FORD SENIOR PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP

July 12, 2003

Tom Watson

MODERATOR: Tom, 1 under 71 today, and we have a three-way tie heading into the final round. Couple general comments about the rounds and then we'll go hole by hole.

TOM WATSON: Well, it was the first round I drove the ball just off -- just out of play a little bit either in the shortcut or in the ruff and just didn't get the ball in the fairway enough times to be aggressive. I had to play defensive golf most the day. So I was a defensive round today. I did what I had to do to keep close. It was a much different round than yesterday, where I was aggressive. Today was a defensive round. I made three good par putts. One from about 35 feet at number 2. I made a good 10-footer in 14, and about a 6- or 7-footer at 16. That was kind of -- if I had to look back at my round, those three putts right there and the fact that I hit a 6-iron out of the ruff on number 14, over that wide hazard and got to the green, that was a shot of the day for me; plus those three long putts, and I made a couple birdies. That was about it. All of the birdie putts were long birdie putts, and I was struggling to putt. Don't ask me why. I know you are.

MODERATOR: What's the difference between yesterday and today.

TOM WATSON: I can't tell you. Don't know. I wish I could. I'm tied for the lead, and that's what I -- if you asked me at the beginning of the tournament would I like to be tied for the lead after three rounds, I would say by all means, sure. I don't feel my golf swing is that far off. Today is one of those days I didn't get the ball played. A lot of edges happened off the tee ball.

MODERATOR: Questions?

Q. Tom other than McCollough and Stadler, no one else seemed to be putting anything together a whole lot out there. Is that the pressure or is it just the kind of golf course?

TOM WATSON: It's just the kind of golf course. As I've said all along, this is not an easy golf course. The greens are very narrow and require very accurate approaches. There is a lot of hazard out there. There is a lot of water. You start off and you've got water at 2 and 3, and you have water at 5; and 6 you have water; 8 you have water and you have water at 11 and 12 and you keep on going. 14, 17 and 18. You've got a lot of water, a lot of hazards that you've got to negotiate, and it's not an easy golf course.

Q. Given what's happened in the past regarding Bruce, and because of the crowd, how much would it mean to get a victory with everything going on?

TOM WATSON: One of my goals is to win again with Bruce in my bag and cherish that hug in the 18 hole. I hope tomorrow is the day. There are several other players, especially two of them, right now who have other thoughts in mind. So I'm going to have to play and shoot in the 60s to win this golf tournament tomorrow. Bruce will be right there helping me. If I shoot a good score tomorrow and win, then it will be an emotional win for me. Very much so.

Q. Does it help to have all three of you tied in the same group, or can somebody else maybe sneak up on you from their 7 and 6 under position?

TOM WATSON: I like to play with the players I have to beat so I know exactly what they're doing and also you get a feel of how they're handling the pressure. Didn't do any good playing Bruce Lietzke a couple weeks ago.

Q. Can you go through the bogey on 17?

TOM WATSON: I hit a 3 putt on 17. I drive through the fairway again like I did yesterday and 8-iron out, and I just put it through the fairway in the short grass. I hit a pretty good lie. I didn't want to be flying the ball back to the pin. I wasn't quite sure what it was going food. I left it about 40 feet short and knocked a terrible first and second putt and missed it by about 6 feet. That's how you make bogey.

Q. You putt very well and so did Craig and Mike?

TOM WATSON: You have to to win. I did putt well and again I feel good about my putting. I hope that it there was a slight change in my putting stroke and I hope it continues.

Q. (Inaudible)?

TOM WATSON: Yeah, 27 seconds.

Q. Craig said obviously you and him have played in the same group many times in a lot of tournaments. He's good friends with you and Bruce. He said they'll try to beat your brains out. Do you feel the same way?

TOM WATSON: I feel exactly the same way. We're out there competing. That's what I'm out here for is to compete. I enjoy the competition. It gets my juices flowing, and that's what I live for. I enjoy the competition.

Q. I watched Bruce today I guess more carefully than I did before. He just seems to be doing everything that he's always done as a caddy. He picked up divots for other guys. Are you surprised at all?

TOM WATSON: No, I'm not, so. Bruce is the consummate perfectionist when he does things. He doesn't leave any loose ends. He continues to do the same. He's out with his family. This is his family. He loves it. Today playing Andy and Bob Murphy, we go back a long, long, long way on the tour, so Bob got off to a terrible start and Andy did the same, so it wasn't happy for them, but it was good playing golf with them again, and Bruce enjoyed that. Again, he does his job better than anybody out there. I think other caddies understand that too. Do it like Bruce.

MODERATOR: Okay. Tom, thank you. We'll let you go.

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