One of the main rules with my mom was if I broke a club, she was going to take it and I wouldn't get it back. So I made sure I kept all my clubs.
Most nervous I've ever been is probably the 2007 Walker Cup. I was a little boy playing with these 8 or 9 other guys that were the best amateurs in the country.
Playing on the PGA Tour and playing professional golf, I think it's what everyone has dreamed of doing - all the guys who are out here. I'm just happy to be able to call this a job, if you want to call it a job.
There's still nothing I love more than being in the air. I've always liked speed and things on wheels, going out there and putting it all out there, being on the edge.
Obviously, signing on with Puma right when I turned pro, it's been a great fit for me to show off my colorful lifestyle as far as where I grew up and how I grew up, growing up on a public driving range and growing up around action sports my whole life. Not exactly the normal road that guys take to get to the PGA Tour.
In my case, I was placing extreme pressure on my lower spine from rotating my hips too much. This is a common cause of bad backs - and bad shots - for golfers of all levels. In addition to resting, I worked with my trainer, Joey Diovisalvi, on strengthening the weaker lower-body muscles that contributed to my overactive hips and back pain.
Quail Hollow is always going to be a special spot for me, and winning there gave me a little more credibility. But I want to be a multiple winner on the PGA Tour.
All you can do is really the prep work and make sure you're ready to hit each golf shot. Outside of that, you're not sure really what's going to happen. It's a funny game, but I think that's why I love it. You never know, one day to the next; you could go shoot 62, and the next day you're going to shoot 78, and you can't predict it.
On a dirt bike, when you're sizing up a jump, you can't have any second thoughts. You have to fully commit. If you don't, a lot of things can go wrong.
I don't want to be just known for the way I dress. I want to be known for how I play, how I treat people, and how I am as a role model. I don't just want to be, 'He dresses cool' or 'He dresses crazy.' You're going to have lovers and haters. I want my golf game to be the main thing.
My ultimate goal is to be the best player in the world. If I'm the best player in the world, I'll be the face of American golf. It will come with the territory. That's where I want to be. If I want to be there, I have a lot of guys I have to beat out, in the U.S. and the world.
Puma was a great fit for me. Obviously, they were looking for someone that was going to fit their brand, and I was looking to wear stuff that was going to fit me and not where I was going to go out and just blend in with everyone else. So it's been a great fit.
I'm one of a few guys on the PGA Tour who doesn't work with an instructor. I'm not saying mechanics don't matter. But I play my best when I focus on staying in a good place mentally and keep the technique simple.
My first years on tour, I tried to be super professional by considering the yardages to every feature and hazard. Over time my caddie and I noticed I play better when we keep it simple. Think about the distance you want the ball to fly, and only that number.
