THE HONDA CLASSIC

March 11, 2000

Jim Furyk

JIM FURYK: Kind of a after weird day for a good round, I didn't make any back-to-back birdies. They were kind of spaced out throughout the round birdying number two, I think I hit a driver and I think it was wedge about 15 feet behind the hole, made that for birdie. No. 4, hit driver left, fairway bunker there, I got a good lie, hit 3-wood to the right green-side bunker and then blasted out to about two, three feet made that for birdie. 6, I hit a driver and 3-iron to about ten feet, made that. Then No. 9 hit driver and 3-wood and 8-iron to about six feet, made that for birdie. Hole was playing just a smidge (sic) longer today. 11, hit a 9-iron to about 15 feet. 13 almost drove it on the green five yards short of the green, pitched up to three feet, made that. 17, I hit a 3-wood and 8-iron and made about a 5-footer, 6-footer.

JIM FURYK: They are facing opposite ways. But --

JIM FURYK: No. 2 yesterday I hit sand wedge into 2, so it was at the time I played yesterday afternoon it was maybe blowing a smidge harder. This morning it was still a little wet from the rain. And the wind picked up for us, it was breezy on 1 and 2 now -- not much, really didn't pick up until through 5. Then 6 -- we got about three, four holes in. Just kind of started get-- it was increasing -- gradually increased throughout the morning until we got to about 6, then it was whipping pretty good. But I don't know what the rain is going to do out there. Just started raining when I was on the 18th green so it was nice to kind of get out of there before that.

JIM FURYK: I played most of my day through the wind, so like I said, the wind was still blowing pretty good on 3, 4, 5 and whipping pretty good on 6. So, yeah, it is definitely possible. It is not like I am not that much better than anyone or anything like that. Guys are a lot better.

JIM FURYK: Not really. I think everyone is, to an extent, as far as you get on streaks where you could be contending for tournaments and you have a chance to win. That way, your putter gets hot; there is days where you go out there, hit good putts don't go in; other days they all seem to go in. You can be streaky with the putter. I am not a real hot -- like real on-or-off type of person. I think my game is pretty consistent and there is sometimes -- there is only a real minor variation or a little minor change that take you from being 25th in an event to contending and having a chance to win, just might be attitude, you know, few putts going in here or there and changing your attitude a little bit. But there is really not that big of a difference sometimes.

JIM FURYK: Not really. My attitude has been pretty good this year. It definitely didn't hurt my attitude. (laughs) But it is nice to get off to a good start this year and already have a win under my belt. We are not even through the Florida swing yet. I am definitely in good spirits. It is a little draining and not really as much physically as mentally. I was a little tired and I found myself yesterday. There was a few times where I made some bad plays and just kind of -- I don't know if it was concentration or -- but mentally I made some poor plays yesterday. Kind of on the first side I played from about my third to nine holes, I just made some bad swings and just things that I shouldn't have done as far as picking the right club. But, you know, hitting the ball in the wrong spots basically where I knew better, just kind of lost concentration. So was a little mad. I actually had to go out and grind it on my second side just to make the cut. Made the cut by one shot. I didn't score that well.

JIM FURYK: I feel real good about it. Last week I played very well and played super, actually - the best I have ever played probably under pressure, under the gun, was that last nine holes, so to be able to be playing well is great. Then to be able to do it under the gun and when you have to hit the best shots, definitely gives you a lot of confidence. Today I think I had to adjust a little bit yesterday, but we really haven't been playing in all that much wind. We have been playing in a lot of wet conditions where golf courses -- where you want to hit the ball high and coming out yesterday and getting a little breeze, I wasn't flighting the ball. I don't think my trajectory was quite as well as I wanted it. I worked on that a little bit last night. Today I really hit the ball well; hit it as well as I have in the last couple of weeks today.

JIM FURYK: It was mostly to the left. If anything, there might have been a little bit of help in it, but it was mostly blowing real hard right-to-left, so a shot where the pin is in the front right, you don't want to start way out right of the green, let the wind bring it in. You want to hit a shot just right of the pin and hold it against the wind; then let it fall off.

JIM FURYK: I was surprised that the cut spin I put on the ball held the whole way. Ball never veered; just stayed on a dead line; never -- the winds never pushed it to the left. So was obviously very happy.

JIM FURYK: At the end his was wind kind of caught a -- it started pushing it left. His was a tougher angle coming to the right side of the fairway where I was kind of working my way back into the wind.

JIM FURYK: Well, I guess that is -- all depends on the guys that are teeing off about right now and how they have played. I think it depends on exactly how they go out and play today. If J. P. goes out and shoots 6-, 7-under, you know, I can start the day the same amount of strokes back, then that is all -- also depends, last week I came from pretty far behind, but there was only one guy ahead of me. If there is -- if I find myself in 15th or 20th position, I have to catch a whole bunch of guys. That is going to be tough if they are pretty far ahead. You have a more realistic and better chance if there is just a few guys, but -- I have no idea what those guys are going to do or how the conditions are going to be for the rest of the day. We just have to wait it out four hours; I will know about where I stand.

JIM FURYK: We all have pride, wanting to go out -- our motivation really is we want to play as hard every time we go out, and I said I made some poor mistakes, but you are human, you know you are going to do that once in a while. I have really felt like -- I feel like I am swinging real well right now. I am putting real well. I feel like I have the opportunity to try and take advantage of that and go out and fire a good number. Some days it happens and some days it doesn't. Yesterday it really didn't happen. Wasn't trying any less hard or just wasn't going into the hole quite as well today. It was opposite, like everything I did worked out; made the right decisions; Mike and I picked the right clubs. I read the putts pretty well and the day went real well.

JIM FURYK: In Hawaii, yes. It was a huge factor. In Las Vegas, the first two wins, not at all, the third win -- this past year it really blew hard on Saturday. I started the day with the lead. I shot 1-under and really separated myself from the field. There was only two guys that broke par that day. I am definitely not going to wake up rooting for the wind or anything, but if it blows, hopefully I will get myself around.

JIM FURYK: Not really. I have always been comfortable to know -- it is much easier to hit the ball low than hit it high. My ball flight, I think, really become much higher and much softer since I have got on Tour, I think you learn that naturally because the golf courses are long. The greens are very firm and fast and you really -- our Tour is definitely built around power. You have to hit the ball up in the air and have to pin the ball and stop it on the greens, especially with the new designed golf courses. I think I kind of taught myself over the past few years to flight the ball up and land it softer on the greens. But I am still more comfortable knocking the ball down and hitting it lower and I have always had a fairly flat trajectory so...

JIM FURYK: That is conducive playing in the wind. But it takes a while, if you are playing TPC Sawgrass on a calm day, you have to hit the ball high, no doubt about it. Then if you just, all of a sudden, immediately took you out of that the and threw you over to the British Open in one day, it would be tough to adjust and all of a sudden hit the ball low. It takes time to kind of feel through your swing and hit the shots that you want to.

JIM FURYK: I don't know if it would be tougher. It is probably just as even. To try and teach guys that hit the ball low to hit it high is difficult, but I have seen guys that hit the ball real high and long and they struggle trying to knock the ball down. It is probably equally as hard. Best players can do everything, whether they have to hit it high, soft, low, Tiger doesn't have any problems with any shots.

JIM FURYK: If you are going to do well, we are going to play in some wind -- we seem like we play in a lot of wind through definitely Hawaii; the Texas swing; going over and playing the British Open, it is -- we don't get tremendously poor weather to play in here, but if you are going to be a well-rounded player and play well throughout the year, you are going to have to play in all the conditions.

JIM FURYK: Probably not. (laughs).

JIM FURYK: Maybe, maybe I do, we will see how the leaders do, but no, I think that -- I don't think Tiger was thinking about winning six in a row. He was -- just teed it up every week with the idea that he came out to win and worked as hard as he could each week to try to win the golf tournament and it happened he got on a great streak and it added up to six when he was done. But I really-- I showed up this week playing real well from last week, obviously, and I want to do the same; want to get myself in position and try to win the golf tournament. You do that every week. You can't do that very often the sad point is.

JIM FURYK: I think -- don't get me wrong, I am not making any excuses the way I played, it was my fault. If I made some mistakes on that back side, it wasn't because I was tired or, you know, I just let my concentration lapse for a little bit and made some bad plays, but I think that coming -- I haven't played that much - won five events out here now and I have only played a U.S. Tour -- I have played three of the weeks after --- once in Japan, so really, after I won the Hawaii event, I played in the L.A. Open; then after winning Doral, I came here. Those are the only two experiences I have. Actually it was fairly easy here because the area is being so close, we are dealing with pretty much the same local media, all the national media, same guys are here, so I wasn't even called into here on Tuesday, I think, because I had already talked to everyone, I would assume. There really wasn't any extra demands on my time. Just it is kind of -- it is an emotional experience and it definitely drains you. If you are coming out finishing 50th in the field, if you are missing cuts, it doesn't wear you out that much. It is not as tiring, but if you get yourself in contention week-in and week-out for two, three, four week stretch, better you play, the more stress you have; the more you are competing trying to win events, I think the more tired you end up being. Winning the tournament last week, it wore me out a little bit. It is my job to get some rest, go to sleep. I know that I am playing well so I don't need to overdo it as far as hitting a million balls and killing myself on the practice tee. I think I need to get some rest, get my mind geared into this course, and what forget about Doral. What I need to do is play TPC Heron Bay and what I need to do to play well here.

JIM FURYK: I went to dinner and then went -- Mike, my caddie and Tabatha and a friend of mine from Jacksonville was coming down on Sunday night anyway to spend a couple of days here at the event so he got there kind of right after I was in the media room there, we all went to dinner at Joe's and we hung out a little bit at South Beach for about an hour or so, then found our way home.

JIM FURYK: No, actually the tournament was great. They called ahead, told them we were coming. The maitre'd there is actually a golf fan, he played in the Pro-Am at Doral, really loves to see some of the players and he treated us great.