Changing tack, your immediate goal must be to get into the Masters. The equation is pretty simple, isn't it – win an event or be in the top 50 by the end of March?
Pretty much. I was 51st at the end of the year and I’m pretty sure I’ll drop a couple of spots before I start the year [at the time of press Ogilvy is ranked 58th]. So I’m playing four or five tournaments in a row on the west coast and I’ll play till I get in basically.
They have another world ranking cut off at the end of March and I’ll get in if I’m in the top 50, which is not a massive stretch obviously because it’s only a couple of spots. If I win a golf tournament, I can re-evaluate my schedule but the main goal for the year is to get to Augusta.
You haven’t missed the Masters in eight years so has this been a jolt to the system for you?
It has been a little bit. I could have played more in the last three months of last year but I really needed a break, and every time I’ve played extra tournaments when I felt like I needed a break, I’ve paid for it later on. So I took a bit of a risk and I just missed. It was basically a case where one shot better at any tournament last year and I would have made it. It was like a 200th of a point, it was ridiculous how close it was.
Not getting the [invitation] letter in the first week of January – it's the first time I haven’t had it in a while, so it’s a little disappointing but hopefully I can get it soon.
The Ogilvy File
Date of birth: 11 June 1977
Place of birth: Adelaide, Australia
Turned pro: 1998
Major wins: 1 – US Open (2006)
Other victories: 11 – including three World Golf Championship titles
Team appearances: 3-time member of the Presidents Cup International Team (2007, 2009 and 2011)
Pages
Click here to see the published article.
