U.S. SENIOR OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP

June 30, 1994

Jim Albus

JIM ALBUS: I had a bogey. One bogey. I bogeyed 6, with 2 good shots that released off the back into one of the little Pinehurst hollows and so was one over; then I birdied 7 and 8. 7 from about 5 feet and 8 from about 20 feet.

JIM ALBUS: I hit-- on the par 3 I hit a 3-iron, a 4-iron -- excuse me, hit a 4-iron on 7 -- on 6 to about 5 feet, and then I hit an 8-iron to 20 feet on 7 and holed it. I birdied 9 from about 5 feet. I hit an 8-iron on the par 3. And I birdied 12 from about 3 feet and 13 from about six feet.

JIM ALBUS: At 12, I hit an 8-iron. On 13, I hit a 9-iron. On 15, I had about 8 foot eagle putt. I 2-putted for about 8 feet for birdie on 15. That was it. I that was 16, excuse me.

JIM ALBUS: Right. Yeah, I bogeyed 6 and then played under from there, right. I had some chances.

JIM ALBUS: I played well. I bogeyed the fifth hole.

JIM ALBUS: Not really. I bogeyed the fifth and I wasn't very happy because I hit two good shots. 2 -- probably the two best shots I hit all day and wound up with a bogey. I wasn't happy about that. But then I hit good shots on the next couple of holes and got them in. Once I made a couple of putts I felt like I was going to do good. But I played well. I have been playing well, and I hit the ball well again. I had a lot of chances on a lot of holes and that is all you can ask for out here. It didn't play very tough. I am surprised the scores aren't lower, to tell you the truth, because it is not playing hard. The greens are soft and not very fast, and I think that is the main thing that they have here right now. The fairways are not real narrow. They are generous with the fairways, wider. As wide as any Open I have ever played in. It is in beautiful shape too. I am surprised the scores aren't lower.

JIM ALBUS: No. I didn't notice a difference, no. Some of the fellows were complaining about that?

JIM ALBUS: Could be. I didn't notice it. I know I left a lot of them short on both nines, so...

JIM ALBUS: I missed the second fairway, just one, and had a lie in the fairway. So even that was fine. So I was in position to play all day and that is always the key when you are playing in an Open or on a difficult golf course, I think, driving the ball down the fairways; number one priority. And so far so good for me.

JIM ALBUS: It keeps statistics on that, so you can't lie. You can't bluff through that. But I am longer than average; there is a couple of fellows that hit it significantly longer than me. Dent is in a class by himself and Terry Dill, I think, is quite a bit longer. Other than that, I am up there with the rest of them. Further than the other guys.

JIM ALBUS: Yeah, it is always an advantage that I think is a minor advantage compared to hitting it in the fairway and hitting the ball in close and putting it good; length is a nice thing to have, but it is a minor advantage. That is the way I have always looked at it; much rather hit it down the fairway. It is really true in Opens.

JIM ALBUS: No, not at all. I feel lucky, in fact. I have had good bounces and I don't feel that way at all. I think what he means is that there is somebody else that has played a little better each week. I have played the last four weeks. I think I am 50 some odd under par and haven't won a tournament in the month, so someone each week has just shot lower than me; if that is being unlucky -- somebody is just playing a little better, is all it is.

JIM ALBUS: Fourth. I think it is the fourth. I might be wrong.

JIM ALBUS: I am playing well, obviously. This past month has been good golf for me. I am shooting a lot of low scores and, but that is pretty bad. Was I that bad, really? God, God.

JIM ALBUS: No, that is right. Boy did I stink? Geez.

LES UNGER: Another question?

JIM ALBUS: I don't know Mr. Els. I heard he has got a bright future, though, that is what everybody says. You know, as far as wondering why I haven't done well before, I have played in a lot of regular U.S. Opens too with not a lot of success. I made the cut and played decently at Winged Foot in 84, I think it was. And I always thought I was a good driver of the ball, but I think in the Open, you have to be a very straight driver. I think this course they are more generous off the tee. So I think that would account for maybe you know, letting some people play that -- some of the opens they bring the fairways in very, very narrow and the rough very, very high and I don't think that is the case here. I think it is quite generous. Plus when they are soft like this, it makes them that much wider because the ball is not bouncing and it make the fairways even wider.

JIM ALBUS: Yeah, I like to play with him. He never stops talking. You know, it is really something, and the first tournament I would won, I was paired with him and I think it helped me. I was nervous and I think he relaxes you. I think he talks, you know, the motor mouth, I think is to make himself relaxed. I think the more nervous he gets, the more he talks, I notice. It doesn't make any difference who it is, he will talk to you. But he is great to play with.

JIM ALBUS: I hope so. I get that kind of feedback. I get an awful lot of people shaking hands and coming up saying they relate to me and they'd like to be doing it or they hope to be doing it or something they can do, I hope that is true and I sure get a lot of, you know, get a lot of relationships with guys that are, you know, in that profession, sure.

JIM ALBUS: Well, I won a major tournament before him. So it was sort of-- we were parallel in that respect and same with Wargo, you know, it is nice. It is just -- it goes to show you that there are other guys out there aside from-- aside from Trevino and Nicklaus, and maybe also it gives a little bit more respect to the club pros. That part of it, I am proud of.

JIM ALBUS: That is not true. They were very supportive. The tour was giving me a hard time about it; not my club, the club was very supportive. In fact, I almost stayed at the club and they wanted me to stay and play you know, a part-time -- fairly full-time schedule, but no, I had no problem with my club at all. The tour gave me a hard time about it because I hadn't committed in time and they have a commitment deadline I hadn't committed for the Dearborn tournament and then the week before, I won enough money to become exempt and then they changed it and let me come and play. You know, because I wasn't eligible when I was supposed to commit. I wasn't exempt and so you know, they made an exception and let me come and play. They knew I couldn't win anyway so they made me come and play. Here we go.

JIM ALBUS: I played a club pro championship here around 1985, 1986 sometime around there, and didn't do well. Must have been playing badly because I remember it being much harder than it being now. I remember I was spraying the ball a bit. I remember it being narrow and it is not that narrow now.

JIM ALBUS: I think it is a wonderful golf course. I think it is beautiful. If you don't like this golf course, you don't like golf. It is just beautiful. Nothing fancy; nothing tricky, it is all right in front of you. I guess I shouldn't say that because the greens are tricky. I think there are spots on the green where the ball runs away, and can get away from you, but I think it is a wonderful golf course.