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FEDEX ST. JUDE CLASSIC

May 26, 2005

David Toms

MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE

JOAN vT ALEXANDER: Thank you for joining us in the media center at the FedEx St. Jude Classic. You had an opportunity to play the course today and see all the changes. You are back for a three pete, you had a good finish last week; do you feel good about your game?

DAVID TOMS: Yes, I do. I played good last week. The golf course here that we are playing this week is really different. The wind is a different direction. The tees are lining up different. Then it is going to be very difficult to get the ball close to the pin. The greens are firm. It is night and day compared to what this place has been in the past. It is a different style of golf.

To me, with this wind it seems like it is playing a lot longer. Didn't seem to have as many short shots in. It will be a little more difficult. I think they accomplished making this golf course more competitive. I think that was part of the plan. They have got that for sure.

Q. (Inaudible)?

DAVID TOMS: I have heard that a couple of times. I don't know. I still feel good. I drove the ball good today. I kept it in play. Never got it close to the hole with the pins in the middle of the greens. I don't know how tough it is going to be when they put it on the ends. You really have to pay attention to your club selection and know when to be aggressive. But, at the same time, you got there a lot of variety. There is a lot you can hit different shots. I have hit sand wedges around the green. I have got 7 or 8 irons, bump and run. You have options now. Before you were mostly hitting a flop shot around the greens.

So, I don't know that it plays into any particular style of player. I think you still have to do a little bit of everything to play well. We'll see. I am anxious to get started tomorrow to see how I do, and everybody else does on the redesign. I think there are some unknowns out there.

Q. (Inaudible)?

DAVID TOMS: Well, I mean, I think it won't take long to figure out. You can tell what the scores are doing if you pay attention to them. I don't pay attention to them very often. I am not going to look at the scoreboard. I think everybody can look at the leaderboard to see how they set the course up. There are going to be some pins that you can't get to them. The greens are so firm right now, you have to play away from it. You have to play for par. You will see guys take a more conservative approach to playing this golf course than ever before.

Q. (Inaudible)?

DAVID TOMS: You can fire at just about every flag. Although the greens got firm last year towards the end of the week. Typically in years past here whether you were hitting a 7 iron or sand wedge, or 6, or 5, you could hit it where you wanted to. As long as you got it on line and had the correct distance it would stop next to the hole.

Now it is how much release will you play. If you are in wind, not as much as downwind. There are some greens where you can bounce the ball up. It is hard to do that when it is tucked over a bunker. There will be some holes where you will not be able to attack it.

Q. (Inaudible).

DAVID TOMS: I don't feel that. What I do feel is that I have support here. I am playing well. I get in contention and people are behind me. I get excited to play here. I think all that factors in to having successes.

What I have to do now is just put myself in a position, and give myself a chance. Depending on how the course is playing, I will go out tomorrow and guys will shoot low and I might have to alter my game plan going to the next round.

Right now I don't the way the greens are I don't see somebody will always play good. As a whole field, I don't think you will see scores as low as they have been here.

Q. (Inaudible)?

DAVID TOMS: You know, that is another golf course were I look forward to playing there every year. A lot of it has to do with wanting to play golf, and feeling confident at a particular golf course or a particular tournament. That is a lot about what happened last week for me, and being comfortable with the shots off the tee and shots in the green. Just move to plays where I play well. You can draw on that experience.

All of that went into last week on the club just a little. It seemed to help me square up the club but that is really all just me wanting to play, being ready to play, and being excited to be there.

Q. (Inaudible)?

DAVID TOMS: When he is playing well he drove it the ball extremely well. He hits it long and straight. That is a pretty lethal combination on the Tour.

The golf courses are set up now where you can hit the ball a long way, and get it in the fairway on top of that, it sets you up.

I have heard him say to the press that he hadn't felt great about his putter in the last couple of years. To me, when I play with him, he looks like he can play everything. To me, he has the total package. He has enough power. He is a power player to me. People don't consider him to be one. He hits it just as straight and far. I think he hits it a lot straighter than some other power players. He has got the length and can do it all.

Q. (Inaudible)?

DAVID TOMS: Yeah, they are flat. I thought that there would be a lot of putts made because of the greens being flatter. The more that I got around and watched the guys putt, or watch myself putt, the greens are so new they don't have enough grain. There are a lot of putts where you say they can go either way. I misread quite a few putts out there today. There is not much slope in the middle of the green. It wasn't established yet. It is totally misleading. You have got to factor that in too.

The greens being new, you have to give them some time to let the water run here and there, and they will be easier to read. They are pretty flat. I think you can see a lot of long putts going in. You can make some long putts. Overall, I don't know that there will be putts made that normally wouldn't be.

JOAN vT ALEXANDER: Are you all set?

Q. (Inaudible)?

DAVID TOMS: That was big. It was as timely as any win that I have had in my career. Just to be able to come back from an injury, I think you have that doubt in your mind. I definitely had that at the time. I have played well since. The physical part is behind me.

Obviously, it is big for me to be able to do it 3 times. You know, you don't get that opportunity very often, certainly I don't. This is my one chance. I look forward to the challenge. No reason why I can't play well again.

JOAN vT ALEXANDER: Thank you.

End of FastScripts.

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