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THE HONDA CLASSIC

March 11, 2004

John Riegger

PALM BEACH GARDENS, FLORIDA

JOE CHEMYCZ: John, a 5 under 67 today around the golf course. Excellent playing today given the conditions. I know the golf course has gotten a lot of attention this week. Maybe just talk about how well you played it and what the positives were for you today.

JOHN RIEGGER: The positive was I wasn't most of the golf courses, you try and think your way around, positioning the ball on the green. And I told my caddie after playing nine holes in the practice round that the best way to play this golf course is just hit it at the flag. If you don't hit a good shot, then it's probably going to go off the green. If you're trying to play safe, more than likely the ball is going to run off the side of the green because they are so severe.

So that's just and I didn't think. I just went out, hit it at every flag and just was fortunate enough to hit a lot of good, solid shots that ended up next to the hole.

JOE CHEMYCZ: Is that the key for you today, your iron play into the greens?

JOHN RIEGGER: Definitely. Like I said, I just got the yardage to the hole and just aimed it right at the hole and didn't worry about it was going to go off the green or not. I hit a lot of good shots.

Q. Did you play only nine practice holes then?

JOHN RIEGGER: I played nine holes and called my wife and asked her if she could bring the kids down and go on a vacation. I was not even going to play. She's like, I can't do it this week. I have my oldest daughter going through driver education. "You're down there, stay down there and play and see what happens." Kind of changed my attitude and came up with a game plan. Like I just figured, you know, what the heck and just see what happens.

Q. Just weren't pleased with your play, or what made you not want to play?

JOHN RIEGGER: I just didn't care for the golf course personally.

Q. For the reasons you stated?

JOHN RIEGGER: Well, the greens, they are very severe, and you basically have just got to accept that you're going to hit some good shots that aren't going to end up on the green and going to be in some funny places and have some tough chips and trying to putt it from off the green. I mean, my thinking was, I've been playing really well and just the nine holes that I played Tuesday, the golf course just fit my eye and I didn't want to be out here spinning my wheels. I mean, I didn't see that kind of score, put it that way. I think the only reason the golf course was playable today was the TOUR officials I think did an outstanding job of setting up the golf course. They played a couple of par 4s from the up tees and they have softened the greens up quite a bit and the hole locations weren't three and four steps from the edge; they were more toward the middle of the green.

You know, it helped. I mean, both the guys I played with still had some shots that hit good shots that ended up off the green. I was just fortunate today that I didn't have any of those.

Q. You could see it being set up to be very, very tough?

JOHN RIEGGER: Well, I think that if the TOUR officials wanted to, we could tee it up and never finish. But I don't see them doing that because if they play the golf course, got the greens hard and fast and the wind blows, there wouldn't be anybody to show up to play this tournament ever again.

They are doing a great job with what they have done so far. I think they will continue to set it up the same way. They might have a few tougher pins and stuff. A lot is going to depend on the wind.

Q. Do you remember an instance where you kind of reluctantly went into a tournament and did really well in the past?

JOHN RIEGGER: Not really. I mean, I had to tee off on the 10th hole at 6:50, so I had to leave the range at 6:30. I got out there and I had hit about 20 balls, couldn't see; it was still dark. Got out there and hit my tee shot on the first hole and plugged in the bunker. So my attitude starting out wasn't too well. Then made bogey there, hit a bad shot on the next hole. Walking to the green I told my caddie, "Well, this is going to be a quick nine holes today." I was already thinking, this wasn't going to be too good and I'm already thinking, "I'm just going to quit after nine."

I hung in there, made par on that hole and made a couple of birdies and kind of started getting a little bit loose then and started hit something good shots.

Q. Anything fall into place around 16, 17 when you finally started putting that together?

JOHN RIEGGER: Well, basically, like I said, starting that early, warming up in the dark, you can't see how you're hitting it to make any kind of little adjustments on the range before you play. So you kind of are going out there just cold turkey more or less. I just kind of got a rhythm after four or five holes, just hitting a few shots and seeing the ball fly.

Q. 6:50 is a brutal time, did you not get a chance to shave or are you growing a beard or what's going on?

JOHN RIEGGER: No. I shave on Mondays and Saturdays whether I have to or not. (Laughter.) That's what everybody asks me every week. So sticking to that.

Q. It seemed like the better scores were on the front nine, does that make sense to you, having played it one time around, is the front nine going to be easier all the way?

JOHN RIEGGER: Well, I mean, I had not seen the back nine until today. The back nine is definitely, the holes are longer. You've got three or four par 4s that are 470 or longer. Then you throw a par 3 in there that was a 3 iron today, too.

The front nine, obviously you can score a little bit better on. You can reach both of the par 5s and if they play the third hole up where they did today and make that hole a little bit more playable, I mean from the back tee, it's 240 and with the green the way it is, I personally don't see how they can play it from the back tee.

Q. Probably going to try, I guess.

JOHN RIEGGER: Well, I don't think so. I mean, the green is so that's probably the most severe green on the golf course. To have a 240 yard par 3 with the green they have there, we were hitting 8 irons there today and still had some really funny looking putts.

JOE CHEMYCZ: Take us through your start on 10. Take us through your round with birdies and bogeys, with the bogey first on 10.

JOHN RIEGGER: Like I said, I hit it in the fairway bunker off the tee on 10 and it plugged. I just had to blast it out on the fairway and knocked it on and 2 putted.

12, I hit driver, 3 wood just short of the green and chipped it up a foot from the hole.

13, I hit it in the fairway bunker and hit it out short of the green. Chipped it on, 2 putted, probably about feet.

14, I hit driver, 6 iron about six feet there.

17, I hit driver, 3 wood short left in the rough just short of the green. Really didn't have much of a shot there and just kind of played it safe. If I tried to go at the hole it probably would have rolled over the green. I just hit a safe shot and ended up making about a 20 footer there for birdie.

1, I hit a 3 wood off the tee and hit a pitching wedge three feet from the hole and made that.

4, I hit driver, 8 iron, six feet and made that.

Both par 5s the first par 5, I hit driver, 3 wood just short of the green and chipped it up, I think four feet from the hole and made that.

Next par 5, I hit driver, 2 iron just off the front of the green and chipped it on and made about a 6 or 7 footer there.

Q. Are any of those par 5s reachable in two?

JOHN RIEGGER: Yeah, I was just in the rough on 5, the first one on the front. I was just in the rough. It was into the wind today. But I think you could knock it on you can definitely knock it on on 6. I had iron in there. I just didn't hit a very good second shot and was only a few steps off the front of the green.

No. 12, I don't know, I mean, it was too early in the morning. I was just trying to hit it straight at that part of the day. Depending on the wind, basically, all of the par 5s, it's just all depending on the wind. If they are not into the wind, you should be able to knock it on all four.

JOE CHEMYCZ: John, thank you. Play well the rest of the week.

End of FastScripts.

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