U.S. SENIOR OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP

July 23, 1998

Jay Sigel

JAY SIGEL: Well, it was rough. Survival on a lot of holes. Of course to play with Jack is really a thrill. I mean, it is doesn't get much better than that. But the golf course is in great shape. But the kikuyu grass is something else, to say the least. I mean, if you knock it in the rough, it is almost a question of, well, do you go for the green or you better lay-up. I mean, it is pitch-out in almost -- in a lot of cases.

JAY SIGEL: Sure. I bogeyed 2, hit pretty good shot into that green, I thought. It just played so long. It was cool early, did not get it up-and-downed. Parred 3. Bogeyed 4. I hit it left of the green, pitched it up and did not make the putt. 5, 6 par off the bunker. 7, 8, pars. 9, par. 10, I hit it up about six inches which was kind of surprising for my first birdie of the week, I think. Then I birdied 11 which was fun. I hit 3-wood, 4-wood, sand wedge about two feet. Then 12, hit it just a couple of feet out of the fairway and bogeyed that hole, but it was a very, very fortunate bogey in that I went right under the ball, my second shot coming out of the rough and the ball went in the hazard and I was fortunate enough to play it. That hazard has about 2-foot high grass, so I was very lucky. Almost made par. The next hole drove it in the rough, pitched it out to about 80 yards; hit it on the green about four feet, made that for par. Parred 15, 16, 17 -- 14, 15, 16. 17, I birdied from about two and a half, three feet. And, 18, good 2-putt par from the front of the green. So, 71.

JAY SIGEL: I guess that is true. Some of the greens are drying out and the speed is a little different in spots. So I think the putting will be more difficult than anything and the way the greens receive the shots, so, of course it is the standard wind that we have had each practice day, morning; not too much wind and in the afternoon, you know, this is not much of a wind, but it is a breeze, I guess it is probably 15 miles an hour.

JAY SIGEL: Well, I will take it. I will take maybe a couple over the rest of the way assuming the course stays the way it is and the weather stays, with some breeze in the afternoon, I don't expect we will get much rain.

JAY SIGEL: Well, Jack really feels -- looks uncomfortable even walking and it is painful to watch him. It is a shame. He played very, very well. I think he played, you know, in many cases he hit the ball better than I did. He putted very well. Unfortunate double-bogey at 15 for him. If we remove that, pretty doing gone good score with that pain so, he is a champion to say the least.

JAY SIGEL: Well, I think the question is what is the risk reward; what kind of a distance do you have; where is the wind; where is the pin; I mean, can you get it on the green or are you better off from 70 yards. You can put it in a position -- I have seen some -- we have all seen some funny shots this week coming out of the rough. So if you put it in there and you hit a strange one coming out of there you don't know where you are going to be, so I mean it is -- you almost got to be sure to get your bogey and go on. You want to avoid double-bogeys for sure because there aren't many birdie holes out there.

JAY SIGEL: I have played a couple of times socially over the last 25 years. I always watch the television, you know -- I guess the Nissan tournament is here, always found this an interesting golf course. I got to believe it is playing probably as tough this week as it has at least from what I have seen, but just a few times socially.

JAY SIGEL: Well, we all know it was going to be tough. I think a lot of us thought that pars were good scores so it really -- it is difficult, I mean -- you have got to drive it and you have got to use driver on an awful lot of holes, so you have got to get it in the fairway. Then you have got to get it on the green. Then you have got to putt it. So, it is tough. But it is a four-round tournament. I think a lot of us knew that pars, you know, you are going to make some bogeys, don't make any doubles, you will make a couple birdies, hopefully, and turn that score in and play again. So it is tough. It is tough. But it is -- I am surprised to be in here talking to you if you want to know the truth. I didn't think -- generally the scores get a little better maybe as the week goes on because players are more comfortable; are more -- more comfortable, I guess, with the condition and what is going on, but it is tough. But it is not impossible. I mean, it is fair.

JAY SIGEL: Well, oh, I thought I could shoot even par. I didn't think -- the first round, I think maybe sometimes it is set up a little bit easier. I think we want to be sure we get the field around; things like that. I think the last day oftentimes you see, you know, it is Sunday of the Senior Open, pin placements, so, I think this will probably be our easiest or one of our easiest days. Tomorrow will be not that -- it is going to be easy, if you know what I am saying. Did I say that okay?

JAY SIGEL: Yeah, Jerry, is that all right? Jerry, you know what I am saying?

JAY SIGEL: Well, it really hurts your personality, too, I will tell you. You learn to not want to get in there again. I think the short shots are really the strangest. Let's assume you have a short little pitch shot, chip shot, and you walk up and all of a sudden you see the roots moving for three or four feet around, apparently the root structure goes underneath and creeps. Well, obviously your ball is in the vicinity, so you don't want your ball moving of the -- then when you take a few practice swings, the same thing happens, and it is almost -- it kind of scary. Then you have got to be sure to get the ball -- the club on the ball and it is really -- it is like -- I don't know how to describe it. It is like -- well, I am from the east, so we don't have anything like that. Six-inch rough, I mean, this place tougher than 6 inch -- 6 inch -- I am trying to think of the right grass, 6 inch bent or blue grass, it plays tougher than zoysia because -- well, I guess I don't know what it is a weed or -- it is -- I mean, it is tougher than crab grass. I don't know where it came from, but they ought to send it back.

JAY SIGEL: Oh, yeah. You can come away with some pains trying to hit full shots. Twist the club and you are not sure if you can really get your club on the ball for the proper distance. You know, if you are trying to hit a full shot, so you maybe take what you can get, what you can plan and then go from there. I don't think you will see too many shots played from the deep kikuyu. Jack played some great ones around the greens today. He really hit some great shots.

JAY SIGEL: Well, the USGA has been nice in that they have cut, I would say, probably twice this week already, I would guess. I don't know how it grows. I don't know how much they are going to water. If they don't water much more, I don't know what kind of a growth pattern it has. I mean, I don't -- I think they will try to maintain what they have got and if it grows, they might cut it some more. But it is such a -- it is not necessarily the height of it as it is the strength of it. And what the ball can do. I mean, we lost balls in practice, if you drop a ball straight down it goes right to the bottom of it, so it is a bit peculiar that way.

JAY SIGEL: Oh, I think even par is a great score, you know, four days, assuming the same conditions.

JAY SIGEL: How often does it happen other places?

JAY SIGEL: I probably saw three or four balls lost this week. I think I might have lost one. It doesn't really happen other places that I can remember. I mean, yeah, you can lose a ball that hits a tree and you don't know where it goes. But I am talking you saw it go in the rough and there are no trees around, it is very difficult.

JAY SIGEL: It is. I think the fairways rough is probably three and a half. Some of the rough around the greens is higher.

JAY SIGEL: No, we were losing it in the fairway -- the fairway roughs. Thank you.