Interview With Angel Cabrera – U.S. Open Media Day

Esto apareció en el portal del USOPEN.

Gracias a la gentil indicación de Enrique Martínez Luque, hubimos de dar con el reportaje que compartimos con nuestros lectores.

Disfrutadlo!

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Q. Do you still get goosebumps when you're introduced as the U.S. Open champion?

ANGEL CABRERA: Well, it's a great satisfaction to be called like that, a U.S. Open champion. This is something that is going to be like this; I'm going to remember this for all my life.

Q. Is it something that happens all the time? Do people when you're getting up on the first tee, are you usually announced as the U.S. Open champion?

ANGEL CABRERA: Yes, yes, many tournaments lately, yes, always on the first tee, they just call me the U.S. Open champion. I feel a lot of pride being called that way.

Q. Can you talk about the huge reception you received when you returned home to Argentina?

ANGEL CABRERA: Well, it was great. Everybody from my hometown was there waiting for me. It was really a very big emotion for me, seeing all those people gathered for my reception. It was very nice.

Q. Are you treated differently in Córdoba now than you would have been before you were U.S. Open champion?

ANGEL CABRERA: Well, I'm the same guy. You know, everybody treats me pretty much the same, friends and everybody. I'm just the same guy with a big title on it.

But as I said before, I take a lot of pride from that, and I know people recognize it.

Q. Your good friend Eduardo Romero helped you get to this point in golf and in life. Tell me about how the two of you shared this victory, and was it an emotional time for you when first seeing Eduardo?

ANGEL CABRERA: Well, it was a very nice moment when we got together with Eduardo. I didn't have much time to see him before the U.S. Open for a long time because he was playing on the Senior Tour, I was playing in Europe, in the U.S. on the PGA TOUR. I didn't have much time to see him, so it was very nice to see him, how happy he was for me. Not only Eduardo but also a lot of people that were close to me felt very well, as well, and that was very nice.

Q. You live in Argentina, you play in the United States, you play in Europe; is it difficult to manage all that, even though you're very successful?

ANGEL CABRERA: Actually I feel that I need to come back to Argentina every time I spend a couple weeks either in Europe or America. It's a very relaxing moment for myself to be in my home. That's where I like to be and where I want to be. If I don't come back, it's like I feel bad about myself. I don't feel comfortable. I need that two or three weeks back home to feel well with myself.

Q. I understand that at home you created a fund for struggling young professionals in Argentina. What impact has your victory had on the popularity of golf in Argentina?

ANGEL CABRERA: Well, it has been great that a lot of people that were not very close to golf, the sport itself, were able to watch that Sunday on TV, and to feel the recognition of people that were not so fond of golf and to see young kids start playing golf or feel that passion about golf after me winning the U.S. Open, that's something very nice.

Q. You talked about the fact that people don't treat you differently at home, but on the road, when you're out at golf tournaments now, obviously you're the U.S. Open champion. I'm sure sometimes when you walk into a hotel they may treat you a little differently, restaurants; you can do maybe some different things that maybe you didn't have the exact access to in the past. Has it been that much different for you on the road?

ANGEL CABRERA: It is very nice to be recognized here in the U.S., specifically because this is where golf is really big in the world, and the best players are here. So I have been feeling that whenever I go to a restaurant or a hotel, people are saying, "There goes our champion, the U.S. Open champion," or things like that. And that's something that I feel very proud of. It's very nice.

Q. When you were a kid, did you know much about the U.S. Open?

ANGEL CABRERA: No, not really. When I was a kid I didn't know anything about the U.S. Open. I was caddying at Córdoba Golf Club, my home golf club, and didn't know much about the world of golf at that time until I started playing and I started playing professionally. That's when I got to know a little bit more about golf in general. But I didn't know anything about it.

Q. When you finally started getting a better understanding of golf outside of Argentina, what events did you focus on? I know you played a lot in South America and then eventually you played in Europe. Was there one focus or one event that you thought was the premier event that you thought you'd want to win when you were younger?

ANGEL CABRERA: In my hometown, in my home golf club, there is a very big event of Argentina. It's called Abierto del Centro, the Centro Open. The Centro Open is the second biggest tournament after the Argentine Open. I was always watching this tournament and dreaming that at some point I would be able to obtain the trophy of this tournament of my home golf club. This was always something that I was dreaming of.

Q. I assume you accomplished it at some point?

ANGEL CABRERA: Yes, I'm very proud to have won it seven times already.

Q. Does it make it doubly nice, the fact that you won the U.S. Open, but the fact that you were able to hold off Tiger, because this is his era, and a lot of people talk about that winning versus winning with Tiger in the field are two different things.

ANGEL CABRERA: Definitely. Winning the U.S. Open and beating Tiger by one shot the way I did, it's like double the pride. That feels great about it because it's like beating not only the best field but also the No. 1 player in the world.

Q. Since the U.S. Open, have you been happy with your game?

ANGEL CABRERA: Yes, and I've been playing well after the U.S. Open. But lately I haven't been really very comfortable with my game, but I still enjoy very much being out here playing golf, competing, and always feel optimistic about my future.

Q. You have a lot of time between now and your defense, which is a little over about a month away. Do you feel comfortable that you can get your game back to where you'd like to get it to going into San Diego?

ANGEL CABRERA: Yes, I'm going to work very hard to get prepared for the U.S. Open. I think I can be in good shape by the U.S. Open, not only for the U.S. Open but also a lot of big tournaments coming after the U.S. Open that I'd like to be prepared for those, as well.

Q. What kind of schedule will you have between now and the U.S. Open?

ANGEL CABRERA: I'm going to be flying back to Argentina after this tournament, and I'm going to be flying over to England to play Wentworth, the PGA of Europe, and then I'm going to go back home, relax, and get prepared for the U.S. Open.

Q. The last four U.S. Open winners have been international players. What do you think that says about golf worldwide?

ANGEL CABRERA: Well, that speaks very highly of golf, having four different international winners lately. That's something that usually we have the U.S. players winning big titles, and sometimes European players winning it, but now having a lot of international players speaks a lot about how golf is growing internationally, and that's very good.

Q. You're a self‑taught golfer. Can you talk about what swing you modeled when you were a child?

ANGEL CABRERA: The person that I watched the most when I went to Europe for the first time was Severino Ballesteros. I watched him a lot, and he was like an idol to me. I was always trying to play with him and get to watch him, and I admired him a lot.

Q. Did you have someone when you were a kid? How did you learn? Did you look at books? Did you watch the people you were caddying for when they played? How did you start getting a feel for a swing?

ANGEL CABRERA: I learned watching while I was caddying, and whenever I had a chance I took a club out of the bag and started making swings. I was all the time with a club in my hand.

Q. Do you have someone you go to now? Because you are self‑taught, how do you get yourself back on track when you have a problem?

ANGEL CABRERA: My swing, I work it on my own, and I don't have anybody to teach me. I like working on my own on my swing and just hitting balls and trying to feel comfortable. On my putting I'm working with Charlie Epps, so he's been helping me with the putter lately.

Q. I understand you quit smoking. Can you tell us why you quit smoking and how much that's impacted your play, if at all?

ANGEL CABRERA: It hasn't changed much. It just happened that I was feeling bad, I was feeling sick at some point. I had a flu, and I had a flu for like ten days and I wasn't able to get better very quick. And when I went out of the flu, I hadn't been smoking for ten days, and I felt like I didn't want to smoke anymore, so I just quit.

But I couldn't tell, really, if it has helped or anything for my golf game. I don't feel any difference.

Q. It looks like the last time and the only time you've played at Torrey Pines was in 2003, where you missed the cut. Do you know anything about Torrey Pines aside from that one trip in 2003?

ANGEL CABRERA: No, I don't know much about Torrey Pines. The only thing I know about Torrey Pines was that experience in 2003, those couple rounds.

But the U.S. Open, all the setups, everything is different. And when I went to Oakmont I didn't know the course, either, so I'm not very concerned about that.

ALEX MICELI: Thank you very much for the time. We appreciate it very much.