U.S. SENIOR OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP

June 29, 2003

Tom Watson

Q. There has to be a level of frustration; you played so well. You said it so well after the first round: The only difference between your 6 over and an even par round was your putting?

TOM WATSON: That's right.

Q. And you played about the same every day?

TOM WATSON: I did play about the same every day. I put the ball in play. Today I hit the ball pretty close to the hole most of the day and I didn't come up with much. And it was an almost day. I felt pretty comfortable with the putter in my hands, just nothing went in.

Again, I have to give credit to the greens here because the greens here are amongst the toughest we play. There is not a question they have all sorts of bumps and humps and troughs. You could just be a foot this way, and the ball is going to break two feet, and you're a foot this way and it's going to be straight. It's a fun golf course to play. It really is. You are never quite comfortable out there on the golf course.

Q. You were six shots behind at one point today, you closed to win 3; what was your feeling as the momentum -- you still weren't making putts but yet you kept getting closer?

TOM WATSON: Well, Bruce was leaking oil today. He did not hit the ball in the fairway very often at all. I just kept on thinking, well, he's got to make some bogeys but the old engine wouldn't quit on him. He may have been smoking a little oil, spewing some oil; the engine just didn't quit on him today. An attribute to the guts that he has to pull it out when he is not playing well. That's tough to do.

Q. Two good tournaments for you, maybe the third time is the charm; do you think when you get to Dearborn you will be destined to win that one?

TOM WATSON: I don't know what to expect up at Dearborn. I hope I will continue to play as well as I am playing now. We will see what happens. Dearborn is a tough golf course. It's a Jack Nicklaus designed golf course that requires really precise placements in your second shot. There is a lot of hazards on there, a lot of water hazards. It's a minefield to try to get through if you are not playing very well.

Q. It's a tough course but not as tough as this one?

TOM WATSON: This course is a tough golf course. I'm happy, I thought 5-under-par would be a lock cinch win. It just wasn't this week.

Q. You talked about the difficulty of the greens; can you (Inaudible)?

TOM WATSON: Very, very difficult. There are greens that you can't be above the hole, and if you put the ball in the fairway you can control the shot so you are not above the hole. I played this enough times. This is my fourth major championship playing here. I have got a pretty good understanding of how to play the golf course. I just haven't gotten to the finish line yet.

Q. Bruce only hit seven fairways yesterday and five today, the prevailing pin seemed to be that you had to be in the fairway to hit a small green. He continually pulled magic out of the hat, how do you that?

TOM WATSON: I don't know. I ask him. It was one of those things. I expected -- it looked like he was struggling with his game starting off today. And I thought well, if I just put a little pressure on him, maybe make a birdie or two, he may falter a little bit. But he didn't falter. As I said, he was leaking a lot of oil, smoking and the engine still worked. He came in on two pistons but he still was moving.

Q. On No. 8 when he made the eagle and went up by 6, what was your thoughts there?

TOM WATSON: My caddy came up to me, Bruce, and said, weren't you six shots behind after eight holes last year. I said, no, I think it was five. So the next hole is a 2-shot turn around, he made a bogey and I made birdie, and 10 I missed a very makeable birdie putt at 10. The ball didn't roll like it did last year.

Q. I saw you shaking your head on No. 16 when Bruce went from the rough to a couple of feet from where he was?

TOM WATSON: I was laughing. We were laughing together. I said you're a dog, you're a dog going from the rough to two feet from the hole.

He said I fixed my ball mark, it's in the deep rough right short of the green there. It rolled up two feet from the hole. I'm not taking anything away. I've won golf tournaments playing badly like this, like Bruce did today, badly meaning not puting the ball in play, just using every tool in your tool box to get it done and that's what he did today and more power to him. You don't have to play pure golf to win golf tournaments.

Q. What were your impressions of the gallery and the community?

TOM WATSON: The galleries are great. This community got 100% behind this golf tournament. Everywhere I went in Toledo it was great. I have to say that I went to Mancy's 4 times to eat steaks. I got to know them very well over there. They had some of the best steaks around.

Q. A cheap commercial, but Adam's golf looked pretty good out there, 2 guys?

TOM WATSON: Yes, our red line equipment got front page today, didn't they? I will tell you I know one thing the driver that I'm hitting is and he some. It's a bomber.

Q. Tom, one last question: You really want to win the U.S. Senior Open, Bruce said he doesn't plan to defend the title next year, what do you think about that?

TOM WATSON: I don't understand your question.

Q. Well, you really want to win this tournament and Bruce has won it but he says he is not planning to defend the title next year, he is going to take his family on vacation?

TOM WATSON: I don't know what to say.

End of FastScripts....