DORAL-RYDER OPEN

March 3, 1999

Eduardo Romero

EDUARDO ROMERO: Well, it is a good, good experience. It is a dream for me after -- the night before I am playing with Greg, I am dream, really dreaming, you know, about Norman, it is one of the top guys in the world. And say, well, I have to be quiet, concentrate, that is what I say to myself. And, well, I sleep very badly the night before. Then when it start to play very nervous, the first hole I can't hit it. Normally it would hook and slice. I can't concentrate. Then well, after 10, my concentration is come the other way, I am very concentrate and the 15th or 14th hole when he is 3-up for four to play, and they say maybe the match is gone, but he got a good putt for birdie for beat the match. Then I in the bunker, just chipped in the bunker, just two meters, and he missed for birdie then make for par. They say, well, I am still alive. Then I make a good birdie on the next hole, good par, he made bogey, 2 to 1. He miss a good chance to beat the match from 3 meters. 18th hole was fantastic. I say to my caddie: We need to make a birdie over here to go to playoff. Caddie said: It is very tough hole. I think you have to make par, my caddie said. Just try to make par see what happens. I say, well, but it is a Greg Norman, it is not, you know, and then well, okay, hit good driver to the left of the fairway and the flag is at the right, very tough position over there in the top. Then it is a little downwind to the left-to-right and hit -- normally I hit a 6-iron but I am very nervous, you know, I have one more club. And say my caddie: I like 6 - but you are very nervous, hit one more club. Okay, he gave me 7. I think hit the best shot in my life, high exactly where I want and the wind just moved the ball left-to-right. The pitch just on the green and then running just like this (indicating a foot) after that shot I feel very strange, you know, I don't know, I don't know why. But I feel very strange after I shot -- I am shaking after that shot. Because I don't know, like was a surprise for me, but, you know, but I am thinking that shot. I try to make that shot. But after that, it is like a shock, you know, I think he did bad shot to the left, to the right in the rough and then just chip for par. But I think it was good experience, very, very nice experience and I love that. Then I play the other day with another top guy like Mickelson, but in the night I sleep very well, very relaxing. It was completely different game. Different match. Because the problem for me was Norman; how to play with Norman, after that, it is more relaxing and it was good, too.

EDUARDO ROMERO: I phone home, well, the night I beat Norman, it is a different hours in Argentina, 7 o'clock in the morning, it was two o'clock in San Diego. God, I can't sleep because everybody call me from there at 6, 7 o'clock in the morning from Argentina time. It is 2 o'clock in the morning here. 2 o'clock, 3 o'clock, 4 o'clock, I say, come on, I have to sleep, I have to play tomorrow another match. Then it was my family say it is fantastic because TV and magazine and radio and it was very nice, it is not for me, for the South American golf, you know, this is very important, very, very important.

EDUARDO ROMERO: Yes. Well, I love to play here. It is my dream playing here because I know it is more tough playing here than Europe. I know that because over here you have to beat the 100 guy to win a tournament. In Europe you have to beat the 25 or 30 guy to win a tournament. It is completely different. Well maybe I try hard for stay here next year.

EDUARDO ROMERO: Oh, yes, yes. I don't know why, maybe because American players is the best player in the world, I think this is for like that.

EDUARDO ROMERO: Now, I try to make invitation for next week. I try get into The Masters. I don't know when -- think it is finish this week. Well I have to win a tournament maybe over here to get into The Masters. I will try my best this week because I never play in The Masters, never. Well, I love playing in this tournament. It is the best tournament in the world. Well, I only have one chance this week.

EDUARDO ROMERO: Well, maybe. Maybe not. I don't know. But I have to play -- I have a contract in Europe I have to play in Europe in the Spanish Open, Italian Open, but if can't play here, well, I prefer playing here.

EDUARDO ROMERO: Well, not yet. I am 54 in the world ranking. I think you have to take 50 in the world ranking for play in the TPC.

EDUARDO ROMERO: THE PLAYERS Championship, yeah, I think so.

EDUARDO ROMERO: Yeah, maybe. That is what I want. Tell you, it is -- if you can't play over here, now I think you have $150,000, I don't know how much money I have to make to play next year, but I am trying my best this year for playing next year. I am working hard.

EDUARDO ROMERO: Well, I am playing with Roberto three months ago. He still play good. Roberto is a great man. He is a good friend of mine. He was a good friend of my father. He is a pro, he died two years ago, but he is a very close friends to Roberto. Roberto helped me a lot and Roberto tell me your game is good for playing in America, you have to go to America. Well, I try two years ago when my father died and go to the school, finish second in the second in the Q-School in Greenleaf, but the year was terrible because my father is very sick and then die at the end of the year. Well, I have to try again, maybe next year maybe.

EDUARDO ROMERO: Well, so far just only two, last week and this week. Well, I have invitation for playing in international and I will try to make some more invitation.

EDUARDO ROMERO: Yeah, that is what I try, yeah, because I think if you play good this year, maybe I can go to the final school in December. It is much easy.

EDUARDO ROMERO: Yes, I am very, very confident. I feel the confidence more, you know, my driver was a problem before the last week, but when I play good driver last week just practice yesterday and the day before, driving is perfect now. I think it is the confidence. There is no change in my swing, nothing change in my swing, just it is over here, more confident.

EDUARDO ROMERO: Yeah, I think -- the tournament -- the field of the tournament is like this one, or the week before, there is a lot of good players playing in this tournament and that tournament, I feel different, you know, maybe it is the crowd over here, the people is fantastic. The people over here understand golf. In South America, not many people understand golf. Like Qatar, in Qatar just only one or two people, you know, but in South America, the golf is growing up and growing up, but I like playing over here for the courses, it is good and the people is good. The service for the pro is completely different the other part of the world.

EDUARDO ROMERO: I think $150,000, yeah.

EDUARDO ROMERO: Yeah, well, when I win the European Masters, I win $210,000, it was in 1994. I win seven tournaments in Europe and I win 85 tournaments in South America, and I have 52 second place in South America. I win seven times in the Argentinian PGA and eight times in my home course, it's Argentinian Center Open because it is the center of the country. Two important tournaments over there.

EDUARDO ROMERO: I think now in Europe we have -- we are 8 Argentinian players and then it is one Brazilian, one Colombian and I think in five more years we will have maybe 15 Argentinian players because we have a lot of good players in Argentina. The problem for South America, especially for us, is the sponsor for playing in any part of the world, just no money. The tournaments over there is $100,000 for all the prize, when the tournament is $200,000 it is very good, it is very good.

EDUARDO ROMERO: Of course.

EDUARDO ROMERO: Yes, when I am playing good here, you see the radio called me and the papers and magazine, when I am playing like this in Europe, maybe call me the papers or just only one guy, but when I am playing here, everybody call me because the people in Argentina know the best golf in the world is over here.

EDUARDO ROMERO: Oh, yes.

EDUARDO ROMERO: Yes, because my father was a teacher for the kids, my home country, 150 kids until twelve years to five years.

EDUARDO ROMERO: Somebody tell me say for the mustache, because in Argentina, it is normally put the nickname on everybody, everybody. If you say Carlos, which Carlos? The cat. Oh, yes, the cat. Yes, it is unbelievable.

EDUARDO ROMERO: Yes, Seve is very, very good friend of mine. We practiced the day before the tournament I play with Seve at all the tournaments. If you see Seve in the practice range, it is unbelievable. He hit 1-iron, 2-irons, drivers, sand wedge, fantastic. When you go to the golf course he miss one shot, gone, unbelievable. I am playing the tournament with Seve, sometimes after 10th hole he is 3-under, 4-under and he miss a shot on the 11th hole or 12th hole, just like a driver, hook it into the rough, that is it. It is unbelievable. In the practice -- I practice a lot after finish 18-hole practice, just go to three hours, two hours, I chip in and putting. In the morning before the start and after putter is unbelievable.

EDUARDO ROMERO: Seven so far. Seven, I win two cars, I win one on the par 4, 327 yards in Argentina. It is a short par 4, but it is downwind and then I win a car.

EDUARDO ROMERO: You know, when I make hole-in-one I am starting 7:15 tee time for the 10. I make hole-in-one on the 17. At 9 o'clock, I make hole-in-one. The guy that play before, three guys before me make hole-in-one on the same hole, but, yeah, the guy the first guy that make hole-in-one wins the car. But I am very lucky because three guys behind me make hole-in-one.

EDUARDO ROMERO: This course is very good. I played before this course when I played the TOUR in 1986 and 1994. 1994, 1995, I can't remember, but the course is still one of the best, my favorite golf course; especially the 18th hole. It is fantastic hole, fantastic hole, I like it.