SKIP TO MAIN CONTENT

Masters champ Willett looking to improve

Danny Willett has struggled to recapture the form that earned him a US Masters greeen jacket in April but has vowed to improve at this week's US PGA.

2016 Masters champion Danny Willett
Danny Willett has struggled to recapture the form that earned him a US Masters green jacket in April (AAP)

3 min read

Published

Source: AAP


Skip to article content

Since winning the Masters in April, Danny Willett has taken his green jacket to Wimbledon, thrown out the first pitch at a New York Yankees game and enjoyed the celebrity that goes with being a major champion.

Add in fatherhood and it's been a couple of fun months.

Willett's golf game is another story.

He has played in seven tournaments since winning at Augusta and has only one top 10 finish, a third at the BMW PGA Championship in his native England on the European Tour.

He tied for 37th in the US Open, finished tied for 53rd in the British Open and missed three cuts.

News that makes sense

Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

The goal for this week at the US PGA Championship at Baltusrol Golf Club is to get his game going again.

"I think it's settled down a bit now. ... We are trying to get back down to work and knuckle down because we have got a very important second half of the season coming up," said the 28-year-old Willett, who will play in the Olympics and Ryder Cup this year.

"Yeah, like I said before, it's time to move on a little bit from what we did in April. It was fantastic and yeah, it's changed my life, but we need to get back to the kind of form that we took into that week and hopefully then move forward."

Willett never had a chance in the British Open, simply based on tee time. He had an afternoon draw in the opening round, got the worst of the weather and never recovered.

"You look at the weather conditions were pretty brutal over there," Willett said.

"Rory (McIlroy) was the tee time behind us and I think he finished the best from our side at 4 under, I think. To shoot the scores at the boys shot would have been virtually impossible from the times that we played."

The weather - other than the heat - should not be a problem this week. The battle will be to find the fairways on this tree-lined venue and the centre of the rolling greens at this course that last played host to the PGA in 2005, when Phil Mickelson won with a four-under total.

"I think if you finish anywhere near, I don't know, 6-, 7-, -under par, personally I think that would be a very good golf score for four rounds around this golf course," Willett said.

"I could be massively wrong, but from what we saw yesterday, that's how it kind of sits."


Get SBS News straight to your inbox

Sign up now for daily news from Australia and around the world. You can also subscribe to Insight's weekly newsletter for in-depth features and first-person stories.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Follow SBS News

Download our apps

Listen to our podcasts

Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service

Stream now

Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world