BOB HOPE CHRYSLER CLASSIC

January 19, 2002

Cameron Beckman

JOAN vT ALEXANDER: Let's go through your card on your birdies.

CAMERON BECKMAN: I birdied --.

JOAN vT ALEXANDER: Did you start on 1?

CAMERON BECKMAN: Birdied 1, 9-iron, about ten feet.

JOAN vT ALEXANDER: No. 3.

CAMERON BECKMAN: Hit sand wedge about four feet.

JOAN vT ALEXANDER: 5?

CAMERON BECKMAN: 5, I chipped in.

JOAN vT ALEXANDER: 7?

CAMERON BECKMAN: 7, I hit it about three feet.

JOAN vT ALEXANDER: 9?

CAMERON BECKMAN: 9, I hit it to about 15 feet.

JOAN vT ALEXANDER: 12?

CAMERON BECKMAN: 12, hit sand wedge to ten feet.

JOAN vT ALEXANDER: 14?

CAMERON BECKMAN: 14, I chipped up -- that's par-5, right?

JOAN vT ALEXANDER: Correct.

CAMERON BECKMAN: That was like about a 3-footer.

JOAN vT ALEXANDER: Then you had a bogey on 17?

CAMERON BECKMAN: 3-putted, missed about a two-footer.

JOAN vT ALEXANDER: Finished up with that birdie on the par-5, 18.

CAMERON BECKMAN: I chipped up to five feet.

JOAN vT ALEXANDER: Why don't you begin with a couple of comments about your round and the conditions over there, and talk a little bit about going into tomorrow right there with the pack.

CAMERON BECKMAN: Okay. Well, obviously the conditions were perfect again today, and actually probably putted the best of all the rounds today for me. And if you can drive it straight out here, basically every hole is a birdie hole, and making my birdies today was a great feeling. What's leading?

JOAN vT ALEXANDER: Jay Haas is at 26. You're at 25 and it looks like Kenny Perry is going to come in here at 25.

CAMERON BECKMAN: So, I'm looking forward to it. I like those guys a lot. I just kind of got myself in position I wanted to be in.

Q. Cameron, you are 25. Jay Haas was in here just a minute ago, 26, talking about mid-30's for tomorrow. Is there a number you're thinking about tomorrow at this point?

CAMERON BECKMAN: I made the turn at 20, I guess, and I just told my caddy, "Let's try to get to 30." 4-under is all Jay has to shoot to get to that. I wouldn't think we'd get to 35. But definitely I think 32 would be a pretty good bet.

Q. Cameron, when was the last time you were 25-under for 72 holes and how much fun is it to play a tournament like this?

CAMERON BECKMAN: I don't think I've ever been 25 after four rounds. I think the best I've ever been is 26 in the Q-School after six rounds.

What was the other question, how much better is it to play in a tournament like this?

It's so much fun to play in a tournament like this. You feel like if you're going to hit it on line, it's going to go in. The par-5s are pretty easy, and it's kind of fun to shoot the scores I've been shooting, obviously.

Q. Tomorrow, things change a little bit, you go back to a regular golf tournament with two professional playing partners, no more amateurs. Does that change the way you go into it, to get more serious now that you've got the amateurs behind you?

CAMERON BECKMAN: I don't think it will be so much more serious, it will just be more the usual. The pins will be tucked more tomorrow. It will play more like -- with the amateurs the pins aren't quite as difficult. It's going to be -- I'm looking forward to it.

It's a goal of mine to try to win again this year. And obviously I've put myself in a position to have a chance.

Q. Could you refresh our memories when you won last year, what was your position going into the final round? Did you come from behind, did you have the lead, and how did that go?

CAMERON BECKMAN: I believe I was three strokes behind, and I shot 5-under and won by a shot. I think I made three birdies coming down the stretch to beat him by one.

And if you're going to play this game, being in the last few groups and it's so much fun for me to get in that point -- with nine holes to play, this early in the season is really a great feeling and I'm looking forward to it.

Q. The scores on Tour have just gotten a lot lower the last couple of years, not only this week, but the last couple of weeks. Can you discuss one or two factors that aren't so obvious in your opinion that have led to the low scores on Tour overall?

CAMERON BECKMAN: I think that when a lot of guys come from the Nike Tour, and the Nike Tour courses usually get beat up pretty good, they're a little shorter, and I think everybody has this mentality now, that if you don't -- if you're not trying to birdie every hole ,you're going to get killed.

And the players have obviously worked harder with Tiger setting the ball and I just think it's the mentality, especially these golf courses. But even on just a normal Tour event, it always takes about 15-under to win.

And I think first of all the players are getting better, equipment is better ,and I think it's just the mentality now. Whereas earlier in the years it was a little more conservative approach. Right now everybody is aiming at every pin. And obviously if you're hitting it good, you're going to shoot good scores, and I think that's what it's been.

JOAN vT ALEXANDER: One last question, Cameron, that chip in on No. 5, how far off the green were you there.

CAMERON BECKMAN: Actually I hit it right to the green in two, and just chipped it through the green a little bit ,and I had a pretty standard, easy little chip. It was just -- it was kind of a -- I should have been getting the first one up-and-down, and then the chip in was great.

JOAN vT ALEXANDER: Thank you very much. And good luck tomorrow.

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