U.S. OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP

June 16, 2001

Mike Weir

MIKE WEIR: That was a lot better. My putter was really good today. I started off really nicely and hitting the ball solid. And then my putter really held me together through the mid rounds. I felt like we got put on the clock there and I just seemed to get out of my rhythm on holes 7 through about 11. I felt like I was speeding up a bit. We were on the clock on and it didn't make for much fun out there. But after that I kind of settled done and hit some good shots. And that was a big putt on the last hole to keep me really with an outside chance.

MIKE WEIR: No, I felt it was just a perfect number. Really felt good on that shot. I wanted to kind of set the tone early and I just wanted to go right at that one.

MIKE WEIR: Well, I think that we had a little trouble on a couple holes for some reason early and I think we just got -- I don't know why we got behind. We were about eight minutes behind our official told us. So there was an official in a cart driving beside us all the time and looking at his watch. And it just, to me, I mean, I don't want to use any excuse, but it just did throw me off a little bit. I only lost one shot on number 11, but other than that it just felt like it -- Jose was speeding up. He really rushed his shot on number eight that he hit over the green I could tell. He made a double bogey.

MIKE WEIR: No, I don't know. I haven't played with him. That's really the first time I think I played with him. So you just get in some funny positions sometimes out here that you have to take extra time to assess really what you're going to do. Because there's so many options. You could pitch out, you can go for the green. You're going to have to think about what you're doing.

MIKE WEIR: Well it depends what happens out there. There's still a lot of golf out there. If the guys get to 7-, 8-under, no. Unless something ridiculous happens and I shoot 62 or something. If it stays to around 5- or 6-under, if I'm within five or six or even seven I think I still have a good chance.

MIKE WEIR: Yeah.

MIKE WEIR: No, it was a perfect putt. It looked like it was going in the center.

MIKE WEIR: Well, it was rolling perfect though.

MIKE WEIR: I hit it long twice there. Yesterday I flew it over the back and today I hit a perfect shot and the wind stopped and there's not much you can do about that. I hit a perfect shot, right what I wanted and made a great par.

MIKE WEIR: Yeah, the tee shot did, the wind did switch a little bit there. And I thought I hit some really good drives out there that didn't turn out. On the Par-5 I only had a five iron in there probably for my second shot. If I was in the fairway I thought that was in the middle and it crept a foot into the rough. And my shot into 17, I was one inch in that intermediate cut and that is the difference between really going at that pin. I had only a wedge in my hand and if that was a foot to the right I could fly it. It's a good birdie chance. And being in that first cut it could jump a little bit. I tried to hit a little bit easier because I thought it was going to jump. It came out dead. And then I got right against a big stone in the bunker.

MIKE WEIR: Yeah, these are things that happen. That's the fine line that it is out here.

MIKE WEIR: That save at 18 was huge as far as I'm concerned. I didn't hit a very good drive and I hit it where I thought really I might have a chance to get up-and-down left. And hit a good bunker shot, because you can't see being down that far. You can't see anything. You can't see the top of the pin, you've just got to hit -- pick a spot up in the horizon. Your depth perception is just a guess. So to get that up-and-down is a bonus and that was a big putt.

MIKE WEIR: When you can only see half the pin, it's tough visually, depth perception-wise to get the shot the right distance. And both those holes, 9 and 18 they sit up there and you see that big flag blowing and it looks like it's blowing hard. And sometimes I think the backdrop with the bank there blocks the wind a little bit. And I think that's why sometimes you see some shots go over the green. You've got to pay attention to that tomorrow.

MIKE WEIR: No. 2 I hit a drive and an eight iron. I had 165 yards into No. 2. And then No. 11 it was an 8-iron and it hit the lip of the bunker and I made a bogey. My third shot on 13 I had 103 yards. I hit a little sand wedge in there and made a birdie from 10 feet maybe. 15 was a 9-iron. Maybe 15 feet. I made that one. 16 was an 8-iron from 175 yards to about three feet. And then 17 I bogeyed. I had 120 yards, I believe, with wedge. That went in the bunker.

MIKE WEIR: Well, I felt like I've been putting well all week. But that was a big putt really right off the bat on the first hole. Really difficult putt. Breaking quite a bit and very fast. So that got me off to a nice start. And even though I hit a bad tee shot on the first hole I feel like I'm striking the ball better. Hit the ball much more solidly and hopefully it will even get a little bit better tomorrow. I'm going to work on it now and fine tune it a little more. But I'm really excited about the progress from yesterday. I didn't feel like I was just hitting it the way wanted. And today even the poor shots I hit I felt good over them.

MIKE WEIR: Yeah, I did make a little bit of a technical change.

MIKE WEIR: Secret. No. (Laughter.)

MIKE WEIR: Yeah. I did get the ball up-and-down.

MIKE WEIR: Yesterday it was kind of Murphy's Law yesterday. Putts were lipping out and I felt like I was hitting good putts and they weren't going in.

MIKE WEIR: I feel like today was better. The course is tougher today. It's playing harder. Greens are getting firmer and it's harder.

MIKE WEIR: I'm usually pretty good out of the bunker. Usually I feel pretty good in there.

MIKE WEIR: Yeah, I did.