in those tough situations because the sooner and the more I learn from those situations, I feel like the more ready I'm going to be.
The way my game trending, I know it's going to happen eventually, so I'm pretty calm knowing that.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports