VOLVO MASTERS ANDALUCIA

November 7, 2002

Phillip Price

GORDON SIMPSON: All right. Well, Phillip, an excellent round today, 4-under par. You come here from America, having beaten the Americans, so it's been an incredible few weeks, hasn't it. Tell us about your last week's experience in the States.

PHILLIP PRICE: I realised when I went down, I thought initially I would only have to go through two stages, so I was quite happy to do that. The closing date came around, I realised I had to go through three stages of qualifying because I didn't meet any of the qualifying regulations.

So I agreed to go. I just about went all three stages, and I spent three days there, playing ten holes. They cancelled it on a Saturday and I had to go to Orlando the following week to complete it. So I wasn't a happy man.

GORDON SIMPSON: You said you were not feeling so great, so maybe it was a blessing in disguise.

PHILLIP PRICE: Possibly. I felt badly the first week but I felt fine the second week.

Q. Was this because of rain?

PHILLIP PRICE: Yeah, the course was just flooded.

Q. Where was it?

PHILLIP PRICE: At Red Wolf Run in Houston, Texas. And then we went to TPC at Heron Bay and called it a day.

Q. So how many days were you there longer than you should have been?

PHILLIP PRICE: Six or seven.

Q. When did you get back?

PHILLIP PRICE: I got back on Friday morning.

Q. I know you got through that third stage, but where did you finish?

PHILLIP PRICE: I finished third.

Q. Where is it now?

PHILLIP PRICE: I've got to go back to Orlando to play, somewhere in Orange County. Some Pink Panther name.

Q. Crooked Cat?

PHILLIP PRICE: Crooked Cat. I knew it was something like that.

Q. When is that?

PHILLIP PRICE: I leave on Monday and we start on Tuesday morning.

Q. How many rounds?

PHILLIP PRICE: Four.

Q. How many did you play in the first stage, four rounds?

PHILLIP PRICE: Four rounds, yeah.

Q. And then is it six in the final?

PHILLIP PRICE: Yeah, two weeks later.

Q. So you've got ten rounds to go?

PHILLIP PRICE: Yeah.

Q. Are you coming back again or staying out there?

PHILLIP PRICE: I'm going to come back. I don't know what I'm doing. I'm going through and I'm like, "What am I doing?" Maybe this isn't a good idea. (Laughing).

Q. Did any of the Americans say to you when you were out there, "Why do you need to be here"?

PHILLIP PRICE: Most of them. I think one of tournament officials said, "The regulations will be changed for next year, but you have to suffer."

Q. Were you the only European there?

PHILLIP PRICE: At that course, yeah.

Q. So if it changed, you'll just do two stages instead of three; so you'll be exempt through the first one?

PHILLIP PRICE: Yeah.

Q. Is that for the Ryder Cup?

PHILLIP PRICE: I'm assuming that's what they will do. (Shaking head.)

GORDON SIMPSON: Today's round, not many people got as low as you today, only one person, so you must have played really nicely.

PHILLIP PRICE: Battled well.

I started off fine. Then seemed to lose my way around -- as soon as I got on to the ninth tee, a few crooked shots, but I seemed to know where to miss them.

When I hit a few good shots, I capitalised with the put.

Q. Can we read anything from the fact that Alan Fine is here this week?

PHILLIP PRICE: No. He works with Bradley Dredge and Paul Lawrie, as well.

Q. What's he been telling you this week, anything different?

PHILLIP PRICE: Not really. I think for me, the one thing that he is always going to keep his eye on is that I don't get obsessed with my technique if it's not working quite right; that I don't try to change it. I guess if it's not quite right, which it probably wasn't today, as long as I don't start getting distressed about it, I can still manage to get it around, even if it's not perfect. Especially like I did today, I did start struggling today, but I didn't panic. I just thought, well, got to try to work around it.

Q. Where did you sort of miss it in the right places, as it were?

PHILLIP PRICE: 14, 16.

Q. What shots?

PHILLIP PRICE: Tee shots. 17 wasn't the ideal miss, but it was left and left is better than right.

Q. Were you in the bunker on 17?

PHILLIP PRICE: Yeah.

Q. And how anxious were you as your third shot spun left?

PHILLIP PRICE: I wasn't at all until the last -- it just seemed to take forever to roll the last little bit. Then for the last couple, I thought this could be in the water.

Q. How far right do you think you landed at the flag?

PHILLIP PRICE: Maybe 15 feet, 18 feet. Something like that. I was amazed it got to where it did. I thought it would just go long right.

Q. What were you hitting into?

PHILLIP PRICE: An 8-iron.

Q. Has that Sunday in the Ryder Cup changed your self-belief?

PHILLIP PRICE: Have to find out next year. Probably a lot. Just by the last nine rounds that I've played, even if it's not been perfect, compared to where I was before, I do sense a better self-confidence.

Q. Do you think this course sets up well for you?

PHILLIP PRICE: Yeah, this is perfect.

Q. Is that because a part of it is good for a battle?

PHILLIP PRICE: What, this course?

Q. Yeah.

PHILLIP PRICE: It's probably just, you need to be really good under course management and be accurate. So, let's say, usually, it takes the power play out of it and it's quite fiddley and there's a lot of awkward shots all the time.

Q. Are you still getting congratulations from people?

PHILLIP PRICE: Yeah. Yeah. (Laughing). It's nice, but I'm starting to get on with it.

Oh, letters you mean? The people who haven't seen me still go on about it, and there are a lot of people you don't see.

Q. What do you think of the 17th as a hole?

PHILLIP PRICE: I don't think it's a very good hole. (Laughs).

Am I allowed to say that? (Laughter.) It's too -- I played the AMEX and that front right pin last time was outrageous.

Q. Is it the green or the hole actual itself?

PHILLIP PRICE: It's the green, yeah.

Q. How about the drive to the 18th?

PHILLIP PRICE: I'd say a little bit too much luck involved. You know you're playing the hole and banking on a little bit of fortune. Quite difficult to be your best shot.

Q. What did you hit?

PHILLIP PRICE: I hit the driver. I hit the trees and came down. Quite playable.

Q. And it might not have been?

PHILLIP PRICE: Right.

Q. You hit the trees?

PHILLIP PRICE: Yeah.

Q. If you were to get a U.S. TOUR card, what would your schedule be next year, roughly?

PHILLIP PRICE: The plan right now would be to take the family over and play up to the Masters. Maybe stay there for three months. And then see if the family is enjoying it, and then I'll definitely come back for a while. I'll take a month off. Either we go back or we play Europe. Depends how much we've enjoyed the time we spent.

Q. What would your expectations be? What would be a good year over there, keeping your card, or a win?

PHILLIP PRICE: I think maybe a goal that I would set would be to be in the Top-30 money winners. That would be a realistic goal.

GORDON SIMPSON: Thank you very much.

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