home

jobs

	products recent interviews FastScripts archive about ASAP Sports

Our Clients:

Browse by Sport

Find us on

Subscribe to RSS

Click to go to
Asaptext.com

View our
e-Brochure

CHRYSLER CLASSIC OF GREENSBORO

October 14, 2004

Carl Pettersson

GREENSBORO, NORTH CAROLINA

CHRIS REIMER: Like to welcome Carl Pettersson to the interview room. Well, local N.C. State grad. Shot a 67 today. Just talk little bit about your round to start.

CARL PETTERSSON: Well, I started off good. I birdied the first hole, which is always a bonus trying to get under par as quick as you can. And I played good all the way through. I think I birdied number 6 again to get to 2-under and then actually dropped a shot on 10, that was a little disappointing. But I played real good from there on in. I had four more birdies from there and shoot 5-under.

CHRIS REIMER: Take some questions for Carl.

Q. What's been the difference? The last few weeks this continues a pretty good run for you?

CARL PETTERSSON: I wish I knew. I played good all year, just haven't quite got it together like I have the last couple of weeks. I finished 10th and 5th there. And I think I finished 10th the week before that. Such a small margin. I've played fairly decent all year, but last couple weeks I've managed to hole a few more putts here and there. And that's really the difference.

Q. Justin said you had a few people encouraging you from the galleries from your early high school days or maybe from your N.C. State days. What was that like?

CARL PETTERSSON: Actually my parents are here this week. They have moved back to Sweden and they came back over and a lot of guys from my home club came up and cheered me on.

Q. From Stockholm, you mean?

CARL PETTERSSON: No, from here in Wake Forest. Because that's a --

Q. Any Greensboro people or just Raleigh, Wake Forest people?

CARL PETTERSSON: Mostly from Raleigh, but there's a few guys from Greensboro I haven't seen in a long time. And I think I was just trying it catch up with them here.

Q. Had you played here much when you were a kid? Had you played here at all?

CARL PETTERSSON: Yeah, I played a couple times but I couldn't, I remember some of the holes before but mostly I played high school matches at Brown Park and my parents were a member at Star Mountain, so I only played here a couple times. A long, long time ago.

Q. So Star Mountain is the place you played?

CARL PETTERSSON: Yeah. Yeah. My parents lived out there.

Q. And you played there more than anywhere else?

CARL PETTERSSON: Yeah. From '96 to '98 we lived here. No, wait. '94 to '96. So.

Q. What about Justin's hole-in-one? He said you told him it was one of the best hole in ones you ever saw.

CARL PETTERSSON: Yeah, it was a pure shot. It was a 3-iron and it never left the flag stick. You can't see it because the green's elevated, but they started screaming and hollering up there so we figured it was in. Otherwise it would have been the biggest wind up ever.

Q. Do you live on the 17th hole at Star Mountain?

CARL PETTERSSON: Yeah. Yeah. I did. Yeah. With my parents. When I was in high school.

Q. How much that help you out when another guy is playing well like that in a group?

CARL PETTERSSON: It's great. Patrick didn't have a good round. Justin was 5-under and so was I. So it's good when you get a group going like that you kind of feed off each other. It kind of carries you on.

Q. Does this tournament hold any significance for you since it is back where you spent some time?

CARL PETTERSSON: Yeah, a little bit. It's always nice to play in your home state. I live in Raleigh, so, so you know, the nice thing about it you don't have to fly anywhere. I'm staying at home this week. I'm just driving back and forth. But it's just nice to play in your home state.

Q. What time did you wake up this morning?

CARL PETTERSSON: Actually last night I stayed up here because it was an early time. But we just had a baby five weeks ago, so I want to go back to see the little one and hopefully get some sleep.

Q. Have you thought about TOUR Championship?

CARL PETTERSSON: Not really. My goal at the beginning of the year was to finish top 40.

Q. Top 40?

CARL PETTERSSON: 40. Yeah, which gets you in the Masters. And I still got a long way to go, but that's still my goal for this year. I need a strong finish and I think I can do it. I got to play well, obviously, but I think I can do it.

Q. It's not necessarily a long way to go, put together three more good round and you're in.

CARL PETTERSSON: Yeah, exactly. A win and I think I get in the TOUR Championship. But that's three more days, so. We have three to go before that. Just try to play good the last three weeks and see what happens.

Q. How is it playing out there?

CARL PETTERSSON: Fairly easy today. The morning there wasn't any wind and the only thing it was a bit chilly this morning, but the greens are soft and rolling nice and so it's probably about as good conditions as you're going to get.

Q. Which side of Raleigh did you live on? How far a drive is it?

CARL PETTERSSON: Just north of Raleigh. A place called Wake Forest, it's probably 30 minutes from downtown.

Q. So how far from here?

CARL PETTERSSON: From here? It takes me about an hour and 20 minutes. If there are no cops.

(Laughter.)

Q. So you're driving back tonight?

CARL PETTERSSON: Yeah.

Q. Do they really call you the Swedish redneck?

CARL PETTERSSON: Yeah, I have been called that. It probably started in high school and carried on in college.

Q. What prompted that?

CARL PETTERSSON: I don't know.

Q. You got to have an idea?

CARL PETTERSSON: I like some of the country music, I dip and that. I don't know, I like some of the simpler ways of life, I guess.

CHRIS REIMER: Take us through your club selection on your birdies and bogeys here. Starting with one.

CARL PETTERSSON: One I hit a driver and then I hit a sand wedge to about 25 feet. I made a nice putt.

6, I hit a drive in the left rough, and I hit a 9-iron to about 12 feet and made it.

Bogey at 10. I hit it in the fairway bunker on the right. Duffed it actually and then chipped up and 2-putted.

Birdie at 11, I hit a driver and then I hit an 8-iron in to about 25 feet and made it.

13 is a par-5. I knocked it on in two. I hit 3-wood, 3-iron and 2-putted for birdie.

14, I hit a driver and an 8-iron to about six feet and made it.

Par-5, I hit driver 3-wood, 3-putted for birdie.

CHRIS REIMER: Bogey on 16.

CARL PETTERSSON: 16 I hit a drive right off the cart path and it came into the trees and I chipped it out. Bumped it on the green and 2-putted.

CHRIS REIMER: A good shot from the rough on 18.

CARL PETTERSSON: Yeah, I hit a drive into the right rough and then a good 9-iron to about 7 feet. I made it.

CHRIS REIMER: Any other questions?

Q. What was your state of mind coming to the 17th tee? Were you hacked off or had you put it, put the bogey behind you by the time you teed it up?

CARL PETTERSSON: Well, it was all right. Actually it was a bad break there on 16. I hit a drive a little right and it hit the edge of the cart path and kicked it way right. It hit the edge of it and it kicked it dead right. So, but that's the way it goes. You get some good breaks and some bad. I tried to shake it off. And I knew 17 was a tough hole so I thought I would just try and make a par on 17 and see what I could do on 18.

Q. What was your last hole-in-one before that -- I'm sorry. That was a stupid question. Okay. You can go ahead -- when is the last time you saw one?

CARL PETTERSSON: Last time -- I actually had one at the Nissan Open this year. That was last time I saw one. There was a car there but I didn't get it. It was only on the weekend.

(Laughter.)

CHRIS REIMER: Thank you, Carl. Enjoy the rest of the week.

CARL PETTERSSON: Thank you.

End of FastScripts.

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297