Fisher Wins Match Play Title

England's Ross Fisher beat American Anthony Kim 4 & 3 in the 36-hole final of the Volvo World Match Play Championship at Finca Cortesin Golf Club in Casares, Spain.

A birdie on the first hole of the match propelled the 28-year-old to an early lead and he was never trailed after that. "I'm absolutely ecstatic," said Fisher, who moved up to No. 17 in the world rankings after the victory, which was worth 750,000 euros.

"It's been a long, grueling week, but obviously very worthwhile," he added. "This course was very physically demanding and I don't think I am the fittest of blokes out here. I know I need to work a lot more in the gym. The only thing that's been missing this year was a win. I feel I've been very consistent and to be the leading guy in the majors (in terms of shots taken) shows my golf has been very good."

Kim tipped his hat to Fisher. "Ross played great. I obviously made a couple of mistakes. I felt like on hole No. 8 I gave one to him, and 7, I kind of gave one to him there. Really, that was the turning point. We both made birdies on 9 and he made par on 10. It was an up-and-down battle all day, and I never seemed to get anything going. I never seemed to make a string of three or four birdies in a row, and that's what cost me today. I gave it all I had, but unfortunately it wasn't good enough. Of course I'm disappointed but what can you do; he played great."

"I think this format suits me," added Fisher (see below for his complete post-round interview). "I'm quite an aggressive player and sometimes it's caught me out in the past but the best player in the world (Tiger Woods) is an aggressive player and he hasn't done too badly. That's where I draw inspiration from - try to be aggressive but smart as well."

In the third-place match, Australia's Robert Allenby defeated Argentina's Masters' champion Angel Cabrera. Allenby's round was highlighted by a hole-in-one with a 230-yard 5-wood on the sixth hole. But he needed a birdie on the 18th to send the match to a sudden-death playoff, which he won after sinking an 18-foot eagle putt off the back of the green.

After his win, Fisher met with reporters and discussed his day.

MODERATOR: Ross, it's been a long, hard week, physically and mentally, but now you're the Volvo World Match Play champion for 2009. Give us your initial thoughts on having the title, world, before your name.

ROSS FISHER: Yeah, obviously it has a very nice ring to it. I could get used to that. Obviously ecstatic, over the moon. Just very, very pleased to be here sitting with you guys as champion. It's been a very long week, mentally, physically tiring. But you know, I got there. I don't know how many holes I played, but that was quite a few. Just didn't really want to go down 18 again against AK. So was very relieved to get three and four ahead and I knew I just had to finish the job off, and fortunately I managed to hole yet another crucial putt on 15. So, yeah, just absolutely delighted.

MODERATOR: You've taken some fairly impressive scalps along the way, beating the Masters champion.

ROSS FISHER: There's been a few. Obviously starting off with Camilo, difficult game, but managed to come through. Westy was always going to be difficult. Felt like it could have been a lot closer than what it was but unfortunately I just wasn't quite sharp enough, whereas he played a little bit better than I did. You know, unfortunately for Jeev, he was probably carrying a slight injury so that give me a little bit more initiative there to close that match out. And then yeah, like you say, Masters Champion, Angel, yesterday, was just an absolute marathon. He was up, I was up, he was up, I was up; it was a little up-and-down affair. And to get it done at the 39th was very pleasing, very tiring, but just had to pick myself up again and play against probably the grittiest player that you could ever play in match play, against Anthony Kim. It was a very tough match. But I don't think I was ever down in the match.

MODERATOR: And only one bogey, as well.

ROSS FISHER: Yeah, I think I might have just made one bogey. I can't remember exactly where it would have been. But yeah, just felt like I played real steady, kept on putting the pressure on him. I said to Ads before, just got to go out there and make no mistakes, try and make pars, make birdies when we can, and you know, if I'm going to lose a hole, I'm going to lose it to a birdie, I'm not going to lose it to a par. Fortunately I felt like I did that very, very well today and to come out and beat AK 4 & 3, obviously delighted.

MODERATOR: And this opens up all sorts of possibilities now for the end of the season.

ROSS FISHER: Yeah, very much so.

MODERATOR: Fourth in the Race to Dubai now.

ROSS FISHER: Yeah, fourth The Race to Dubai now. That's obviously a huge goal of mine. There are still some big tournaments to play in. Unfortunately I can't rest and enjoy this victory. I've got to get on a plane tomorrow afternoon and go to China for HSBC. Really looking forward to that. It's a course I have fond memories of doing very well around. It's a course that suits me, and hopefully I'll take a lot of positives from my game and my performance this week and put in a good performance next week, and then once that's over, I can enjoy a few days off and start thinking about the Race to Dubai.

Q. You had a couple of very close calls in the majors is year; do they sting any less because of this win, or do they still sting?

ROSS FISHER: They sting a little bit, yeah. I mean, I had a chance to win all four majors this year. The Masters was always going to be a little difficult, but, hey, I led all four majors at one point. So obviously my golf this year throughout the year has been very consistent, but especially in the majors. I could have quite easily won three majors if things would have gone my way. But you know, that's golf. Sometimes they go your way and sometimes they don't. If it was meant to be, then it would have happened. But obviously things happen for a reason and I'm a great believer in that, and obviously feel very, very honored and privileged to be sitting here as a very Volvo World Match Play champion.

Q. As a follow-up to that, does this seem like a step forward then towards winning majors?

ROSS FISHER: Absolutely, yeah. This is where I want to test myself, against the best players in the world, and you know, besides the majors and the WGC events and the big tournaments that we play in in Europe, this is a huge tournament. Like I said the other evening, anything that has got "world" in the title of it, it means a great deal. To be known as the Volvo World Match Play champion, will take a little bit of time to sink in, but once it does -- it feels pretty good at the moment.

Q. You had a great history at Wentworth and coming from that club, it must make it special winning over here.

ROSS FISHER: Yeah, very special. Like I said before, obviously disappointed for me that I didn't get a chance to play any Match Plays at Wentworth. But like I said, things change, and what a great venue Finca Cortesin has been this week. I've only heard positives coming from all of the guys. It was in great condition this week, and it was just a real good test of golf for match play. Be very, very interesting to play it stroke play, but match play, it just set up really well for an exciting week, and obviously it's proved that with some big wins, some very, very close games, obviously mine against Angel's. So, yeah, to obviously win outside of the U.K., which I have done before, is absolutely fantastic.

Q. I think you were 11-under for 33 holes today; have you had a better day's golf, ever?

ROSS FISHER: I've shot a few low ones. When I won The European Open, I had a 9-under the first round without even seeing the course. That was probably one of the best rounds I've played in a tournament. Probably slightly better was the final day of the PGA at Wentworth this year. Obviously being in front of my home fans on my home course and being the final round. But, yeah, today would definitely rank up there in one of the best rounds. It was very, very consistent from the off. Started with a birdie on the first and you know, just didn't really look back. I knew I had to keep the foot on the gas, try not to make any bogeys, which I did very, very well. I think I bogeyed 7, and that's the only one -- I missed I short one for a par, which would have won the hole. Obviously sort of slide by and had to hole one three times for a bogey and for a halve. The putter seemed to work very, very nicely for me today and I think that was a massive key in my success today.

Q. Are you surprised that you were able to win by four against Anthony Kim, and was he at his best today?

ROSS FISHER: Difficult really. I mean, I think we both played pretty steady in the morning. I think I was maybe 4- or 5-, maybe 6-under this morning. I think he had six birdies and a couple of bogeys, so he was the only one to drop a shot out of the two of us. This morning was very, very tight. I don't know, this afternoon, I just felt like I was a little bit more consistent and Anthony was just a little bit off on the greens. He had a couple of chances to get back in the game. In match play, you've got to take those, and for me, every time I had a putt to stay in it or to win a hole, I knew it was huge, because against a guy like AK, you don't want to give the guy a second chance, because he's a very gritty competitor, and he never gives up. And that showed right to the end. You're thinking on 14, I'm thinking I'm probably not going to need mine, but he fights back and holes a really good putt for par, making me hole my putt. And then obviously the putt he had on 15 always looked pretty good. He's always going to be a difficult game, but yeah, to beat him is one thing; but to beat him, like you say, convincingly 4 & 3, I'll take a lot from that.

Q. I know putting has been a disappointment for you this year; have you changed anything in your technique?

ROSS FISHER: I've experimented a little bit with new putters. The one I'm using at the moment is a new one that I got at, I think it was Akron that week. Didn't actually use it that week. I used it the following week at the PGA. And yeah, just slightly changed something in my setup. I have a tendency to aim a little bit too far left with the putter blade. So I think a few of my buddies at Wentworth, when I played -- we played an 18-hole game and actually said, it looks like it's a little bit close and just try and open it. As soon as I did that, I started to putt quite nicely. And I've been using like just a block of wood to practice my putting, so that my putter blade goes straight back and straight through. So, yeah, probably boils down to the consistency and starting to hole a few more putts I think.

Q. Is there anything in Anthony's manner, besides his competitiveness and trying so hard, that makes him gritty and difficult to play in match play?

ROSS FISHER: He's a world-class player. I think playing with him last year in The Open, I've played with a lot of very good players, but I said to Ads, "Geez, this guy is really good." He was very impressive, because Saturday at The Open, we stood on that 10th green for about 45 minutes because the ball just wouldn't stop because the wind was so strong. Yeah, he really impressed me then, and I knew it was going to be very, very difficult today. He doesn't make many mistakes. He hits his driver very long, pretty straight. Hits his iron shots good, and he's got a really good putting stroke, and you just think he's going to hole everything on the greens. So, you know, for me, I was just very, very fortunate that maybe he had a slightly off-day today. But I don't think I can take anything away from myself. I felt like I played flawless golf today, with only one bogey, I was -- I think I would have been quite tough for someone to have beaten me on my performance today.

Q. He's got a bit of swagger, does that have anything -

ROSS FISHER: Yeah, he's got a bit of swagger. But that's his personality and that's Anthony. He wears his heart on his sleeve. Everybody's different. I don't really show too much emotion. I'm focusing on what I'm trying to do, trying not to look at what he's doing. Obviously when he holes a putt, he sometimes celebrate quite big, but if it jeeves yourself up that way, then I'm all for that. But for me, I just stay nice and calm, nice and relaxed and just go about my business and obviously I managed to do that quite well today.

Q. How much help has your caddie been this week?

ROSS FISHER: Yeah, he's been huge this week. I think probably the key moment was the second playoff hole against Angel last night. The first one, I hit a rescue in, thought it was really good and came up just short. Had a little bit further in, and had 3-wood in and he just said to me: "Right, come on Fish, let's hit as good of a shot as you hit into 18 at Wentworth this year." And when you hear comments like that, your mind sort of wanders into what actually happened there, and you kind of pluck out from, oh, yeah, I actually did hit a really good 3-wood there and almost made 3. Just the positive words he kept on saying, even today in the afternoon being 1-up, 2-up, 3-up, he said, "Come on, Fish, let's knuckle down. Let's not treat this like we are up. Let's treat this like we are down. Keep fighting. Keep hanging in there." He was just great all week. He's a great kid and he works tirelessly hard for me. Sometimes I might give him a bit too much of a hard time, but you know, I suppose that's us pros for you. As they say, it's never our fault, is it; it's always the caddie's fault. He's probably had a bit of schtick from me, but he was absolutely first class this week.

MODERATOR: Well, Ross, as you say, Finca Cortesin is a special place, and this is a special week you'll never forget I don't think. Congratulations again on being Volvo World Match Play champion.

The transcript for the above interview is courtesy of ASAP Sports.

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