“Talent takes you to a certain point but not to the top”

In 20 months he went from 2,819th place to 121st in the world ranking, he won tournaments on the Asian Tour and in 2024 he played two majors: PGA and US Open. He will make his British Open debut this Thursday at Royal Troon and in 15 days he will become an Olympian alongside Jon Rahm. David Puig, 22 years old, has a degree in Communication from Arizona State. The Catalan golfer, produced at Masía Bach (Barcelona Golf), attends the MD.

Did you think that everything you have experienced so far would come so soon? Many leave but few come…

Ultimately, it has always been a bit of my dream to become a golf professional and compete at these levels. I started as a kid with a lot of enthusiasm and dedication, and this kid wondered if he was going to be good enough to get where I got. I am very happy to see that I have reached part of my goals.

At 22 years old, only the Masters are left to play. It will be the hardest to qualify, by world ranking, so far…

Masters is an obvious goal. Ultimately, to win majors, you have to play them first and gain that experience. Play against the best. I have seen two, now the third is coming and playing the Masters is a challenge, yes, of course. But if I can play tournaments in Spain in Europe and do well in the Asian Tour, I can still get into the top 50 in the world ranking. And if not, one of the special international invitations. I’m excited to play it, like the Ryder Cup one day.

With this positive outlook for your career, are you considering leaving LIV and playing the European Tour and PGA Tour?

LIV has been very good to me since the beginning. He bet me the other day and I am very grateful to him. And thanks to LIV I got that experience of playing against the best in the world and achieving other great results; I would like to continue with that and integrate it into other circuits as well.

Are you confident that there will finally be an agreement with the Saudis?

I don’t know if it will be 2024, or in a year. But an agreement has to be reached so that all the best players in the world can meet again and compete together. Ultimately the ‘majors’ also need to take steps so that the best can play in their tournaments. There are some LIV players who should periodically compete with those ‘bigs’ but sometimes they aren’t allowed.

Jon Rahm and Sergio García, are they the two best mirrors in which you see yourself reflected for your career?

Of course. I was fortunate to learn from Sergio at every tournament at LIV and at the same time I am also a good friend of Jon; We share many moments, we go to the same gym in Scottsdale, we train at the same club, we use the same swing coach… They are two references and I know they will help me in the future.

The best advice you’ve been given?

Once you get what you want, you don’t need to change so many things, polish the details, enjoy and work hard. To be the best, you have to work like the best. Talent will take you to a certain point but not to the top. There are many moments when we don’t know if we will achieve what we set out to do, but above all, we have to enjoy the process that brought us here.

To reach the top, do you have to be unfriendly, distant, or do you bless the ‘new’ Bryson DeChambeau?

You have to know when to do certain things, enjoy yourself, go out with friends, train less hours a day… but there are other days where rest is basic, wake up early, have a good work schedule. My parents and my partner have always supported me. They understand that the path sometimes requires that certain things cannot be done. But we are different from other people because there are times when we cannot do what other people do in a more normal and natural way.

The person who has had the most and greatest influence on your career, as a golfer and also as a person?

My parents. They helped me go to the US, they supported me until the end. They wanted to teach me how to be a good person; I owe them everything.

Any global superfigures you’ve noticed?

Rafael Nadal. He is a great athlete. Maybe it made Roger Federer and Novak Djkovic look better, but how Rafa trains, how he fights and how he owes himself to his fans is amazing. The hours he puts into it, how he fights for every point, is amazing, and seeing it with my own eyes helps me continue on that path.

If you have to choose the drive, the irons, the short game, the putt and the head of some stars…

Jon Rahm’s drive, Tiger Woods’ irons, the best in history without a doubt, Phil Mickelson’s or Patrick Reed’s short game, Cameron Smith’s putt and Tiger’s head. Everything he has achieved is incredible. Brutal.

How would you define your game?

I consider myself pretty solid in all areas of the swing but always have a lot to improve on, I practice evenly in all aspects. If the results do not come in the end, it is the experience that one has that helps. When you reach the professional world, you realize that if your golf isn’t good enough to be at the top, you need to improve it. That by being disordered you can reach the top.

Is your best quality not giving up?

Yes, I always complain, very expressive, I say ‘tacos’…It’s better to be 2nd than 3rd, you have to fight until the end.

Have the FCG and RFEG programs been your great springboard?

In the end, it all adds up, with RFEG since I was young taking me around the world, and the Eagle and Joan Bronchales program in Catalonia, being able to study in CAR, going to tournaments with the Catalan Federation, thank you with them I have a swing to get away.

Is the dream of your life a ‘major’, gold at the Olympics, the Ryder, winning a circuit tournament, or now the LIV?

I want to win everything, but in order, a Grand Slam, the Ryder and the Olympic gold, then a tournament in LIV or in Europe and the United States.

The latter. Is Scottie Scheffler peerless, the new Tiger?

I don’t know if the word is unmatched but his numbers put him close to the Tigers of the year 2000, with all the great players. What he does is extraordinary