Patrick Reed shares with Garrett Johnston some thoughts on driver testing during major championships, his mindset for thick rough and more.
Garrett Johnson here with Patrick Reed. And Patrick, when I think about practice, I see you there putting is it a lot of the TE’s you’re using for distance? Like what kinds of drills are helping you with practice? Yeah, really biggest thing today was just kind of get the speeds down. Um these greens are really slloy and I feel like uh speed is going to be crucial out there, especially with uh trying to play high side brakes and a lot of brakes. So um yeah, for me really kind of right before I finished the day was kind of just do some speed work, get the speed dialed in so I’m ready to go for tomorrow. Yeah. overall like how long is your routine when he get warmed up for a round. How long is that? What does it look like? I would say about an hour and 15. Um, I usually start on the putting green, do just kind of a couple short putts and then do some more speed work and then go to chip a little bit and uh hit chipping and bunker shots and then hit a couple wedges and then from there go to the range and kind of just work on some full swing and then come back in about 20 minutes before we off and hit a couple more putts kind of randomize just to uh try to simulate what I’m going to see on the golf course. Yeah. So, going back to the green, how important is that to kind of get that last touch? Well, I I’ve always liked to uh to see a ball go in right before I go out to play. So, uh the only way really the easiest way to do that is go and put a green and hit a couple putts. So, uh you know, it’s just one of those confidence things for me, kind of go out and watch a ball go in the hole right before I go out to the first TE. What about in practice on general practice weeks? Are you able to or what are a couple drills on the range that help you with your feels, whether it’s with transition or just with wrist hinge or what kinds of things help? Yeah, for me it’s all about alignment rods. uh make sure I have one down for my feet just to make sure my aim is where it is. And I always put one out in front of me and try to work the ball around it whether I’m hitting a draw around it or a fade around it to start uh to work on start lines. But uh yeah, for me it’s more about just having those two rods down so I can uh make sure the ball’s starting where I want to. And then from there obviously I just feel kind of the face on rotation on whether I’m trying to draw it or fade it. But uh yeah, I mean for me I mean the more I’ve been on the range more I just realize it’s more of a warm-up. it’s not really uh something I need to sit there and just kind of grind and and try to find out on tournament weeks. Um so uh yeah, for me it’s more about just kind of getting loose, getting on the golf course and especially a place like this I haven’t seen in a long time has kind of come out and spend more time on the golf course rather than on the range. Well, when it comes to your driver, the bigger club in the back, what do you make of the driver testing that’s been going on recently and how you know just the way that the tour has been going about that and governing bodies? Yeah. No, I think it’s important. Um, you know, I mean, everyone I mean, we all know the rules that we’re supposed to stay in the guidelines of and uh, you know, for driver testing and stuff. I mean, we get all of our stuff from the manufacturers and things like that, but the more you hit the driver, the more you play with it, the uh, faster the head can become. And, uh, you know, I think it’s a good, you know, it’s good to kind of always test it and and and check. Um, my biggest thing would say that, you know, during the majors and stuff, instead of testing say 50 guys or something like that, test them all. test every player so then you know everyone’s starting at the same at the same field because um and that way everybody knows going in. Right. Exactly. So then everyone knows I mean so just because you tested say 50 last major and then all of a sudden there’s 100 and something guys there that didn’t get tested. I mean there could be some guys that there that are using a hot driver that and the crazy thing is you don’t even know it cuz it’s not it’s not something that you kind of hit a golf ball like oh you know that’s not looking right or or something like that. I mean it, you know, it’s just one of those that if it gets just a little hot, a little fast, I mean, it’s very hard to tell. So, the only way you’re going to know that is by testing it. And those are kind of hard machines to find around there. So, uh, that being said, I mean, I feel like if they tested everybody during the majors, it would just kind of feel like put everything at rest. What about during live events? What would you like to see in terms of testing out here with drivers? Yeah. Yeah, I have no problem with them testing at all. Um, you that’s my whole thing is I mean if everyone’s playing the same thing, it shouldn’t really matter, you know. I mean, and we all know our guidelines and everything and and with all of us getting driver heads and stuff built from the manufacturers on the vans and things like that, they’re not going to send us something that’s hot, you know, they’re going to send us something that’s within the boundaries that they’re supposed to be. And uh you know, it’s just one of those things that depending on club speed, depending on certain faces, I mean, there’s so many factors on why certain faces wear out a little quicker and get hotter faster. But, uh, you know, as players and, you know, even as manufacturers, you’re not really going to know that with depending on how many balls the guys are hitting and things like that. So, um, yeah, I have no problem with them regularly testing drivers and and making sure that, uh, you know, everyone stays within that limit. Um, to be honest with you, it’d be easier for players if we got tested more often with the uh with the drivers because then if you show up at a huge event and all of a sudden you already know kind of going in, okay, well, so then you’re not all a sudden trying to have to find a driver say Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday on on tournament site. You’re not like flipping on the spot like we’re worried about that, right? Yeah. Oh, yeah. Yeah. Because your backup’s never like your gamer ever. Um, well, speaking of that, Lucas Glover mentioned he thinks that some guys are putting their backups in for testing. I mean, everyone has their own opinion, but I mean, what do you make of that? Yeah, I have no idea. All I know is every time I’ve been tested, I just hand them the driver that I’m using that’s in the golf bag. And, uh, like I mean, I got tested at PGA Championship and it was completely fine. But um yeah, it’s kind of one of those things that you know, I mean to have to sit there and and worry tournament week whether your driver’s hot or not is not fun obviously and then especially if it ends up being hot now all of a sudden it’s like okay instead of actually preparing get ready for the golf tournament you’re now scrambling trying to find a driver that uh suits you and fits you just like the gamer. So yeah, I mean for me I mean I feel like uh yeah the at the big events at the major the major tournaments, you know, if you’re going to test 50 guys, I mean what’s the difference in testing everybody? It takes no time to test one club. And what about with your driver? How often do you go through club faces or club heads, I should say, with them? I don’t swing it hard enough to go through them pretty quickly. I mean, real talk here. Okay. Yeah. I mean, you know, I don’t know. Um, I’ve I mean I feel like I’ve been using this driver. I’ve been using for quite some time now. Uh, and I mean I would say close to a year now. And it got tested at PJ and it wouldn’t, you know, was wasn’t even close to being hot, you know. So that being said, I mean some people are different. It just kind of depends on I would think manufacturer, what kind what they’re using, what technology, and then also at the same time, I mean, how hard the guy swings. But, uh, yeah, for me, I mean, I’m usually changing a driver head not because I got flat or is too fast. I’m usually changing it because of newer newer heads or things like that. So, uh, I mean, I have flattened and cracked a couple in the past, but um, yeah, I mean, for me, they usually give out first before they really get hot. Two more quick things. And you got two big majors coming up. Oakmont with all that thick rough. Like how do you deal with it? You know what I mean? Like it gets crazy out there like around the greens. How do you how do you deal with when you are there? Yeah. You have to hit it straight and uh if you get in that thick stuff up there at Oakmont, you mean it’s just you got to be smart. You got to really kind of assess the lie and feel like if you can get it up there or you know or just kind of take your medicine. But uh you know that’s what you expect at a US Open. You expect it to play really hard. You expect the rough to be nasty. Um, and you know, I mean, Oakmont’s going to be a good test. All right. Always appreciate the time, Patrick. Good to see you. Thanks, bud.
