THE MODERATOR: Lee Westwood is with us now at the 2025 Senior PGA Championship. A 68 out there for you today. What went well for you in today's third round?
LEE WESTWOOD: Well, I played well the first two days and hit the ball nicely, gave myself a lot of chances. Felt like I was putting well but just nothing would go in. Messed up the final hole on the first day, was 3-under and made double, so that left a bit of a sour taste.
But just kept grinding away. Not a great start again today, doubled the 4th, played the first three holes really nice and not that far off line, couldn't get it back on the fairway. Really had to just dig deep and not get frustrated and keep playing the way I was playing. I hit it stone dead on the next and possibly should have birdied the next, the par-5 going in with 6-iron. Hit it close on 7, tapped that one in. Birdied 9, birdied 10, birdied 11, birdied 16. Hit it too far left on the 17th off the tee, just got my lines wrong and ended up in the rough in a bad lie. You can get them around here. Sometimes it sets up, sometimes it doesn't, and it didn't. I made bogey. Then hit a good drive down the last and a sand wedge to about five feet and rolled that one in for a good finish.
I think 68 is a good round, and probably shouldn't have been any more than that.
Q. With a big course like this, Congressional, in these conditions, does it feel really different than any other majors you've played before? Does it feel like a real major here?
LEE WESTWOOD: Yeah, certainly the rough in places is like a real major, and the greens, since the redesign, there's a lot of undulations in them so they can really tuck some flags away. Obviously they're not getting them quite as quick as they normally would with the strength of the gusts of the wind. But yeah, it feels like a major.
This is only my second senior major. I played the U.S. Senior Open last year in Newport and then this is my second one. But I've played it a lot, and when they set this place up for U.S. Opens, which I've played two of, it's got a similar feel. Obviously it plays longer.
But I'm at an advantage where I still hit it a long way, so I can overpower quite a few of the holes on here. A couple of the par-5s I'm hitting 6-iron into and -- sort of 6-iron into 6, 6-iron into 11 and 7-iron into 16. They become eagle opportunities. 9 I'd have to hit two good ones.
But I've got a lot of wedges in my hand out there.
Q. You mentioned a lot of undulations out there. What part of your game does that test the most for what you bring?
LEE WESTWOOD: Really when it's as windy as this, it's controlling the flight and controlling the spin. I put a lot of spin on the ball, which is advantage until you start going into a 20-mile-an-hour wind with a wedge and then it's really backing up 20, 30 feet. When the flag is at the back it becomes tricky. Controlling your ball flight, knocking it down, taking a bit of spin off, that's really where you need to be sharp.
Q. How much does lag putting come into play with how big these greens are for you?
LEE WESTWOOD: Well, over the first three days, I've not really been that far away from the flags, so when I have, I've lagged it up pretty close. The greens are at just a nice pace where they don't tend to get away from you too much.
Q. You were saying you played the U.S. Senior, you're playing here. Is it now your plan to play as many senior majors as you can?
LEE WESTWOOD: Well, I can only play those two, obviously, because I'm on LIV. So unfortunately I can't play the U.S. Senior this year because we've got an event this week, but I would love to. I really enjoyed it last year. It's nice to come out here and see the guys that I grew up playing with and I started my career with. I watch the European Tour and the PGA TOUR and I don't really know anybody anymore because they're all 30 years younger than me. It's nice to come out here and play with the guys I started playing -- with my peers that I started with.
Q. This feeling of being in contention this week, does it remind you of something in the past, like in contention in other majors?
LEE WESTWOOD: Yeah, I mean, every tournament it's nice to get in contention. It's nice to see your name on the leaderboard and make a move on a Saturday. It's moving day, and I knew even par was there or thereabouts, and I know I've got one or two low rounds in me the way I'm playing. I'm hitting the ball well, hitting it a long way, and I've got a lot of scoring opportunities and birdie opportunities out there.
Yeah, I'm going to just continue to be aggressive and hit driver a lot and see where that takes me really. Hopefully roll a few putts in tomorrow again like I did today.
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