KEMPER INSURANCE OPEN

June 1, 2000

Jay Williamson

JAY WILLIAMSON: All I can say is it's a crazy game. You know two weeks ago -- or actually more like a month ago in New Orleans, I'm coming off an 81 on Saturday, shot 73 on Sunday in Dallas, and then I had a real good chance to have a nice finish. You know, I shot 64 and I really didn't do anything different other than the fact that I used a putter that was short and I've been down this road before. I've really tried to have my equipment fit my body. For me, that means I've got long arms, so I try to cut my putter down short so that my arms are hanging. I'm not going to try to bore you with the details but all I did was try to change my equipment a little bit to try to fit the mechanics of my golf swing. If that sounds confusing it is, because I've been doing this for a couple years now and I'm still not where I want it. You know, I didn't do anything different. You know, I came prepared well for the week. I hit a lot of good wedges. I drove the ball great and I made some putts. It's a pretty easy formula for this game but it's kind of hard to figure out how to do it.

JAY WILLIAMSON: Yeah, my thought is that I didn't have 64 a couple years ago, and I needed a couple more after shooting 79 on Sunday. I think I'm more mature. I'm definitely a better player. You know, my personal life is certainly, I would say, more solid. I'm married. I've got a one-year-old little girl at home that kind of keeps me out of trouble -- or in trouble, however you want to say it. But I've really been working hard on my golf game, trying to get it a level where I can feel like I can go out and shoot 64 on a given day. I think I'm taking steps, but like I said, I'm not where I want to be, but I'm getting there slowly but surely.

JAY WILLIAMSON: I think we all did. I may be more honest than most. I'm trying to have a shorter memory from, you know, my bad rounds, my bad shots, and I had a couple weeks off. Unfortunately, it was really hard to sit and watch the tournament in Colonial and Memorial because I felt like I was at a level where I felt I should have been in. The tournament at Colonial there were some withdrawals, I didn't get in as an alternate. I think that's the only tournament of the year without an alternate list and I was very frustrated by that. Today I think that motivated me to work on my game, when I was home in Orlando and really coming out, just not be in a position where I wasn't going to get into some of these higher-profile tournaments. Today may have been a reflection of that.

JAY WILLIAMSON: Looking back, I mean, I was so fortunate to be in that position. I mean it was my second -- my second year out here and, you know, I just -- I wasn't as good of a player as I am now. If it happened -- if it happens this year, certainly I'll be happy to be in that position. But I'll be very disappointed again by shooting 79. But looking back, I don't think I was really good enough to handle the pressure of whatever a Sunday round brings when you're in the lead, and I really believe that this year, you know, I'm looking forward to the opportunity. Hopefully, it will happen again, because I feel like I've worked hard to overcome the feelings that I had in my golf swing on that day.

JAY WILLIAMSON: Just getting over a shot and knowing -- God, you know that's a good question, and I feel like I'm talking to a psychologist. You know I want to feel confident. When I get over the shot I want to feel confident that I can pull it off. Sometimes, you know, under the gun, I had not been able to do it. But I think with the changes I've made, it enables me to hit a shot the way I want to. If that makes any sense.

JAY WILLIAMSON: I've got longer arms and I've got shorter legs than most. So basically what I'm trying to do is get the club working on a more upright line. Less around me and more up-and-down.

JAY WILLIAMSON: That was a shorter putter than I've used all year long, something I was using last year a little bit and for some reason I get away from it, because it's different. It's probably the shortest putter of anyone playing this week. So it's hard, when you're trying to do something different, it's hard sometimes if you've had a bad day or to continue using equipment like that. But I know -- I will sit here forever and tell you that I'm a better player with shorter equipment. I've just got to have the mental discipline to hang with it.

JAY WILLIAMSON: My driver is 43 inches, which is at least an inch and a half shorter than most. My irons are actually probably an inch short of standard.

JAY WILLIAMSON: This is a new set of irons I'm using this week. Actually it's really a whole new set of golf clubs but that's not unusual. I do that often. It's not that it's that different, just half an inch here or an inch there.

JAY WILLIAMSON: You know what, I don't even know. I just said this is where it feels comfortable, cut it off. I'm sick of people asking me how long my putter is, so I don't even know. I don't have an answer anymore. I just tell them it's short. Lee Janzen kids me about it all the time. He knows mine is short; he doesn't want to have the shortest one out here.

JAY WILLIAMSON: I hit a great drive there. I've never gotten down over the hill, and I'm walking to my ball and I was in an old divot. It wasn't -- it wasn't sand-filled; so I was still able to get a club on it. I had 192 to the front and my caddy and I talked about just getting the ball on the green somewhere right of the hole. And actually, being in a divot there prevented me from being real aggressive and going at the flag, which brought the water into play. And I hit a great 5-iron on -- you know I had a 40-footer, and I just hit a putt that I was fortunate enough to go in. No. 4 -- I made two real good up-and-downs on 2 and 3, and on 4, I hit a great dive. I've had a nightmare on that hole before. I think one year I made a 10 or 11 on that 4th hole. I hit a good drive. Pulled it a little bit, which scared me, but I had 146 to the hole and I hit a little 8-iron in there three feet. I'm the kind of -- I've got the mindset if I can get on top of the golf course early, it really helps me. If I make a birdie before a bogey, it really helps me. So, you know, I made a 3-footer and it was going from. 10, I hit a little 110-yard shot in there about a foot. I can handle those little 52-degree wedge, which again, it was a new club in my bag this week. I had a hard time hitting those 110-, 115-yard shots so I put that in my bag and took out my 2-iron. That's another big change. That's another dilemma that we all face in a round of golf. Made the eagle and I knocked it in there about a foot on 14 with a sand wedge. I had about 100 yards and sand wedge about a foot. 15, hit a good drive and hit 6-iron to literally four inches. I had a nice little stretch there and 16, which is playing actually difficult with the wind, I hit a great drive and hit an 8-iron in there about 18, 20 feet and made that. It's amazing to me. I didn't really need to make those birdies today. It's nice to get off to a good start on Thursday, but when I really needed them in the past month, I haven't been able to make anything. I haven't been able to hit it close to the hole. This game never ceases to amaze me.

JAY WILLIAMSON: Yeah, probably. I would say so.

JAY WILLIAMSON: No. Actually I feel good. I feel like I just went out and shot 72 today. I hit a couple shots closer to the hole than usual, and was able to make good putts. You know, I can make a lot more birdies this week. And, in fact, I've got a new caddie this week and I told him I hope we make 20 this week. So, you know, I think I'm on the right track.

JAY WILLIAMSON: That's a good question. Last year I was in a different category, and I think I was in the last group of the day starting in the afternoon on Thursday. I remember the wind was blowing. I shot, you know, 4-over I think. I didn't get off to a good start where today I was in the second group off. The greens were perfect, no wind. Playing in the category that I'm in now is certainly a lot easier than playing in the last category where you're playing in the last group. So I think getting off to a good start, I'm an emotional player, when I can get off to a good start, it helps me.

JAY WILLIAMSON: Those demons that I was talking about. What's funny was I actually wasn't going to use it today. I had my longer putter in the bag going to the range. And I got on the range and I had a longer driver in my bag, too, and I went back to the shorter driver and the shorter putter, because under pressure, it just -- I'm able -- I'm better mechanically. So I changed at the last minute today, as a matter of fact. And it's all me. I don't really have a teacher. My wife thinks I'm crazy because I change as much as I do. But I almost feel like it's every day out here is an experiment and you try to figure out how to overcome the anxiety and the pressure and things like that.

JAY WILLIAMSON: I had about a 12-footer on 18. Hit a good shot in there. To be honest, I didn't know it was for 28. I don't think I've ever shot 28, especially in competition.

JAY WILLIAMSON: No, just one of those things, I don't think it would have made a difference.

JAY WILLIAMSON: I think Fuzzy was a wild man, but maybe Casey kept him under control a little bit. I don't know Casey that well, to be honest. I like what he does on the golf course and basically I hired him because he's got a lot of experience, and I think that's what I lack a little bit and that's one of my weaknesses is experience. He helped me on occasion today.

JAY WILLIAMSON: It might get me into Colonial next year. Still a little irritated by that. (Laughters.) I think it would certainly give me a lot more stability. It would give me a couple years where I didn't have to worry about going back to Q-school. I am becoming a veteran of Q-school and I don't want to be known as a guy who has to go there every year. Just have a month off, travel, do things like that. Like I said, I was close last year, and my little girl was born, I missed 14 cuts in a row. That was difficult to deal with and I'm just fighting back, and I feel like I'm getting to a certain level where I can maybe get back in here and talk to you guys more often.

JAY WILLIAMSON: You want to get as many as you can as quickly as you can. That's always been my mindset. I played with Lee Janzen in Orlando. He actually mentioned 10-under had won the last few years. That surprised me, because I think this is a great golf course. It's in as good of shape as I've ever seen it. We're going to get some wind and more firmer greens. I think the scores are going to be a little higher as we go throughout the week. I'd like to shoot 7-under every day, but I don't know if 28-under -- that would probably be a pretty good score, wouldn't it? I'd take my chances with it. Tiger isn't playing this week, is he?

JAY WILLIAMSON: Certainly it was a great experience. I love getting in the heat because I feel like I don't have a whole lot of amateur experience. I didn't play golf in college. I don't want to say I'm surprised by all that, but every time I do something like this, it reinforces that I'm on the right track and that I'm not -- I'm not too much of a fool for doing what I'm doing. A lot of people probably thought I was when I tried, but, you know, when I could go out and shoot 64 with some of the best players in the world, it makes me feel like I'm on the right track. And certainly I was disappointed by shooting 79, but, you know it happens, unfortunately.

JAY WILLIAMSON: The biggest thing I took away from that is when I -- I hit it in the water on the 10th hole, and I realized at that moment I didn't have a chance to win, and the wind was out of my sails and I wasn't able to keep fighting to try to finish in the Top-10 or what have you. When I felt like I didn't have a chance to win, I was done.

JAY WILLIAMSON: I don't know if I said that. But I've had a lot of experiences before where, you know in other sports where I've been able to achieve, you know good things. And I just -- I had never been in that position before, even in college. You know, it was -- I didn't play the Nike Tour so I was just all of the sudden on TOUR. I didn't think I was going to choke, but I wasn't sure how my golf game was going to handle. I don't think -- you know I think everyone chokes. They just try to figure out how not to choke as much.

JAY WILLIAMSON: No. I can't wait. I want to have the lead going into Sunday, especially with nine holes left. I want to see if what I'm doing right now is going to work, because that's one of the reasons that I'm out here is to win. I'm not out here to just, you know, go to Q-school every year and take up space. I want to win and be out here for a long time. I've only been out here for four years. It might seem like a long time, but really, it's almost like my fourth year of college, now, you know, let's get ready to compete.

JAY WILLIAMSON: That's a good question. You know, it all happened so fast once the tournament starts. It all happened so fast, and, you know, you hope you can hang in there and give it your best shot.

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