Matthew Wolff believes his distance gives him an advantage at The Masters
Matthew Wolff said his goal is to never overpower a golf course, but his distance will give him an advantage at The Masters.
Matthew Wolff believes his power off the tee gives him an advantage this week as The Masters is played in November for the very first time, but he also said his goal is never to overpower a golf course.
This year's Masters will be like no other due to it being played seven months later than its usual date and many believe that the course will be perfectly set up for the big hitters to thrive.
Wolff may only be 21-years-old, but the American has quickly become one of the most exciting players to watch on the PGA Tour and his performances in this year's majors have been fantastic, with a T4 finish at the PGA Championship, before ending the US Open as the runner-up, behind Bryson DeChambeau.
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Distance proved a major factor at the US Open at Winged Foot, with DeChambeau and Wolff outdriving most of the players in the field and speaking to the media ahead of The Masters, Wolff was asked if power will be a key to success this week.
"I think the distance aspect this week is going to play into our hands more than even in April," said Wolff. "I haven't played a Masters in April, so I can't say that for sure.
"But from what I've heard, it's a little bit firmer. The fairways are rolling out a little bit more, and I think it's probably a little hotter. Ball might be going a little bit farther.
"I think, yeah, this course, especially, you know, this week, it's going to play pretty soft, pretty long, and it's supposed to even rain. So the ball is going to even go shorter.
"That extra distance that I have, not only is it going to help me off the tee, but you know, hitting shorter clubs into second shots, because with the SubAir that they have here, they can still make the greens as firm as they want. So instead of hitting 6‑iron into holes, I could be hitting 8‑iron. So I think that's definitely going to play in my advantage."
Whether or not golf's governing bodies should step in to address distance in the professional game continues to be a hot topic of debate, but Wolff insists although he is one of the longer players on tour, his goal is never to overpower a golf course.
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"But I think, you know, the way that me and Bryson and other people are going with hitting it longer, you know, my goal is to not overpower a golf course. It just so happens that sometimes that I can do that because I do hit the ball far, but golf is so much more than just hitting the ball far, and I think that if you're going to see that, this week is definitely the time to see it.
"I think, you know, to win not only a major, but especially The Masters, you have to have every aspect of your game firing, and I think that's what makes it a major championship."
What followed was a question regarding DeChambeau and if Wolff thinks the reigning US Open champion has the goal of overpowering every course he plays.
"Absolutely, yeah. I mean, he's using a 48‑inch driver. That's a pretty good sign of he's trying to just take everything out of play.
"Yeah, I mean, I don't really have much to say on that. If he thinks it's going to work and he wants to do it, then go for it. But you know, for me, I'm going to stick to the way that I know how to play. It's brought me a lot of success."
