Tuesday 4 April 2017 21:16, UK
Danny Willett is determined to "stay on the summit of Mount Everest" as he prepares for the defence of his Masters crown this week.
Willett reflected on an "amazing" 12 months as Masters champion and he has relished the opportunity to parade the famous Green Jacket he earned following his dramatic three-shot victory at Augusta National last year.
But the Sheffield star admitted his form has dipped since making his major breakthrough and he remains winless since taking advantage of Jordan Spieth's remarkable collapse.
Willett is confident that he can convert "world class" practice into more consistency in the tournament proper, and he is also wary of the extra pressure on him this week as defending champion.
"I think there is pressure," said Willett at his pre-tournament press conference, which took place shortly after he revealed his Yorkshire-themed menu for the traditional Tuesday evening Masters Club dinner.
"You've achieved the greatest height in your game, you have got to the pinnacle, you've climbed Everest and you've put your flag in. Unfortunately, you've got to either climb down or stay up there, and it's incredibly difficult to stay up there all the time.
"The pressure has obviously been more from myself, and you get a little bit of outward pressure. We're on the first tee on Thursday morning and there's millions of people watching, and if you don't hit it good, a million people see you hit it poorly and it's not nice. It's not a nice feeling to not hit good golf shots when you know what you can do.
"So I think the pressure has been slightly different and the game has obviously not been as good as I wanted it to be these last 12 months, but we're still working hard and you know, if you work hard, there is that little bit of inevitability that sooner or later you have to kind of crack in and get back to where you've been.
"I've always said, as long as the work ethic stays good, you keep ticking your boxes, then it's only a matter of time. Unfortunately, it's not kind of dropped into place yet but I'm still only 29 years old and I've got a long career.
"Obviously being back anywhere and defending champion is pretty special, and to be able to drive down Magnolia Lane with a green jacket in the car, you know, and to come back and to be announced on the tee as the defending champion is something special. To be able to do it here at Augusta? Words can't really quite describe the feeling.
"The last 12 months has been somewhat of a roller coaster within life and golf, so we're kind of getting back on now to getting the game back hopefully into a place where, you know, we can get into positions where we were last year on Sunday.
"Yeah, there's been some ups‑and‑downs but you know, to be Masters champion for these 12 months has been amazing. To be able to take the green jacket to places and to wear it with pride and for people to see it and see the expression on people's faces when they see one in the flesh, is something special to see.
"It's going to be a shame, potentially, if you've got to give it back on Sunday. But just to have it and, like I said, to have the 12 months that I've had has been amazing. It would be incredible to be able to do it again sometime."
