CANON GREATER HARTFORD OPEN

July 31, 1999

Ted Tryba

TED TRYBA: I birdied the 1st hole. Hit a 6-iron in there about 10 feet. My second birdie came on the par 3 5th. I hit a 5-iron to about eight feet. And then I birdied the 6th. I hit a 9-iron to about four feet. Then I birdied 8. It was a 45-foot putt. It was the longest putt I've made this year. Then I hit a pitching wedge on No. 9 to about eight feet; made that. Then I birdied the par 5 13 about six inches. I went for it in 2, missed the green; chipped it up to about six inches and tapped it in. 14, I hit a pitching wedge in there about three inches. 18, I hit a sand wedge in there about four feet. Is that all of them?

TED TRYBA: I almost made bogey on 15. I hit a 5-iron on Friday's round, and it was back of the bunker. So I thought I could hit a little 4-iron just slip it in the right side. The slope was such that I could pitch it in the fairway sitting down in the swale. They were sort of giving it to us. Just kind of hit it in the right side; it went straight. It just was real fast and firm, and I didn't realize it. I had like a 56-yard bunker shot. I made sure if I missed it, I missed it short because I didn't want to blade it into the green. Then I chipped it up about three feet and made the putt. That was as close as I got.

TED TRYBA: I think your mindset is experience. Like I've played out here for -- I've seen guys be 13-under after two rounds and make $5,000. Likewise, I've seen guys make the cut on the number and shoot 10-under on the weekend and finish top five. So, you always have to realize that at any moment, when you have three holes or six holes to play, you can birdie all three or all six. Anything can happen. I think the key to the whole thing is you've got to never quit. If you're not going to do that, then don't come out here.

TED TRYBA: I just didn't feel good. I'm not going to make an excuse. I flew to Seattle and flew back within a day and a half of each other. I didn't play very well. I felt a little shaky out there. I hit some good shots, but I couldn't keep it all going.

TED TRYBA: The Fred Couples Wells Fargo. You just never get caught up on your sleep. You just never feel right. It takes you a couple days.

TED TRYBA: 5:00 in the morning on Tuesday night. And then we had to tee it up and play Wednesday Pro-Am in the heat. Just try and go home and get some sleep. It just doesn't work.

TED TRYBA: The next morning, I woke up Friday morning, I felt pretty good. I just said: If you just go out there and play your game, play it smart, you may be able to get it to 2-under, shoot 4-under, which isn't out of the question and make the cut and make a positive thing out of this week. And I ended up popping a 6 (-under) and shooting a good number today, and now it's just a totally different situation.

TED TRYBA: I know that characteristically, for this tournament, it doesn't take a lot under. I'm very surprised at the scores, because it doesn't take a lot under to win here. As you can see, it's playing a little shorter because the ground is a little harder and faster. So the scores are a little lower. So I figured if you can just go out there and shoot something like 2-, 3-under and get myself going, get it to like 6- or 7- (under), I could have a shot at a good finish. I had no idea I would go out and shoot 8-under and have a chance to win the golf tournament. Everyone hopes for that, but you try to be realistic and try to go out there and just march along and play by the rules and keep your head about yourself and not make mistakes.

TED TRYBA: No. I've played great ever since the day I left Memphis. I went from Memphis right to the U.S. Open. I probably played just as good in the U.S. Open from tee to green as I did in Memphis. That's it without any question of a doubt. I played with Tom Lehman. You can ask him how good I hit it. It was a joke. The problem was at the U.S. Open, I was hitting it so good, I felt like could I attack a pin. I just felt like from any number I could hit a great shot. And anything I would hit would hit the flag and roll off the green, and I would have an impossible chip shot. And I went to the British Open and it was the first time I had ever gone to Scotland. And that was probably the toughest venue they have had in 30 years' so a lot of guys got beat up over there. As I learned around the green, everyone gets it up-and-down. The guys who make them are the guys who are on the leaderboard. The guys who miss them are the guys who are going home. It's like, that's the way it goes.

TED TRYBA: No. Because I kept driving the ball in the fairway. I kept hitting good shots. I just couldn't score. I couldn't get the ball anywhere near the hole with the conditions. I took some time off. I just said to myself: Just keep doing what you're doing. You're not doing anything wrong. You're just getting bit by some bad situations.

TED TRYBA: That's with anybody, though. I think I've made 13 out of 20 cuts. I've only missed seven cuts this year. That's a pretty solid year. I'm kind of happy with that. I look at it like: You're going to have some weeks you go out there and it's not your course. You have some bad breaks; you have some bad decisions; you make a bad shot; you make a bad swing; you finish 35th or 50th. What's the difference. You can't judge a person by one week. I hope I'm not going to be judged by one week. I hope that people are not going to judge me by one year, but by a career; how did I play for ten years. Every year is like this. Every career is like this. (indicating roller coaster motion). It's just peaks and valleys. You've got to take it when you get it. And when you don't get it, you've got to work hard on the bottom and work your way back up.

TED TRYBA: I don't think so. If the race were over today, I would be a hero and I would have won the race and we would be opening champagne today. And you've got to go home for 12 hours and sleep. And anything can happen. And you've got to wake up the next day and tee it up again. It's a four-day deal. Not like a one-day extravaganza and a winner after four hours.

TED TRYBA: I don't think it should affect anybody. I think it should be better for everybody, because it will be cooler out. I think it is hot out there, and they will be happy to tee it up earlier.

TED TRYBA: That day worked out nice for me. I was pretty fortunate. But it rained so hard down there (Memphis), I can't believe they even got it ready for Monday, honestly.

TED TRYBA: It's been getting firmer. You can start seeing spots on the fairways that's getting a lot of stress in it. I'm sure they will water it just to keep it alive and keep it going. I think it's playing real nice. I think the guys like the way it's playing. We've been getting a lot of dry conditions. But they have been watering the greens, but the course is playing really nicely, I think.

TED TRYBA: No. I always do the same thing, regardless of the situation. I always prepare right. Always try to get my sleep. Always try to wake up. You'll always try to keep it the same.

TED TRYBA: Once again I've seen guys win from five behind. British Open champion won from seven behind? 10 behind? You can never think you're out of it. Now these are extreme conditions. I realize that. But you know, you just go out there and try to shoot as low as you possibly can. If you're playing 18 holes, just play hard for 18 holes. Give it your best. Don't leave anything out there. Think hard. Work hard. Concentrate, and do the best you can.

TED TRYBA: I'm just in the beginning of it. I was lucky enough to get out here when I was 21 years old. And I got my, you know, my face kicked in a bunch. But I was a young kid. And those years were good to me, because I learned a lot and I learned how to prepare; so now, I'm 32 years old, and I'm just starting my career, I feel like. The advantage I have, I have eight years ahead of everybody else who is starting their career at age 32. That's eight years out here on TOUR, and I had two Nike years. That's a big advantage. A major advantage, I feel. I was lucky to learn it early.

TED TRYBA: The hard part is -- I still do, yeah. I still do, yeah.