Quotes of the Week: August 3, 2014

“I feel like my game is up there to win a major, and I need to”

“I will use this time to seek professional help for personal challenges I have faced.” - Johnson in a statement issued by his management company

“We will certainly miss Dustin Johnson at Gleneagles, and we wish him the best. As one of the longest hitters in the game with an undefeated record of 3-and-0 at Medinah in 2012, he has clearly been an asset for the United States team.”

“All I heard was personal reasons. You guys probably know more than I do ... I’ve been his partner in the Presidents Cup in Australia. The firepower that he has is pretty impressive.” - on Dustin Johnson’s leave of absence from professional golf.

“It stinks. It really, really stinks. When he’s playing good, he’s got the game that it frankly doesn’t matter what kind of golf course it is, he can do well. I also think he has – I don’t want to say he has an intimidation factor, but to some individuals he might in the sense that he can overpower courses.” - on Dustin Johnson’s leave of absence from professional golf.

“Dustin and I are close, it’s tough to hear... He’s the type of guy the Tour needs. He’s a guy’s guy. A lot of the guys love him out here. Hopefully he’ll get it together and do what he needs to do to get back out here and be successful.” - on Dustin Johnson’s leave of absence from professional golf.

“Is that right? Oh, wow. That’s a quick slap in the face... Yeah, that’s a big loss. He’s one of our horses, one of our best players, and a guy that’s having a really good year. He’s been solid on that team for a long time.” - on Dustin Johnson’s leave of absence from professional golf.

“I’m just hoping for all the best for him. I haven’t been in touch with him... We’ll miss him out here but hopefully get him back soon.” - on Dustin Johnson’s leave of absence from professional golf.

“I didn’t grow up wanting to lead a normal life. I grew up wanting to win major championships.”

“They got the biggest and heaviest trophy. That might be the biggest difference. It looked good next to Keegan’s TV.” - on what makes the PGA Championship different than the other majors.

“Not many guys have finished top five in the first three (majors). I’m the only one this year so that’s pretty cool”

“I would like to win these two events and not have to worry about anything” - on making the FedEx Cup playoffs and Ryder Cup.

“So who knows if Tiger will even win a 15th major, when you think he’s got to beat the likes of Rory McIlroy and people like that. It will be unbelievable if he can win a 15th major, though. I personally think it will be the greatest achievement in his career if he can win a 15th major.”

“I’m not going to lie to you, it’s not my favorite golf course in the world” - on Valhalla G.C., host of the 2014 PGA Championship.

“It happened on the second hole when I hit my second shot, I fell back into the bunker… I just jarred it, and it’s been spasming ever since… It’s just the whole lower back… I don’t know what happened.” - after withdrawing from the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational

“And most of the people I talked to who have had the procedure (microdiscectomy) have no idea how I’m even back here playing”

“I don’t know... Just trying to get out of here.” - on playing the PGA Championship