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Interview transcripts below. For Championship Scoring, Click here to see up-to-date scoring and statistics from PGATOUR.com. September 2, 2005 An Interview With TIGER WOODS, 65 (-6) leading TODD BUDNICK: We welcome Tiger Woods after a 6-under-par 65 in the first round of the Deutsche Bank Championship. Second year in a row you've started off well. TIGER WOODS: Yeah, I hit the ball decent today. I didn't hit it great but I hit it good enough and really hit my irons well today. Just stayed patient, missed a couple putts early in the round, but finally got it going on the back nine. Made some nice putts on the back nine for birdie, as well as for par. Turned out to be a really nice day.
TODD BUDNICK: Two Top 10s here and eight of your nine rounds have been in the 60s. What exactly is it about this course that you love? TIGER WOODS: Well, I think the golf course fits my game. Most of the guys who have played well have been some of the longer hitters, and today with it being a little bit softer and the fairways, it's certainly an advantage to get the ball high and out there. Today I drove the ball out there a little bit, hit a couple of bad ones, but overall hit it pretty good. So took advantage of it today. Q. Can I ask you about the 12th hole, the bunker shot, you seemed like you really thought about that one for a while. TIGER WOODS: Yeah, if I hit it fat, obviously it's in the hazard, right in the hazard. So I got committed to hitting the ball just to the left of the hole. Really, really made sure I stayed up on it, and just had 153 and I hit an 8 iron, just hit it really flush, and hit it pin high. And left of the hole, which was nice. Q. What do you mean by that? TIGER WOODS: Not lowering, not lowering my levels, don't change my levels. If I change my levels, I could hit it fat. That's what that means. If anything, hit it thin. The lip was no problem, not with an 8 iron. Q. Since you've missed the cut at the Nelson, I don't have your record in front of me, but I don't think you've had anything out of the Top 5 since Nelson, T 4 is the worst. Is this any indication of what you were talking about yesterday of putting things together, you know, first in a day, and then in a tournament, and then over a course of a month, are you an a roll or do you feel like you're on one? TIGER WOODS: No, I don't feel like I'm on a roll at all. I feel like this is the way should I play every day. That's why I made the changes in my golf swing so I would be consistent day in and day out. So it's not like I go out there and I hit the ball just unbelievable and putt unbelievable to shoot these scores. I'm just playing solid golf. Q. So you're not on a roll? TIGER WOODS: No, this is the way I feel I can play every day. Q. The results would indicate that. TIGER WOODS: But if you would look at how I've played, I've just played solid and I've putted bad. What if I would have putted well through this very much, what would have happened. Q. What would have happened? TIGER WOODS: You can do the stats. Q. How hard was it to stay I think you really didn't make a putt on the front nine? TIGER WOODS: No. Q. Did you just stay patient on that or was it getting to you? TIGER WOODS: It was getting frustrating because I hit two putts I missed on the high side early, one on 12 and one on 13, both I missed on the high side with too much speed. So just had to be more committed to my speed and focus on my speed a little bit more. The back nine, my pace was really good, except for the second hole. Q. One of your playing partners today, Carlos Franco, shot 5 under 66, how much did that help you in the round today to have someone who was in the thick of things as well? TIGER WOODS: I didn't know what he was to be honest with you. Carlos is funny, so he's yapping it up all day and telling me stories. It was pretty funny. "Took me 18 hours here from Paraguay." "How much did you practice?" "Oh, when I got here." (Laughing). He's just funny. Q. Inaudible? TIGER WOODS: No. 5. That was a big momentum saver because I had just birdied the last two holes. I birdied 3 and 4, and then had that nice putt there from about eight, nine feet for par and I made it and then I birdied the next hole. Q. What did you hit on your second shot? TIGER WOODS: I had a swing where I didn't have to worry about hitting a big hook, I could actually start the ball on the right edge of the green. The lie, we were trying to figure it out, we didn't really know whether it was going to come out hot, soft or what so I just hit it hard. There were no bushes in front of me, I had to make a little bit of a flutter on the backswing. But at least I could start the ball on the right edge. I didn't have to start the ball way over the gallery and hit a big hook. Q. How much do you think the golf course has improved since the first year? TIGER WOODS: Oh, enormous. We didn't really get the reviews we wanted after the first year. The players had their criticisms of the golf course, and so did I. We all wanted to have a great event so, Deutsche Bank and the PGA TOUR, we all got together and decided what we needed to do to make this golf course and this event even better, so we had to do some changes. We changed quite a few holes, I believe 12 or 13 holes we monkeyed around with. Last year we got some great reviews from all of the players. It's nice to have a nice turnaround like that in the players' eyes. Q. You said, �our tournament.� Do you feel like this is yours? TIGER WOODS: Well, my foundation is involved in it and Deutsche Bank has been a wonderful partner with our foundation, so that's one of the reasons why I feel that way. Q. Do you feel that this event is for you what Bay Hill is to Jack? TIGER WOODS: I don't know about that yet. But certainly it's nice to have the support of people here to come out and support our event, and this is great for what we're trying to do with the Learning Center. Q. Will it ever get to that point? TIGER WOODS: I don't know. I don't know. Because those guys own those two events. I don't own this event. I just don't want to head in that direction yet. I just want my foundation to be the leader of what we're trying to do here. It's not me. It's not about me; it's what we're trying to do for the Learning Center a bunch of kids back in southern California. Q. When the decision comes down to whether Deutsche Bank extends this beyond the four years, how much input might you have and what would you recommend at this point? TIGER WOODS: Well, we've made some recommendations already. I can't tell you what we're going to do but it's been real positive. Q. How much input do you think you might have? Will they listen to you? TIGER WOODS: I hope so. They have asked me questions, put it that way. Whether they listen to my answers or not? I don't know. Q. How do you decide inaudible? TIGER WOODS: I have my focuses and my Learning Center right now is one of my biggest focuses in my life and trying to get that headed in the right direction. We want to have that as our platform for what we are trying to do with our foundation. To me that right now is one of the biggest priorities in my life is trying to get that up and running so that we can have a better platform to then try and create that program and grow it around the world, not just in our country. Right now I think we have about 3 million kids in the program right now, and we're trying to get an expansion that's going to happen probably in the next year or two and go overseas from there. Q. When will the Learning Center Open? TIGER WOODS: Yeah, it's going to be in February, probably before L.A.
TODD BUDNICK: Let's just go through your birdies, Tiger, starting with 15. TIGER WOODS: 15, I hit a driver and a 60 degree sand wedge to about 12 feet right of the hole and made that. 18, I hit a driver and a 5 iron pin high about 40 feet away and 2 putted. No. 3, I hit a 6 iron about 15 feet short of the hole and made that. No. 4, I hit a driver and a pitching wedge to about eight feet. No. 6, I hit a driver and a pitching wedge to about three feet. Then on 7, I hit a driver and 2 iron to the front edge and I believe it was 29 back, 28 back, long putt. I hit it all right, I was kind of trying to hit a smoother one, not a full one. Q. Was that 2-iron, between 2-iron and 3-wood? TIGER WOODS: I had 260 to the hole, so it was more like 2 iron, 3 iron. Q. What is the differential between 2-iron and 3-wood? TIGER WOODS: In the air? Probably about 25 yards. Sometimes even 30, depends on the conditions. Q. (Inaudible.) TIGER WOODS: Sometimes. Sometimes. I've asked, you know, Rick Nicholson, Nike, to see what I can do to bridge the gap to maybe put a 5 wood or a 7 wood in my bag. But I have a problem with having to be able to flight the golf ball with those clubs. I love hitting my 2 iron off tees and hitting it down there low and controlling it, but then again sometimes I'm having a hard time into the par 5 like that of throwing the ball up in the air. I've seen some of the guys hit, like Vijay carries that 7 wood, that he's bent down to about a 5 wood, which is a perfect club for that shot, but I have a hard time with that club now. Q. At 6 under, a whole bunch at 5 under, did you suspect early on it would be low scoring today? TIGER WOODS: I saw Tim at 6 under and Briny was 5 under through 11, so you figure it would probably get to eight. I just had to get going. I was only 2 under through nine. I figure if I shot between 3 and 5 under par on the back nine, at least I could get up there a little bit and wouldn't be so far behind. Q. Are you surprised to be leading? TIGER WOODS: Very surprised. I didn't think I would be at six, I thought seven or eight would be leading, especially when those guys were so low so early. I played solid today. I hit good, quality golf shots all day and I hit a couple loose ones, but more than anything, I was happy with the way I putted today. I had good pace, except for No. 2 when I 3 putted, so my pace was good, which hasn't been too good lately. Q. Just curious, how much you've watched of the hurricane stuff and New Orleans and just your thoughts on that, how is it different than other things that you've been seeing on the TV in the last, say, two years? TIGER WOODS: It's just unbelievable. Not only the devastation, but how people are behaving, with the shootings and now with the gang rapes and the gang violences and shooting at helicopters who are trying to help people out, trying to rescue people, I just don't understand that whole concept. You figure if anything, they would all come together and try to help one another out, but they are doing the exact opposite.
From that standpoint, I just can't see how the community is doing that to themselves. Try and help one another out. They are all struggling. Offer a helping hand to your fellow man, and it's not happening down there at all. When they are trying to help them out, then they are not letting them help, which that boggles my mind even more. More people are dying because of it, and it's just a very, very sad state. Q. Do you have any advice for the TOUR on what they should do? TIGER WOODS: Well, obviously I know this event in particular is going to give some of the proceeds to the relief down there, but I don't know what the TOUR is going to do in general. I don't speak for the TOUR and I don't know what they are doing back in Ponte Vedra, but I know this event is definitely going to try and help. FastScripts by ASAP Sports ... An Interview With: CARLOS FRANCO, 66 (-5) one shot back TODD BUDNICK: We have Carlos Franco after a 5 under 66 in the first round of the Deutsche Bank Championship. Carlos, a nice day out there between you and one of your playing competitors, Tiger Woods. The two of you put on a nice show out there today. CARLOS FRANCO: Well, I have to play good because Tiger is No. 1. He's played well, you know. All day he played good and never lose nothing. He's work hard, work easy, whatever, he makes 6 under, 5 under every day and that's my focus today, too.
TODD BUDNICK: You started off with a bogey on 11 and got the ball rolling after that and reeled off a few birdies. CARLOS FRANCO: Yeah, I hit a bad shot on No. 11, a 5 wood there and missed the left side on the rough and no chance, those greens are very fast. Nice driver, nice second shot No. 12. Driver and 9 iron maybe to four feet or something for a birdie, three feet. Next hole, the next birdie was No. 15. That one I hit a nice 3 wood and 9 iron. 16, I hit driver, pitching wedge to maybe ten feet. 17, 3 wood and 9 iron, long putt. 18, I hit driver, 6 iron maybe 30 feet or more, 35 feet, for 2 putt. No. 2, I hit a driver, 5 wood, from the front edge on the left side, maybe 40 feet, 2 putt. No. 3, I hit a 6 iron maybe three feet again for birdie. Make bogey No. 5, hit it in the cross bunker left side. Missed the second shot in the rough. Third shot almost over the green and a nice 2 putt in the end. No. 6, I hit a great driver, pitching wedge, maybe 146 on the hole, maybe 15 feet and make it. I missed the putt on 7, good driver and 3 wood, on the green and came back, good chip and putt there. 8, 4 iron, putt only one yard and the ball in the rough, terrible, no chance to chip it up and down. No. 9, I hit a driver, 9 iron almost on the green at the end. First cut and great putt there, made birdie on No. 9; it's 5 under par.
TODD BUDNICK: You're 126th on the Money List coming into this week, heading down the stretch of the season, does that weigh on your mind at all. CARLOS FRANCO: You know, I never check my position on the Money List because I have an exemption for next year. My focus is only for to win the tournament. I'd like to win the tournament because it doesn't matter if 125 Money List this year, you know. I like to play good only and I don't have much pressure for this. I come to the golf course to try to play good and to make a low score and what happens, I don't know. Q. Tiger talked about you were talking about a trip from Paraguay, how long it took? CARLOS FRANCO: He told me, what, I said, it's short for me, because when I played five years in Japan, it's almost 32, 34 hours, and to come here is only 18. "Oh, my God," he told me. Just enjoyed today, talking too much, it's good for me and good for him, too. Because only a little joking and that gets me out of any nerves, because playing with the No. 1 together, I need to enjoy it, you know. Q. Did you ever think about what it was like when you first came out on TOUR here, I think it was '99, your rookie year on TOUR, how uncomfortable or how nervous you were, and how much comfortable you are now having been here six or seven years? CARLOS FRANCO: Seven years, different now. When I started here at 33, now I'm 40 years old. Yeah, my first tournament maybe was a little nervous in 1999, I played in Hawaii, my first tournament and missed the cut there and another tournament missed the cut. The Japan Tour, the USA Tour, it's a big difference. Here there are too many good players. The course conditions is a big, big difference, too, and longer here, fast greens, more rough. You have to make under par to make the cut, that's No. 1 most important. After two months, no more nervous. Played in the Masters week, finished sixth or something, and then after three weeks there, I win a tournament in New Orleans and that was fantastic for my career. Q. Tiger made a joke today, and it's legendary about your practice, you don't love to practice, is that exaggerated or do you not like to practice? CARLOS FRANCO: He just told me only what happened the last two weeks. I said stayed with my family. He said, "Did you practice?" I said, "Yes, I practice fishing." "What? Practice fishing and you come here 18 hours and no practice and come 5 under par? That's just incredible." (Laughter.) "Well, I need to make the 5 under because you always play good," I say. I can't make five, 6 over, or I won't have the chance to make same score. He's okay. He's good guy. He's a good partner today. Q. Inaudible? CARLOS FRANCO: Maybe I need, but I don't like to practice. That's my manager there, my instructor, too, "Give me ten minutes, please, before you go to play!" "What ten minutes? I give you one hour? Why do you mean, go to range, hit a couple of balls; shut up." (Laughter.) And now, okay, 5 under, thank you. If I make 3 or 2 over, okay, I go to practice. (Laughter.) When I played in Japan, no practice, to win the tournament, it's just me. Vijay, Carlos, he's No. 2 in the world, he likes to practice. I don't like that. But that's me. Q. If you were to practice more, would you wear yourself out CARLOS FRANCO: Yeah, it's mental. You know, I tried many times to practice, this year and last year, a lot of practice, not so good. But I hope I like to play the on the golf course, you know. I like to play the golf course because when I go to the range, I hit it, I hit it, I hit it, every shot is the same, the same thing. I don't need to warm up. I warm up before to come here, you know, that's my practice. Look at me at Milwaukee last year, nobody had to tell me, you guys understand why I don't like to practice. I never keep a score through the practice round. I try many shots, looks, slice, a couple balls, but I don't like to play three for our balls, only chipping and putting more practice on the golf course.
TODD BUDNICK: Thank you.
An Interview With: BILLY ANDRADE, 66 (-5) one shot back TODD BUDNICK: We thank Billy Andrade for stopping by after a 5 under 66 today. Billy, no bogeys out there. You've had some trouble before on this course, you missed the cut the last two years, but a very nice start this week. BILLY ANDRADE: That was definitely being reminded to me the last few days by my close, personal friends. Yeah, I haven't had any success here. I've missed the cut twice, and I haven't played well in the last 2 1/2 months, three months. I kind of hit the wall after the Memorial. I tried to qualify for the Open and didn't make it, and then Bristol, Rhode Island in the summertime is gorgeous, so I spent a lot of time there with my family so, it was kind of nice. Kids are back in school now and back and playing a little bit more now. My putter left me for a little while and today was a nice day. So I think if you can't get inspired by what happened last Sunday in Hartford, then, you know, then there's something wrong with you. I talked to Fax a lot Sunday night driving back, and a lot of things that he was struggling with was letting the putter go and thinking too much is what I've been doing. He was saying, I understand exactly where you've been, and we do, and all players do. We all go through periods where you think too much or you're not on or lose you feel. I guess to equate it, it would be like Shaquille O'Neal on the free throw line; you know, it just looks awful, and when you let it go and you have freedom with your putting and driving and everything, you can play, you can compete. I've kind of figured that out. I don't know if the light went off with me, but very inspired by Brad last Sunday and the way he won and the way he handled himself; that fired me up to want to play well starting today.
Q. You certainly got it together when, as you just said, you've been struggling for relatively all summer really, clearly you're motivated but anything other than that? It's a pretty dramatic turnaround. BILLY ANDRADE: Well, we're all good, and sometimes the light, you struggle to find the light. Just look at Brad. That's the perfect example. He didn't make anything last week, and he's looking to pack his bags on Friday and miss the cut. When you're really good, and we're all good, all of the players out here are fantastic players. It may take something, it may take, I don't know, a light goes off where all of a sudden it's not as hard anymore. The combination of thinking about it or working hard at it, instead of giving up, helps. I've never felt like I haven't worked at my game, but it's kind of come and gone, and I just kind of I'm on the right track. I felt it last Friday last week, and talking with Brad, Dick Coop who came up and spent some time with me in Bristol, there's a reason why the best players in the world are the best players in the world, and I guarantee you, they are not getting over shots fearing it or worrying about where it's going or worrying about if they are going to make putts. They do it because they have freedom to do it. They are letting themselves do it. At times we all get bound up in not letting it go, and those things happen.
But when the light goes off with me, I'm pretty good. I can turn it around very quickly, which I've done in my career at times. I did it in Vegas when I won there. I've done it out of the blue finish third or fourth in Milwaukee last year when I was pretty much gone for dead there after shooting three or four the first day, to come back and finish seventh or sixth or something, I don't know. But it does come and go and the light goes off, and when it goes off, you've got to run with it. Q. Did you still enjoy the summer not playing well? BILLY ANDRADE: I did. I had a blast. I did not enjoy the last couple of summers where I had to play. I like to spend more time with my family. I don't like leaving on a Tuesday when my kids are going to the beach and I have to go to Moline, Illinois. I've love to be able to plan a schedule out where I played less and played great like a lot of players can do.
But my whole career, I've averaged 28 to 30 tournaments a year, and this is my first year in a few years where I got off to a nice start where I could kind of dictate how much I wanted to play. I did that. Yeah, I didn't play very good, and boy, the locals were getting on me, what's wrong with me again. But I wake up every day really happy and good or bad on how I play golf, so thank God for that. It was great to get off to a nice start, but I have to continue what I did today and I have to continue doing it I'd like to flush it out for the rest of my career to play the way I played today. It would be nice. Q. When did you make the decision to have Dr. Coop come out, was that before Hartford? BILLY ANDRADE: Yeah, he kind of put the bug in my ear, he had never been to Fenway Park and that's kind of how it started. Then he came to the PGA and we talked about it at the PGA about coming up this week and working. He said he wanted to go and see Fenway; he's never been there before. So we slid that in early this week and had a lot of nice chats and nice talks and a lot of the same stuff that Brad and I talked about on Sunday after he won. I love watching players play with no fear and just letting it go. That's what I'm trying to accomplish. Q. Was there anything in your conversation with Brad on Sunday that sparked Sunday, anything he said to you? BILLY ANDRADE: It was like a clarification with me. It was like it was clear that the way he was thinking on the greens and putting lousy is exactly where I had been. Actually, I've been the opposite. I always feared driving because I drove it terrible, but then I'd chip and putt and no problems around the greens, and the last year or so, it's been the opposite. I've been driving it fine and hitting great shots and then get on the greens and start fearing, you know, or not having a feel and fearing missing putts. So yeah, we just talked and he was saying how he's in that mindset and it's not good, it's not good to be there. You have to let it go either way. If you don't let it go, you're going to probably miss. You might get lucky and make a couple, but to flush it out where you've got to compete at this level, you have to have just basic freedom to let it go and not worry about missing. Obviously that's what Brad did last Sunday, last Saturday and Sunday over in Hartford and that's what he was talking about. Q. Did you change anything about the claw BILLY ANDRADE: Claw is gone. Claw is out. Claw is dead. You know when I went to it and what probably happened is I just had that freedom and I let it go, all of a sudden it just progressively got worse and worse and worse to where I wasn't letting it go anymore, so I went back to conventional and went back to a shorter putter and a lighter putter. I seem to have a little more feel with it. Q. When did you make the decision to change? BILLY ANDRADE: After I had 50 putts in the first round last week in Hartford shooting a 76. That was it. I was done. I said, I can't do this anymore, I have to try something different. I think that's good. When you're not playing well, you've got to figure it out. You've got to try new things. So I went to the putter I'm using now on Friday, and putted much better, shot 69, and went with it from there on. It was one of those putters that I went down in my basement in Atlanta, I was at home, the kids started school on the 15th of August, so I went down there and started looking around. I took a few with me and one of those is the one I went with.
TODD BUDNICK: Let's go through your birdies. BILLY ANDRADE: I birdied the second hole. I drove it in the left rough, laid up, hit a sand wedge about 15 feet and made a nice putt there. 7, I hit an L wedge from 75 yards to about 12 feet and made a nice putt there. I had chances at 10 and 12 and didn't make them. 13, I had 156 to carry the bunker, 165 to the hole and I holed an 8 iron. And I haven't holed a shot, I can't remember the last time I did. When it left the club, it never left the flag, it was going right at it. It was a beautiful shot. Then the last hole, I hit it just in the left rough and I didn't have a very good lie. So I laid up with a wedge and hit an L wedge about three feet and made that. I like what you said, Jim, last week. You said guys that are playing well don't make bogeys or aren't making many mistakes and today was a day where I didn't make many mistakes. When you're not doing that, you're obviously playing pretty well. Q. What did you do on 18? BILLY ANDRADE: I had 210 to the front and 218 to the hole. It was sitting down and it was in that hanging lie on the left, one of these. I had no shot, really. It was a dicey play. I asked my caddie and he was he liked laying up. He liked my chances over there. Playing here the last couple of years, I've gone for it every time in that situation and I've hit it either short or hit it over, and you're dead on that hole, if you obviously come short, but if you hit it long there's no bargain either, especially with that pin front left. So I just laid up. Q. That new putter you are using, have you ever won with it? BILLY ANDRADE: Picked it up last year in Lumber 84 when I was trying some other putters at the time. Still haven't won with it but I hope to.
TODD BUDNICK: Thank you, Billy.
FLASH QUOTES from: STEVE LOWERY, 66 (-5) one shot back Q: How many birdies and bogies? SL: Seven birdies and two bogies. (66, -5) Q: Any key birdies? SL: I got off to a good start. I birdied the first three holes and then birdied five, so I was four under through five. That was probably the key to my round. Q: Coming in at the end of the round? SL: Coming in I shot three under on the back. I birdied 12- made a nice putt on 12 and also on 13 and there on 18. Thirteen was probably the longest putt�about 25 feet. Q: Course conditions? SL: Very good. The wind was down this morning and I had a little advantage I think. The greens were holding after the rain. It was pretty much ideal. Q: Can you talk about the tournament and being in Boston? SL: It�s a great tournament for only being here two years. They are doing a great job and the weather is cooperating. You can�t beat that. An Interview With: BRINY BAIRD, 66 (-5) one shot back TODD BUDNICK: 5 under 66 in the first rounds of the Deutsche Bank Championship. Briny, a nice day out there, six birdies and one bogey. Talk about today's round. BRINY BAIRD: Today's round was solid. I played well, fairways, greens, made some putts. I played well. I played like the weather was; perfect.
TODD BUDNICK: You're 138th on the Money List and kind of looked like, make a few cuts, miss a few, you haven't been able to BRINY BAIRD: Yeah, I haven't really gotten anything going this year. It's been somewhat frustrating, since the first event of the year. It's the way golf is. I'm not yeah, you think about it, but I'm not overstressed about it. If you play well, things take care of themselves. That's easier said than done sometimes. I think I pushed the panic button somewhere around Honda, believe it or not, that early in the year and I was like, holy cow, holy cow. I've gotten off to good starts every year I've been out here, and this year just haven't hit it as good. Usually I'm ranked up there pretty high in greens in regulation; I'm not right now. So things are turning around. I'm starting to swing at it a little bit better. It's not like this is an indication of things are turning around. I think I've been playing relatively well for the last couple of months, just the way the year has gone, a couple good events really, finishing 14th for the way the year has gone is a pretty good tournament. It wasn't good a couple of years ago and it's good now.
TODD BUDNICK: Is it the iron play in particular, you talk about greens in regulation. BRINY BAIRD: It's a combination, it's greens in regulation, you know, it's missing a key putt here or a key putt there. It's something as simple as a couple of times I've actually hit a lob wedge in the water, two different events where you're like holy cow, what did you just do. It's things like that, you can't build on any momentum. I started to recently, just playing solid event after solid event, and actually played pretty good last week at Hartford and missed the cut by one. Q. Talk about your late tee time yesterday, I noticed you got off the course very late, and a 6:50 tee time, can you just talk about the quick turnaround; do you like that, don't like that? BRINY BAIRD: I'd rather not have that quick of a turnaround, but it happens out here, doesn't happen often. The TOUR does a relatively good job of trying to make sure that if you're one of the last tee times, you don't get stuck with one of the first tee times. I'm not sure how they go about making sure that doesn't happen, but it doesn't happen often, is all I can say. Obviously I'd rather get a little more sleep than that. It would be nice to be able to stay awake a little bit longer and play with both my daughters, but I have plenty of time now. Q. So would you say it was a help today? BRINY BAIRD: Oh, it's never a help to get off the golf course to get back to your hotel at 8:45 and get up at 4:30, that's never a help, but I don't think it bothered me. If I played bad, it would have bothered me. Q. Have you played here both of the other years of the tournament? BRINY BAIRD: Yeah. Q. I thought. So is the course playing any differently? It was pretty firm BRINY BAIRD: It's a little softer. Q. How does that factor in what you think the scoring is going to do? BRINY BAIRD: It's not going to make it play more difficult. You know sometimes I think we quickly judge the fairways are not rolling and the golf course is playing really long, but the greens are somewhat receptive and you can get the ball close. In years past when you were trying to hit the fairways, the ball would bounce so much, tumble; that a lot of times the ball tumbles no into the rough and when it's firm it's harder to hit fairways.
Right now the fairways are a little soft. They are drying quick. The other day, I think it was just on Wednesday, Tuesday or Wednesday I drove out here and No. 10 looked like a river was running right through the middle of it so the golf course has drained unbelievable. It's in great shape and the ball is starting to roll a little bit. Q. You're still carrying the photographs on your bag? BRINY BAIRD: Correct. Q. Is Canon still sponsoring that? BRINY BAIRD: Yes. Q. Last time I asked you, I think you told me that they had found a couple of people as a result of that, can you update us? BRINY BAIRD: They have never found a girl that I carried on the bag the week of the Byron Nelson, I think her name was Kimberly Dudley and this was two years ago, she was found on a tip unrelated to the golf bag. No one has ever been found looking at the bag, saying, you know, I saw that kid. No one has ever been found that way. That would be a miracle if that ever happened. It's possible and that's why they do it, but what I think the main thing they do is it raises awareness. You know, the phone number, 1 800 THE LOST gets out there and there's a chance you can see that kid and recognize them, but the awareness is just as important. Q. There is a general feeling this is a long hitter's course, a bomber's course; do you agree with that? BRINY BAIRD: Yeah, I've love to be a bomber. This golf course is set up perfect. The golf course is long, there's plenty of room to hit your driver on a lot of the holes. Yeah, I would agree with that. Doesn't mean a guy can't play it. I don't fall into the category of I'm not sneaky short either, so I don't think there's I've always said I don't think there's a golf course that is tailor made to my game. I just don't think there's any golf courses that don't suit my game. I don't hit it far enough to where you can call me a bomber and I definitely don't hit it short enough where you're like, look how short he hits it. Q. Would you agree with the general feeling so many seem to have that only the ten percent, the longest hitters would be the favorites out here? BRINY BAIRD: Yeah, I think the guys that hit it a long way are the favorites every week. That's my opinion. The guys that bomb it are the top players in the world.
TODD BUDNICK: Let's go through the birdies. No. 10? BRINY BAIRD: 60 footer and hit the hole, jumped literally five inches in the air. Would have been 15 feet past the cup and that's not an exaggeration. Ask Ian; he laughed for five minutes.
TODD BUDNICK: What did you hit into there? BRINY BAIRD: Driver, real weak 6 iron 7 iron, real bad 7 iron, just flared it way right, 60 feet right. 14, I hit a real good drive, perfect drive, got down to the level part and hit a 6 iron in to 12 or 15 feet, hit a good putt. 18, I hit a good drive, middle of the fairway. Hit a 5 iron, not a real good 5 iron to the front right and the pin was front left, so a good 2 putt from 60 feet or. 1, hit a 5 wood and a pitching wedge to probably about 20, 25 feet, nice putt. A slippery putt, one your trying to hit down there somewhere close and it happens to go in. Next hole, I hit a good drive and a really good 5 wood right in the middle of the green, and it rolled back, pin is up top right, I don't think you'll see too many balls get close for eagle. A real good 2 putt from 40 feet or so up over a big ridge.
Next hole I hit a 6 iron, it was a perfect club, to about 15, 18 feet.
Bogey on 5, I didn't hit a real good 7 iron, came up short, rolled down. You guys know the golf course, there's a lot of sections you have to hit it into the bowls and if you don't reach it, you're putting up over these big ridges. And I didn't hit a real good 7 iron and I hit just an awful first putt and had about a 10 or 12 footer left and missed that putt.
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