BUICK OPEN

August 8, 2001

Jeff Sluman

JEFF SLUMAN: Yeah, it has been a wonderful little three weeks so far, nice taking last week off, didn't have to battle the hills and the altitude over there at The INTERNATIONAL. Stay close to home in Chicago, got here yesterday. I am looking forward to this week. I have always loved this golf course. I have been coming here since 1983, so, hopefully the good play can continue.

JEFF SLUMAN: I think what I really like year in year out coming here you know you are going to have fabulous conditions. The superintendent does a wonderful job. Greens are always fast, fairways are great, you know you are going to have to shoot low numbers out here on a yearly basis if you are going to have any chance to win. But the golf course is set up very fairly and you come here besides the one year they really changed 13, this is the golf course, and I think that's great. It's an old-fashion golf course. We don't see many of those on Tour. We play Riviera and Hilton Head and Westchester and things like that, and so we don't get to see many old golf courses like this. I just think it's a great, great venue.

JEFF SLUMAN: Well prospects are kind irrelevant, I think, because I have never been on the team, unless I get into the top 12 I think I am not trying to blow my chances here by saying these things, but I am -- I am not saying Curtis won't pick me but since I have never been on a team usually they like you to play your way on the first time. I think it would obviously be, depending on the makeup and experience of the team of the Top-10 guys, whoever the Captain is on the that basis, who they would pick. But as far as what it would mean to me, it would be unbelievable to represent your country in the Ryder Cup. I think that besides winning a major I think that's probably one of the most important things to get on your resume when it's all said and done, but if I don't I know I have been very, very close a number of years and I am not going to view my career as a poor career if I don't get on it. But it certainly would be a huge added bonus for me to get on the Ryder Cup team and then if that happens, maybe in the future they'd consider me to be a Captain which would also be a great honor.

JEFF SLUMAN: Right, I have won the PGA and that, so, it is important to try and go out and get prepared this week and next week and play well and just kind of see where the cards fall. But It would sure be a lot easier to play your way on and don't have to worry about trying to get picked.

JEFF SLUMAN: I think I have had a pretty good year all along. Golf is a very funny game. My buddy calls it an infinite game because every shot, no matter what you are doing is different, but sometimes your good play isn't reflected on good finishes and other times it is. Right now I am not only playing well tee-to-green but I am scoring well. Putting it very good, and just doing all the right things you need to do to stay near the top or win a golf tournament. When you are going through those things it seems awfully easy and then when you get it going the other way you wonder, man, I am always making that one or two crucial mistakes, wonder why that's happening. Then you are short-siding yourself, it seems like you get a funky bounce and you don't get it up-and-down and things like that happen, so I really can't pinpoint it. I am not smart enough to figure it out, I will be doing this stuff every week.

JEFF SLUMAN: Well, I think it is a tournament within a tournament the last couple of weeks before the Ryder Cup selection. Obviously you are concentrating on the golf tournament and that should be the focus of the player and if you play well enough, to win it or whatever, then the Ryder Cup's issues take care of themselves. But in a lot of respects, as I said, I think there's a little tournament within the tournament this week and next week trying to get on the Ryder Cup.

JEFF SLUMAN: I knew I didn't want to get on the cart again after that, but I drove -- having the honors, I think is a good thing to do in a playoff. I drove it perfect down the middle and then Paul didn't hit a very good shot, it hit right and richocheted off the trees into the water. Then you are feeling pretty good about yourself at that point, but my playoff record before that kind of spoke for itself being 0 and 6. So I didn't want to be known as the 007 out there. So at least I got that kind of monkey off my back. But you are kind of wound up and I had a two-shot lead going into 18 and actually played the hole very well, but sometimes those things happen. I hit a little flier from the first cut and went over the green, hit a good putt, and he made a great birdie. So I just you know, you want to end it as soon as possible but the thing of it is you can't really try to end it. You hear the announcer say all the time: The hardest thing to do is 2-putt from 30 feet, things like that, but that's one of those things you can't force the issue. I think in some of my previous playoffs I was too aggressive and trying to win it on the first hole or whatever. Most of the time I ended up shaking hands on the first hole in the wrong way. (Laughs).