THE HONDA CLASSIC

March 8, 2001

Scott Simpson

SCOTT SIMPSON: I just putted really well today. I made a lot of putts. I made a lot of birdies; the highlight of my round. I hit the ball pretty good overall. Just trying to keep it out of those fairway bunkers and I was able to make the putts for birdies.

SCOTT SIMPSON: Well, I had a year off last year for breaking my ankle and it didn't heal correctly, and I had to have surgery at the end of July. Spent two and a half months on crutches. So I didn't start playing until -- I didn't start hitting balls until maybe the middle, end of November. So I figured, you know, it might take a while to get back. So I've just been working hard and started with an 80 in Hawaii. So it's gradually been getting better and better. It's just tough. It's just tough. There's so many good players, and to miss a year, try to come back when you're 45, I mean, I knew that's not an easy thing to do. Fortunately though, with a year off my enthusiasm is real high. I'm looking forward to playing and I'm practicing a lot. That's probably what's most important out here, anyway, your attitude, how you are going about working at it. So that part's good.

SCOTT SIMPSON: Well, not much today. Yeah, I guess just consistency. And I know in the past few years, I think a lot of times, especially when you get in your 40s, it's not that your body necessarily breaks down, but you lose some motivation. I know when I was young coming out here, I worked really hard and practiced a lot and there were not many distractions. And then when you get older, there tends to be more distractions, more things to do, and your kids get older. For me, I spent a lot of time with them. But with a year off, there's nobody clamoring for your time while you're sitting at home. It was a great time to be home and now I'm really looking forward to playing. I don't think there's a whole lot different from my game now than when I was playing real well. It's just a matter of, you know, getting a little more consistent, and I didn't play great every week back when I was playing good. So, you know, I'm just going to keep working hard like I did back then. Now my son plays golf. So that's been more fun. He helps get me out there. To me, it's just playing and practicing a lot.

SCOTT SIMPSON: I did. I did for a while. Now it's gotten back to the point where it's pretty natural. But when I first broke my ankle, it was supposed to be six weeks and I was supposed to get over it. And that was the end of '99, I guess. So I thought I would be playing in Florida last year. But the ankle just never healed up. And I could actually play in that period after a month or month and a half. I could play, but I would have to walk through the shot. My ankle could not support going through the ball. So I would have to either walk through it or I would hit it off my right side. Then when I came back after the surgery, my ankle just wasn't strong. It's my right ankle. So the same thing. I tended to hit a lot of shots where I could stay on my right side. I just couldn't push off so thin I would hit big pull hooks, usually. Not a good shot.

SCOTT SIMPSON: No. I can still feel it when I'm walking sometimes, but as far as playing, it doesn't bother me at all. It's gotten really good. I mean, I had to have the surgery, unfortunately. It just wasn't healing up right. But I think I'm on the right track now. It's going to be fine, I think.

SCOTT SIMPSON: I was skiing. Just kind of hit -- doing aerials, you know. (Laughter.) Just landed wrong on the triple-saukow (ph-figure skating). I just followed my daughter down a blue slope and I fell wrong.

SCOTT SIMPSON: I'm going to try to play out here as long as I can, especially since I had my year off. So I'm just doing to try to play up until I'm 50 and then hopefully go right on the SENIOR TOUR.

SCOTT SIMPSON: Oh, yeah. Yeah. Yeah, because there's too many guys out here that knock it 40 yards by me every time. Yeah, it will be fun going out there. Yeah, I turn 50 right when my son goes to college. So it works out perfect for me. Me and my wife will hit the road for something. But yeah, I look forward the SENIOR TOUR. I think it would be great. Good competition, play against all the other old guys. But I'm going to try to play out here as long as I can. I've got I guess about five years left. So I'm going to do what I can. Who knows what that will be. I bogey on 2. I drove it in the fairway bunker. I hit a lousy shot out short of the green. I hit it up about 30 feet and missed the putt. Birdied 4. I hit a wedge about 10 feet. Then I birdied 7. I hit a wedge, pitching wedge about, probably about 12 feet. And then 8 was a 5-iron about 30 feet. And 9 was a sand wedge six feet. Then I had a lot of pars. Birdied 14. Sand shot about six feet. 16, sand wedge, six feet. 18, I hit an 8-iron probably about 25 feet.