MERCEDES CHAMPIONSHIPS

January 7, 2003

Charles Howell III

MODERATOR: You picked up your first win last year at the Michelob Championship at Kingsmill. You're a first-timer here. I think people would be interested in knowing what you've been doing the last couple months and some ideas on what you're going to do this year.

CHARLES HOWELL: I played in Japan and Australia after THE TOUR Championship. I had the most improved round of the year in the Australian Open. Went from 10 over through 14 holes when the first round was canceled to leading the tournament the second day at 5-under.

But the trip over there was really good. Japan was a great place. I'd never been before. Other than, that I've just been practicing.

I stayed in Orlando the entire off-season, apart from two days in Augusta with my family for Christmas. That's pretty much been it. Fairly boring off-season.

Q. You finished ninth last year, great season. What kind of goals are we looking for for the upcoming year?

CHARLES HOWELL: For the upcoming year, pretty much the number one goal is to be Top 5 on the Money List. I think that's a fair goal. That's a good goal. I'd love to win two tournaments this year.

But, you know, that all kind of comes when you least expect it. As I go through the year, it will be pretty much the same thing as last year. I'll play as hard as I can each week.

But, you know, playing well at the end of last year, getting into the TOUR Championship, playing well there to get into here, it definitely shows you what good play will get you out here. It's definitely rewarding.

Q. You mentioned about your goal as Top 5 on the Money List. Obviously, Tiger may not play for a couple months. Do you see maybe things like that, Money Title, being a bit more wide open this year potentially?

CHARLES HOWELL: Well, sure, it could be. You know, especially if he doesn't play for a while, which you never know with him.

Yeah, I just hope he takes his time getting better (laughter). But, no, he's so good, though, he's liable to win everything when he comes out anyway. You never know.

I think it definitely will change things. Obviously, he's not playing here; maybe the first little bit of the year, too. So it definitely changes things.

You know, these tournaments are worth so much now, that you win a couple of events, you can shoot right up the Money List in a hurry. It will be interesting to see.

Q. You were poised for a sophomore slump last year.

CHARLES HOWELL: Yes.

Q. If you recall.

CHARLES HOWELL: Yes, I do.

Q. Do you feel any more pressure on you now that you've broken through, got the first win, the great finish last year, to now take it the next step? Do you feel like that's what's expected of you?

CHARLES HOWELL: You know, not really, because I didn't feel any pressure last year. You know, I read the articles or whatever, saw the quotes, "Sophomore Slump." I kind of laughed about it. I don't really feel the pressure. It seems to me the harder I tried, the worse I did. You could see that toward the middle of last year, where I didn't play very well. Towards the end of the year, I relaxed a bit, I won, had a chance to win a couple other ones.

Yeah, I really have never felt the pressure like that. I think golf is too crazy of a game. I think the game is too hard to try to make it worse with things like that.

This is the first year where I've kind of been on a level playing field with a lot of top players in the world, being I'm in all four majors in the world events, which makes a difference. Starting the year not knowing what majors you were in or what world events, if any, you'd be in, to start the year knowing I'm in all four majors, that makes a huge difference. So maybe it's more peace of mind, but I know I'm in it.

Q. You said when you came out, one of your goals was to be No. 1.

CHARLES HOWELL: Yes.

Q. Is it still doable?

CHARLES HOWELL: Oh, definitely. I can't work any harder than I've worked the last month. I'm working as hard as I can work. I'm doing everything I can do. If it doesn't happen from that, at least can I live with myself.

I'll put in every bit of work I can, like I have been doing. But, yeah, it's still doable. Obviously, it's getting tougher and tougher with all the great players out here. But it makes it worth it.

Q. The goal is Tiger, obviously, right?

CHARLES HOWELL: Sure.

Q. Do you have other players to catch first? Do you look at it that way?

CHARLES HOWELL: If I looked at it that way, I'm sure there would be quite a few. You look at Ernie, has played fantastic. Phil Mickelson, Sergio has had a great year so far, my age. There's tons of them in between there. It's probably easiest just to look at Tiger.

Q. You mentioned a goal of two victories, Top 5 on the Money List. 18 first-time winners.

CHARLES HOWELL: I don't know if you'll see 18 first-time winners again. I think you'll see a lot of young players play well. You might see a couple repeat winners from guys that won this past year, from a lot of the young guys such as Jonathan Byrd or Luke or whoever it might be. I don't think you'll see 18 first-time winners. It was a bit of a shock.

Q. Who do you think might break through and get their first win in 2003?

CHARLES HOWELL: You know, I think Bryce Molder. I think he may. I think Aaron Baddeley, I think he might be. Aaron, there on the Nationwide tour last year. I'd say one of those two guys.

Q. When you say you're trying too hard in the middle of the season, did you realize that? Did you consciously throttle it back, kind of relax? What made you change a little bit?

CHARLES HOWELL: Well, towards the middle of the year, I was really pressing to stay in the Top 50 in the world ranking to get into the US Open and British Open. I fell out on the last day. You know, I think I kind of realized it after that, just to relax a bit.

I took a week's vacation, the first vacation I'd ever taken a week before the US Open, went to the Bahamas. That was probably good for me to relax a bit. I kind of realized it through that. I felt like I was beating my head against the wall for a bit.

You know, it's just funny how kind of things happen when you least expect them. The win in Kingsmill, I just missed the cut the week before that. It wasn't exactly like I was setting the world on fire coming into that week. It's amazing how that week turned a lot of things around.

Q. As far as winning, knowing you could win out here, once you do it, what does that give you?

CHARLES HOWELL: Well, it's the confidence that you can't get from just, say, picking a book up and reading it. It's confidence that comes from either hitting the shots or playing well or coming down the stretch and doing things well. That's the one reason that Tiger is so hard to catch, that Tiger has become so well at. He has just so much confidence built up through all the tournaments, not only that he's won, but the shots he's hit over the course of the tournaments, the pressure shots, whatnot. You can't do that on the driving range. You can hit all the balls you want, but it doesn't get you that.

I think it's a little bit of confidence that I can pick up along the way that will make the difference.

Q. Did you send him a get well card?

CHARLES HOWELL: No. But I'll go out and see him when I go home, tell him to just take his time.

Q. Did you bring your clubs out here?

CHARLES HOWELL: Sure, I played the golf course. I played all three golf courses on our honeymoon. We got married just down the beach here at Kaanapali. We stayed here. Gary got us a room here for our honeymoon. I played all three golf courses.

Q. How many rounds did you play?

CHARLES HOWELL: Three, 54 holes.

Q. Two days?

CHARLES HOWELL: We were here for four days. I took the day off that we got married (laughter). I didn't have much of an option then.

Q. Why did you choose here?

CHARLES HOWELL: You know, I don't know why. Heather and I were talking about that last night. I don't know why. There's probably a lot more to do as far as entertaining our family in Honolulu, that area. I don't know why we chose here.

Oddly enough, I was out here playing this golf course. I thought of playing in this tournament, but not like a direct thought. I was just enjoying here. Here I am playing the tournament.

But, yeah, we played here. I went straight from here to the Greater Hartford Open. From Maui to Connecticut.

Q. You know it's the start of the season.

CHARLES HOWELL: I definitely was thinking about it. I wasn't thinking, "I will be here next year." I've never been one to try to put a lot of pressure on myself good or bad. I've just never been one to try to make things harder than they really are.

Q. What did you shoot that day?

CHARLES HOWELL: When I played out here? I don't know. I was hitting extra balls, practicing. It was blowing gales. It was the day before I was getting married. I probably had my mind on other things.

Q. You said you went home for a couple days to Augusta. Did you get a sense to how people felt there about the controversy?

CHARLES HOWELL: Yeah, I think it's pretty sad because, you know, there's a lot of businesses and a lot of people around Augusta that are becoming hurt by it.

I know one of the housing bureaus has had 40-some houses canceled already up to this point. I know the Raddison Hotel, which is the main hotel in Augusta downtown, has had a lot of room cancellations. I know that my younger brother's girlfriend works for the largest caterer in Augusta, and they have had a whole lot of orders canceled and a lot of parties that they were doing canceled.

Yeah, I think the impact goes well beyond the golf to hurting the city and the economy. A lot of people depend on the income through the Masters. I think that's the sad part of it, that those people are getting hurt.

Q. Whose fault is that?

CHARLES HOWELL: You know, I don't know whose fault it is. I don't. It's hard to say because what's right or wrong these days anymore anyway? I have an opinion. I'm sure everybody has an opinion. But nothing I say can be right. If I say one thing, well, then half the people argue about it with the other, or if I say the other.

The best thing I do is I kind of keep my opinion to myself, but I know the people that it's hurting. You know, I know that I don't like anything to hurt Augusta National, as strongly as I feel about that place, and as strong as I feel about Augusta. For example, the two days I was in Augusta, I received an honorary membership at Augusta country club. I dropped the puck at the hockey game there. Obviously, I have a lot of close ties to Augusta and a lot of friends there. I don't like to see anything tarnish that.

You know, whether it's right or wrong, I mean, Augusta National is a private club, but yet this also is 2003. You know, you'd like to see a woman member out there. I don't know who is right or wrong.

Q. People have talked about the zone. Have you ever been in it? What does it feel like to you?

CHARLES HOWELL: You know, it's weird. I've read a lot of books on it. I work with a sports psychologist who talks a lot about that. You know, it's kind of an area where everything seems to come together. You're not trying, but yet you are trying a bit. It's when you can do no wrong. It kind of comes and goes. It never comes when you try to make it happen. You know, it comes without you forcing it, but yet as soon as you think about it, then it's gone. It's pretty weird.

Exactly how to get into that or get out of it, I don't know. But it's definitely -- there's something to it, no doubt.

Q. You talked a great deal about you wanting to be No. 1, catching Tiger. I'm wondering where you are now as opposed to him? Where is the gap? Is it short game? Physical thing? Putting? Mental thing? Do you know what you have to do to get to where he is?

CHARLES HOWELL: I don't know exactly what it is. Anybody out here in this field can hit a great drive. You give them enough range balls, they'll hit a great range. They can hit a 5-iron with the best of them, they can putt, chip. It comes down to actually doing it when it counts, and actually doing it when it matters, come Thursday through Sunday.

You know, I think that's the gap there. Obviously, I work as hard as I can work to make those four days easier with less thought. But, you know, it just gets down to actually just doing it when it matters. What that is, you can -- obviously, it's definitely some mental, sure. But, you know, I think the harder I work and the harder everyone else works, which they all are doing, now a lot of guys are working out that would probably never work out. That's become a normal thing now.

But it just boils down to sucking it up and doing it when it matters.

Q. When people talk about the good players coming up, your name seems to be on the top of the list. Do you think you're worthy of that?

CHARLES HOWELL: As far as what?

Q. The attention.

CHARLES HOWELL: Well, I've done okay, yeah (laughter). I don't pay much attention to it, to be quite honest with you. I don't pick up the Golf World, Golf Digest, read them, all of them. You know, I know my stats and I know how I compare to other players as far as scheduling my practice around that.

I don't pay much attention to who is writing what, who is saying what. I do the best I can to publicize my sponsors, Callaway Golf, things like that, as far as doing commercials. Other than that, I don't go seeking the attention and whatnot. I'd much rather with my golf clubs do it for me. I'd like to go to the press room when I deserve to be in the press room: if I play well. I'm much more that way.

Q. What motivates you?

CHARLES HOWELL: Winning. Yeah, just playing good golf.

Q. You talked about this earlier, on your expectations, would it be a failure if you don't win this year? Do you look at it that way?

CHARLES HOWELL: You know, it's weird. If I finish second 15 times, no, it wouldn't be. But it probably would be, yeah. I mean, it probably would. That's all I want to do is win. That's what I'm out here to do. That's what a lot -- that's what most everybody out here is to do, tries win golf tournaments. That's what keeps it fun.

The last tournament I had won prior to Kingsmill was the NCAA. That was a long time. You kind of forget that it's important to win. You kind of forget what that actually feels like, to actual play golf to win.

Out here on the PGA TOUR, some weeks making a cut is good, then you have some weeks where you have Top 20, Top 15, Top 5. You kind of lose sight that you really are out here to win golf tournaments.

Q. Is that a product of the money?

CHARLES HOWELL: No, not in my case. I can only speak for myself in that. No. That never even crosses my mind. I figure the government gets such a huge chunk of it, you might as well not even worry about it.

Q. Do you think there's a lot of players out here, because the purses are so high, that it's become too complacent?

CHARLES HOWELL: You know, I don't think so. I think actually the complete opposite. I think the higher the purses get, the more the players work, the more they want to play well. I've never been one to think the other.

I mean, getting complacent in this game, if you get complacent for a little bit, it will kill you. If you allow yourself maybe to not work as hard or not do this or not do that, if you lose that edge just a little bit, sometimes it's hard to get that back. It's so important to keep that, especially nowadays with all the great players up and coming out. I think it's actually the complete opposite that's true.

Q. Is it more to keep a world ranking, maybe get in the Top 30?

CHARLES HOWELL: Oh, no yes about that. As important as the world ranking system has become, as interesting as it is, that's become a huge motivator for majors, for the world events. Yeah, the world ranking system, the actual position on the Money List for TOUR Championship and things like that, have become much more so the motivator, yes.

Q. Did anything surprise you about your last year?

CHARLES HOWELL: It surprised me that I fell out of the Top 50 of the world ranking, towards like the middle of the season there.

But then the way I played at the end, you know, it surprised me a little bit. But, you know, I'd been working hard. I hoped that eventually it would turn around. But nothing too terribly so, no.

Q. (Inaudible).

CHARLES HOWELL: A little of both. I mean, obviously I had been working hard. But I did relax a little bit, more so mentally than anything else. Things did kind of turn around. I would say I'd attribute the end of the year more to the mental side than to the physical, no question, yes.

Q. Are you disappointed that you won't have the chance to defend your first title?

CHARLES HOWELL: Yes. I still can't quite understand why that tournament is gone. Definitely pretty sad to see that one go. A lot of good tournaments are gone, yeah.

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