KEMPER OPEN

May 27, 1999

Rich Beem

RICH BEEM: This is different. I used to sit around and say bad things about my round. I had a great round of golf today. It was a lot of fun. I had a great two weeks off and did a lot of practicing and had some good rounds back home and just tried to carry that into today. And started off well, made a good birdie on No. 1, coaxed it in. No. 3, hit a great perfect tee shot and had, I thought, perfect yardage for my second shot, came up about 20 yards short, which was really surprising to my caddie and myself. Chipped it out about ten feet, lipped it out. Pretty good par on 4, the par 5. And then on 14, No. 5, I hit it right into the hazard. And just all of a sudden thoughts started creeping back into my head: Not another round like this, start off well and have it go to waste. I just got strong. My caddie, Steve, my hat is off to him big time. We got a great yardage; hit about five, six feet, made that, that got me going. That kind of sparked me a little bit. Hit it close on the next hole for birdie, made that. Good 2-putt on 16 for par. And 17, I almost made it. I think they said it caught about the top bottom half of the lip, ended up about two feet away. From there it just got easier, birdied 18 after just hitting two awesome shots, made about a 15-footer for birdie there. And then parred 1, No. 2, same thing, just hit three solid shots in there about 15 feet, made another one. Then on 4. I avoided disaster big time. It was -- usually all my rounds where I have struggled the second day, I have one really awful hole. I hit it 30 yards right into the hazard. I didn't even know there was a hazard there. I was kind of wondering if it was out-of-bounds where I hit it. We found it. I chipped it to about 40 feet, ended up making about 8-footer come backer for par. That kept the momentum going. That got me back to 3-under. That was a huge momentum keeper. Routine par on 4. Then just had a perfect yardage on 5, about 80 yards, knocked it about 10, 12 feet, made that. Then on 6, I played my practice round with Woody Austin. And he said you got to hit it left if you have a chance of going for it. Got it up there, actually hit it further left than I thought I should have. 207 to the front, 215 to the pin. I was really getting started to feel the heat a little bit. I said I don't know, what do I do? Do I go for it? My caddie just says, let's go for it. Okay. We debated about which club. I said if I am going to go for it, I'm running right now, so I am going to hit the 4-iron. I gassed it, all over it. Ended up about eight, ten feet for eagle, just missed that. Really solid birdie. And then 7, didn't hit a good tee shot but hit 6-iron about 20 yards short. Pretty simple chip. Just knocked it up within gimme range. 8, I had a perfect yardage for my second shot, just kind of came out of it. I started, like I said, feeling a little bit nervous and flubbed my chip a little bit, so I had it about three feet off the collar, still about another 20 feet to go and I made it. I just felt really good over it. Just determined and bound to make it. I just willed it in. Then on 9, I was a guinea pig on that one. That is a scary hole, had 184, I am thinking, got to hit 9-iron there. I don't know what I was thinking. But I didn't want to be long. I hit a 9-iron, said I am going to make 2-putts and go home and here I am. Yes, sir.

RICH BEEM: Like anything?

RICH BEEM: You know, I am a pretty boring guy. I like to have some excitement every once in a while, but my hobby, my passion is my car. I have a Ford Explorer and I love the music in it. That is kind of what I am out here trying to do, make enough money so I can dump more of it into my truck. I wrote on my bio that I ski and I fish. I don't think I have been skiing in about 15 years and haven't picked up a fishing pole in 20. I just had to make up something when I went out to the finals to be honest with you. I had no idea that I would be here. So I put down skiing and fishing.

RICH BEEM: Probably not. He probably has a few more funds than I do. It sounds good. My girlfriend, who is going to be out here today, I flew her out, she shakes her head, she says, well, if we ever get married, that is our money. That is going to stop, so, I am trying to build it up as much as I can.

RICH BEEM: Right now probably about 3,000. Going to go up to about 5,000 when I go home. A couple of more things that I want. I wanted it to be very nice.

RICH BEEM: It might bump up a lot more. I used to sell car stereo equipment in Seattle, Washington. I quit golf completely in 1995, September of 1995 with my then ex, very ex-fiancee -- please don't write that. She moved up to Seattle, I followed her, I was playing golf at the time on some mini-Tours just week-to-week, just struggling, hating life, hating being on the road as much as I was. So hooked up to Seattle for a year to be with her. I got the bug to play golf again and she didn't want me too. I said, I am sorry, I have got to go do this.

RICH BEEM: I sold cellular phones and car stereo equipment. I didn't touch a golf club probably from September to January, then I finally hit a few golf balls here and there and really still didn't have the bug until probably about March or April, when springtime started to come around. I will never forget it. What really kind of sparked me was watching Paul Stankowski, Bell South Classic in Atlanta. I knew Paul from college. He knew my father and watching him win that, I think probably did the biggest thing to help me really kind of think about it. I knew that he was a great player in college and he got even better on Tour but just watching somebody that I knew finally for a change become successful, that really kind of got me going.

RICH BEEM: Yeah. I went to knew Mexico State right up the road. Actually as luck would have it, I had an idea what I was going to do when I left Seattle. I raised a few dollars. Played around a bit. I didn't have any money left. I didn't know what to do. I went back home for a couple of days. My father who was head golf professional back in New Mexico, he knew the head professional at El Paso Country Club, so he told me I should go down and interview because he knew -- he was looking for someone. I took the job. It was close to home, which is kind of what I liked. Didn't pay a whole lot, but I had enough money to kind of survive and then I started -- I was able to play Pro-Ams about five, six months later. It all worked out for the best, obviously.

RICH BEEM: I was assistant, bottom of the totem pole.

RICH BEEM: Yeah, first one I even thought about. I knew there would be -- I knew that how it happened, how it worked each year, but to me, JP Hays (phonetic), who has become a pretty good friend of mine, is actually my mentor on Tour, we talked a little bit about it. When I first went to work at El Paso in 1996, he was going through Qualifying School that fall. I believe he made it through in 1996. I just -- I read stories about when he was out in the Palm Springs area, I guess probably about five, six years ago, Billy Ray Brown, I don't know why I remember this, but Billy Ray Brown was interviewed. He said he was throwing up before he teed off the first hole on the last day. I said I want no part of that. That does not interest me. Even last summer, in fact last summer this week I won a golf tournament. I was coming down the last five holes I knew that I was in the lead, I was just so nervous, I don't even know if I could handle this. I didn't know if I could handle going to Q-School. I just made up my mind that I was going to do it and did.

RICH BEEM: Sun Country section, that is PGA section --

RICH BEEM: El Paso, Las Cruces; Socorro, New Mexico, Albuquerque, Bertolino (phonetic) New Mexico, Roswell, Truth or Consequences.

RICH BEEM: Hilton Open, the one I won last year is Socorro, New Mexico; probably the biggest ones besides the New Mexico Open in the Sun Country Section. Same week that J. P. Hays won last year.

RICH BEEM: Yes, 74 miles north of Las Cruces.

RICH BEEM: A Pro-Am.

RICH BEEM: I don't know if I won the Pro-Am. I think I might have. I don't even remember. You kind of forget those things.

RICH BEEM: I like Roswell. More to do. Truth or Consequences they only have a McDonald's and a sonic, a sonic burger. That actually is a pretty big recreation area to go skiing.

RICH BEEM: I am going to stay in town next week to get the laser surgery done. I don't remember the gentleman who did Fred Funk's eyes, I got the opportunity to see him; going to stay all of next week and get the laser surgery done Thursday afternoon; then take off to San Diego Friday morning. I was actually going to go to San Diego Sunday afternoon and spent a week vacation with her. However since this came up, it didn't happen. She got a little upset because we were supposed to spend quality time, so I flew her out to make amends.

RICH BEEM: Amy.

RICH BEEM: Steve Duplantis. He was the caddie for Jim Furyk until THE PLAYERS Championship this year. I think after --

RICH BEEM: Yeah, that was his last tournament with Jim.

RICH BEEM: Do I?

RICH BEEM: Yeah.

RICH BEEM: From what I have heard. It hasn't happened to me yet. So I mean, I need a caddie to show up on the first tee box and dump the clubs off at the 18th green. Having somebody in there, unless he is my teacher, watching me hitting golf balls, to me, just to me, like I said, I never had a caddie before I usually practice alone, so.

RICH BEEM: It picked up after a while. First started off ten or fifteen people, I think, then I think last four, five holes, 30, 40 people showed up. It was nice.

RICH BEEM: $5,000 and a nice crystal bowl.

RICH BEEM: 25,000 in Q-School.

RICH BEEM: Finished tied for 8th. Shot 19 under that week.

RICH BEEM: No, I didn't, thank goodness. I was dreading it though. I was a lot nervous. It was probably the most nervous I had ever been, but it is funny, I got to a point it wasn't anymore nervous than leading the Hilton. It really wasn't. Kind of odd, I think you just reach one level of being nervous and that is it is. Because it really -- either I did it or I didn't.

RICH BEEM: I got a little bit nervous in between some shots but Steve we talked a little bit, but I just kind of kept my focus. I know this is only one day. This is Thursday. I still got Friday, Saturday, Sunday. I am sure if I am in the same situation come Sunday I will probably be a little -- get a little more tense out there I am sure.

RICH BEEM: After a while, back home a nice golf course El Paso Country Club I play all the time, you can kind of get on rolls there. If you start playing well, it is an easy golf course to keep the momentum on. I played well last week in practice rounds shot 65, 66, 67 a couple days in a row. It just was keep the momentum going, maybe starting off with the bogey; then suddenly make a lot of birdies. After I saved the par on No. 4, the par 3 down the hill that was a momentum keeper, I knew right after that it was going to be pretty good day. I knew that I wasn't going to make a whole lot of mistakes coming in. I liked the holes coming in. That was a probable for me.

RICH BEEM: I was 13-under par going last day. I think 10-under got in. I was 20th top 20 some place maybe and I was actually probably about the fourth or fifth group from the end.

RICH BEEM: 66 the final -- that was another one of those rounds where I just -- I got something going. I got the momentum going my way. I just kept it going. Like I said--

RICH BEEM: Six.

RICH BEEM: Which one?

RICH BEEM: Yes, last big one that --

RICH BEEM: Yeah. Actually there is mini-tour guys there. Some guys that are floating around, couple of huge guys, but they are all local.

RICH BEEM: Yeah, a lot of it has to be when I was shooting the last leg I was -- Greensboro, Houston and New Orleans, I knew that I wasn't hitting the ball very well; putting pretty good but not -- days that I shot 68. 68 in New Orleans eagled 16, holed it out of a bunker on 16 and I don't know want to say, it is a fluke on 17, but it was a fluke on 17, I pulled it. I was aiming 30 yards right and I pulled it dead left and it went about 78 feet from the home. But I mean, I know that I have those good rounds in me, but I finally went back home started working on some of the swing keys that -- I have been playing well last year, and it felt good coming out and have a lot of success with it first day. I was pretty nervous even today. I was anxious for the round this morning; not nervous but anxious.

RICH BEEM: Larry. Head golf coach New Mexico State.

RICH BEEM: First time ever being west or east of Dallas in my life, except for overseas I lived overseas for seven years, but I never been --

RICH BEEM: Panama, lived there for three and a half years in 1980 to 83; then in Berlin, Germany from December of '83 to may of 87. Army Brat.

RICH BEEM: I have a Sony C. D. Player. I have got kicker subwhoofers. I am hoping that they are there now. Sound stream amplifiers, I think, Eclipse tweaters, mids, sixes.

RICH BEEM: No, I hate a rap. The most rap I will get out of that is Beasty Boys. It is kind of fun pulling up to the low riders in El Paso that are playing all the jams, you will put in Van Halen; crank it up; blow them away.

RICH BEEM: Yeah, about 30 gentleman back in El Paso that were generous enough to help get me out here. They put up about 70,000, I guess the final total was, 70, 80 thousand to help put me out here. Got a lot of people involved, which is nice.

RICH BEEM: No, 70 or 80, somewhere in that area. I don't know what the final figures were. I have got an accountant that took care of that.

RICH BEEM: I try and stay in fairly inexpensive places, but I also want to make sure that I am fairly close to the tournaments. I also make sure I am close to some place to eat. Just whatever is convenient more than anything else. I don't try and skimp, per se, I have done that I have slept out of my car a couple of times. I don't ever want to do that again even if I go absolutely broke and I don't make another cut I am going to have fun.

RICH BEEM: No, I basically fly and El Paso is just a real hard place to drive out of. It is just a hall. If you are talking about how to get to El Paso: Turn left to nowhere; go 20 miles. It is not that bad. It is pretty far out. It is pretty far away from everything. So it is a long drive to make to any major city, Phoenix is 6 hours away Dallas is 10. Albuquerque about three and a half hours, we are kind of in our own little area.

RICH BEEM: They let me in.

RICH BEEM: Yeah, I am going to play everything that I could possibly get into this year. If I have good week this week and I can get above what I think needs to make it for next year to keep my card then I will probably back off a little bit, but I am going to go full steam ahead and play everything that I can get into.

RICH BEEM: Absolutely. Luck, Rick Schuller who, I guess, is a pro in the area, couple times he and I played together in Florida, I just ran into him on the putting green. He is sponsored by the gentleman who did Fred Funk's eyes; put me into contact with him. I talked to the gentleman who is doing it. One thing let to another; I am getting laser surgery next week I am so happy.

RICH BEEM: To be honest with you, I go for my initial exam on Wednesday. I just want to see the leaves on the tree clearly. Sounds funny, I like to be able to see the depth perception, being able to almost see the individual leaves on trees because they color contrast. You can see the darker ones and the lighter ones, they kind of stand back and forth.

RICH BEEM: I do right now. I just got some new contacts, but I want -- I'd love to have it for the rest of my life without having the pain of wearing contacts.

RICH BEEM: Lasic (phonetic) is what it is called and I don't know, I think different doctors charge different amounts, but I don't know if it's just because his laser --

RICH BEEM: No, I think that he has got some sort of program set up for PGA TOUR players, LPGA Tour players, whatnot. I have got to find out a little more about that.

RICH BEEM: I am not that brave. I think I am kind of taking a big chance even doing it next week. From what I understand, it is not a problem. Looking forward to doing.

RICH BEEM: Yeah, he did. That is what I understand. That is good enough for me. I mean, that is more than good enough for me.

RICH BEEM: Tuesday.

RICH BEEM: Yeah, I took Monday off, my wrist was bothering me a little bit. I went into town to a friend who lives in DC; went sight-seeing more than anything else. Then came out Tuesday; my wrist was feeling better and played with a couple of guys that I know, Doug Donnehy (phonetic) and Woody Austin; had a good time. I was comfortable with it. I knew there were some hard holes. It is funny how they looked on TV when I was watching them last year, that is how I remember them. I remember 17 and 18, and 16, 15, 14, 13, I remember all of them. It is neat coming to tournaments seeing fairway what it looks like.

RICH BEEM: I fanned it. I hit it awful. My worst swing of the day. Just hit it right and hit a tree. Fortunate to find it. If I didn't find it then I got to drop and get up-and-down for bogey. I was fortunate finding it; even more fortunate that I can --

RICH BEEM: No, just trying to hit a solid shot. Probably just as comfortable on that shot than any other shot. It just so happens I made a bad swing; got a little quick maybe trying to keep it too low. Just a bad swing, I don't know. I recovered okay.

RICH BEEM: Probably on the left side. I should sleep okay. I don't know.

RICH BEEM: I consider making it through Q-School, I think that is a huge win. I think that is a victory in its own self. You got 170 guys - I don't know how many Nike Tour wins and monies earned and that was a huge victory for me. Before that, you know, every win is great. Probably Hilton Head the most special because my mom and dad were there. I think by far though Q-School.

RICH BEEM: I didn't even know where it was. First time I was in Hawaii I walked in the media room and asked Lee something, I don't remember, I have been in to see Lee twice both times, I was asking where something else is at. Actually I was in the media room once in San Diego to find out if I made the cut or not. (laughter). That was a victory too.

RICH BEEM: I hit fairly straight off the tee box. I don't hit it overwhelmingly far, but I hit it far enough to be competitive out here. My shorter irons are pretty solid, 6-iron through wedge, sand wedge, I feel very comfortable. Probably my nemisis 5, 4-iron struggle. Fairway woods, I hit okay. Driver and short game really my strengths. I don't know if my statistics reflect that or not, but I certainly feel every time I tee it up I putt the peg in the grounds with the driver, --

RICH BEEM: Putting has kind of come and gone a little bit. I have struggled; worked different lengths, different putters, but I have always been a pretty good putter. I won't say I am streaky, but once I get on a roll I tend to stay there for a while. I have putted well the last four, five weeks; scores may not have reflected it. I really have. My last few tournaments have all been under 30 or less, pretty comfortable with the putter.

RICH BEEM: No, see, I don't know what a coach golfer looks like. My dad and I just work on tempo more than anything else. I don't have any major -- if somebody told me to break down my swing I couldn't tell you. I'd tell you that I try and get it up to the top, pause it for a second; then go ahead and beat on it. I really don't have any swing thoughts. Very good with my hands and it is just all timing for me. I had some problems shifting my weight a little bit, that was just a very small minor detail, but I picked up on it. It has really helped out.

RICH BEEM: Corey McDaniels. He works at I don't know where. Some lobbyist or --