Lee Westwood arrives at Honda Classic off the back of runner-up finishes at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and The Players Championship; Englishman played 54 holes at Augusta National ahead of his fourth PGA Tour start in as many weeks
Wednesday 17 March 2021 16:06, UK
Lee Westwood has set himself low expectations for this week’s Honda Classic as he looks to build on back-to-back runner-up finish finishes on the PGA Tour.
Westwood arrives at PGA National back inside the world's top 20 after following a second-place finish at the Arnold Palmer Invitational by claiming the same spot behind Justin Thomas at The Players.
The Englishman played 54 holes at Augusta National in between finishing runner-up at TPC Sawgrass on Sunday and arriving at Palm Beach Gardens, with Westwood admitting to feeling tired ahead of his fourth start in as many weeks on the PGA Tour.
"I feel a little bit drained," Westwood said in his pre-tournament press conference. "My legs are feeling it a little bit. I played Augusta with my son and we ended up playing 36 holes on Monday, which is not the easiest walk around there, and then 18 holes yesterday morning.
"I've played a lot of golf recently. I'll try not to do too much before tomorrow's first round in the afternoon. I'll get a good night's sleep tonight and try and recharge my batteries a little bit, get plenty of carbs and see how we go.
"I suppose I'm not expecting too much this week, but I don't know what to expect from myself at the moment. I'm obviously coming off two good results and my game feels good. I'm putting well, and you know, if I'm feeling all right tomorrow, there's no reason why I shouldn't play well.
"I play well around this golf course. I finished fourth here last year, and it's a course that sets up well for me, so I'm looking forward to it."
The former world No 1 will have son Sam as his caddie for this week's event, taking over from fiancée Helen Storey, having claimed bragging rights against Westwood in their round at Augusta.
"He [Sam] chipped in on 18 yesterday to take the money," Westwood added. "We'll not discuss the shots. I will say it's as hard as I've seen Augusta play, even when it's been the week of the Masters.
"It was cold yesterday morning, 45, 50 degrees. It was playing long and the greens were like rock. They were really releasing out. It was a tough couple of days to play Augusta. Yesterday I think he shot 82. I set him a target of 83 and he chipped in on the last for birdie for 82, so he won the money.
"It [the caddie role] is a negotiation process. Helen [Storey] is doing the PGA Championship and The Open, I think. I'm not sure about the Ryder Cup yet… we'll cross that bridge if I get in the team!"
Watch the Honda Classic throughout the week live on Sky Sports. Live coverage begins with Featured Groups on Thursday from 11.30am on Sky Sports Golf, ahead of full coverage from 6pm.
