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SHRINERS HOSPITALS FOR CHILDREN OPEN

November 6, 2016

Rod Pampling

Las Vegas, Nevada

THE MODERATOR: We'd like to welcome our 2016 Shriners Hospitals For Children Open winner Rod Pampling. Rod, started the week off hot with that 60 and then capped it with a really, really great putt on 18 there.

ROD PAMPLING: That was very exciting, and obviously the week got off to a fantastic start. Dream of those sorts of starts. And then to finish it was just another dream on top of the first round. It was -- to make a putt like that on the last is, I don't know how often as kids we do that to ourselves on the putting green trying to make a putt on the last to win the tournament. And to actually do it was, yeah, great thrill, a great honor.

THE MODERATOR: I've heard you're somewhat superstitious. We're in Las Vegas where people bring superstitions from all over the world. Is there anything this week that you maybe did differently?

ROD PAMPLING: Yeah. First I think it was Friday I switched markers halfway through. I had a Leroy Petry, who is a medal winner for the Wounded Warriors, so I used his old marker. Then today I was -- I actually had been texting with Phil Tataurangi, who won here quite a few years back, and he told me to dream as if I was in all black. So I just happened to have a four-leaf clover coin, and that's what I used today.

THE MODERATOR: It's been more than a decade since you won on the PGA TOUR. How is this feeling right now?

ROD PAMPLING: Yeah. It's a thrill to be back here again. I didn't think it would take this long after '06, but it's a funny game, and things happen. There was a few chances, didn't work out. But to come back after last three or four years and to get this again is a huge reward for just the hard work we've done, and just for the family support, friends support, coach Alex Murray and Gary back in Aussie. It's a team effort, and it's going to be awesome to catch up with them and celebrate.

THE MODERATOR: With that we'll take some questions.

Q. Where did you find the tenacity to hang in there those last few holes? You had 15, you had that situation with the stage, and of course, 16 you had all sorts of issues. And how did you find the tenacity to stay in this thing?
ROD PAMPLING: Well, you never lose tenacity. It's in there. It's always there. It's whether you get the opportunity to bring it out. And I was in a great opportunity to bring it out, and 15 was such a great tee shot. I kind of left myself in a little dicey spot, but you know what, I made a great putt. The putter worked hard for me coming down the stretch. And 16 I was extremely proud of that. Didn't get a good break off the tee. It was a bad shot, so I guess I deserved it. But just to get it up and down from 115 meters out was -- and that's what I have been doing in the last two months is getting myself into trouble, but getting out of it, and thankfully that confidence that I had and just wanting to win. And that definitely helped.

Q. Talking about coming down the stretch there, and you'd seen those guys hole some big putts early in the round. You made some mistakes early. Is there any stage you had doubts or were you pretty positive the whole way?
ROD PAMPLING: No. I was positive the whole way. You know, obviously, I don't know what the odds are on those two guys making those putts on the second hole. That was unbelievable. But it was kind of interesting. That relaxed me a lot just to see those two putts go in. I was like, well, you know what, it's not going to be like yesterday. It's not going to be the 1 or 2-under. You're going to have to go low. So I was very calm after that. The first putt on 10, that was just a shocker. It was just one of those, nothing you can do about it. And so I let go of that. And then on 12, I had a pitch mark (indiscernible) ^ for my ball. So it check might have looked badly on TV, but I wasn't worried about it at all. It was just kind of one of those deals. So yeah, it's -- sometimes you amaze yourself at what you can do under the gun which hadn't been for a long time. And it was great. The work I'd done with my wife over the years, it kicked back in again real quick. It sort of gives me some confidence when it needs to come.

Q. Can I ask you about the putt on 18? How were you sort of gauging that?
ROD PAMPLING: I didn't want to give Brooks a chance. It's funny, I'm not sure -- I paced myself out in the Aussie Open last year when I made that monster. I just made sure I just slowed myself down and looked around at the crowd and just relaxed. I didn't worry about the putt. I wasn't looking at whatever. I was just walking, just slowing myself down, exactly what I did there. So it was great to have that memory in my head. And I just trusted what I'd been working on with my putting with John Sinclair at home. Just trust yourself. Just get back to like when you were a kid. That's what we were trying to do, just look at it, feel it, and when I hit it, it was just -- you know, you hit some putts and you think it's good. When I hit it, it was like, wow, it felt pure. And just to see six foot out going in the middle, it's hard to describe the feeling that comes with that, but it was a lot of fun. I hope to do it again.

Q. (Indiscernible).
ROD PAMPLING: That's good. I'm glad to stay here. It's funny, I was talking to Jerry Kelly at Jackson, and it was just the way he had to fight, he said he didn't want to go out with people feeling sorry for him. He wanted to still keep playing hard. And that's why I was like, you know what, you gotta fight hard. I don't want to go out thinking, oh, Pampling, he's still out here just throwing in numbers. I knew I could still win out here, and this is fantastic, and it justifies the hard work we've put in. So I'm looking forward the next few years.

THE MODERATOR: Well, Rod, you end the streak of five consecutive winners under the age of 30.

ROD PAMPLING: Good. Very happy to do it. The young kids -- you know, it's amazing, golf is in a great place right now. There's so many young kids coming out that are just amazing talent, and just to show that at 47 you can still win out here. The course was playing great for me. It was firm and fast, which I need that to still compete. I'm don't carry it as far as those guys do. So the course was fantastic, and it was just -- it's great. The young guys win enough, so I'm glad I can put my hand up for the old guys.

THE MODERATOR: Well done and congratulations.

ROD PAMPLING: Appreciate it. Thank you.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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