CRAIG STADLER: The course was good, played shorter than it has last two days, which I got the ball on the clubface off the tee today which was probably the main reason. A lot of wedge holes, a lot of short holes. Par 3s are good, par 3s are real good out here. But I birdied one of the par 5s, which I was in position to birdie all four of them and didn't. So that needs a little improvement.
Other than that, the way I hit the ball, I hit the ball tee-to-green fine. There was no wind to speak of, a little breeze here and there. Get the putting score to come around and I will be good to go.
PHIL STAMBAUGH: Any thoughts about this being a four-round tournament instead of three, when you get off to a start that was a little less than what you thought?
CRAIG STADLER: No. It makes no difference. The only difference it would make, I guess if you shot 73 or 74 today, you would still have three rounds to make up.
But, no, actually -- and if you play poorly, you look forward to an extra round. Just work on the putter and it will be fine.
Q. You're talking about misreading; what's plaguing you?
CRAIG STADLER: The story is they should be right at you. No, I've been putting well. I putted well today. As I said, I just misread a lot of putts. I don't know if it's getting off bermuda and getting back to bent or what, but the 10- to 12- to 14-footers I had all seemed like they where are three or four inches off the hole and they were maybe left edge or right edge, depending which way they were going. They did not break as much. I 3-putted the last hole. It was coming left up the hole, broke left of the hole and went right around the hole and put next one on the right edge and went the other way again.
Just get a feel for what you get comfortable with. I was comfortable with the way I was reading them. I thought it was correct and I misread probably 13 out of 18 of them. One of them went in. I hit a horrible putt on 9. I played from the right edge off the fringe and it broke left of the hole and broke about six inches right and went in. That pretty much explains it.
Q. Given the conditions, if they stay roughly the say, do you think minus 16 is a good four-round score?
CRAIG STADLER: It depends what happens with the greens. The front side, some greens are real firm. Your first bounce off the iron was 20 feet. And on 15 and 18, I was hitting out of the fringe rough and I backed it up 20 feet with each of them out of the rough. So it would be nice if there was a bit more consistency. I think they were a little different on the back than they are on the front. Then again, you know, the 14th hole, the par 3 was hard as a rock. 15 was soft. 16 is pretty firm and 18 is soft. If they stay the same, they will figure out in a couple days which one is which I guess. It's kind of a guessing game with the irons, but all in all the course is in great shape.
Q. Was the course for your taking, when you mention it playing shorter how dry are the fairways and how is the ball running on the fairways?
CRAIG STADLER: Fairways are getting pretty dry. Fairways need some water tonight. There's some pretty firm spots out there.
You know, the same thing holds true, the fairways get firm, makes the course play shorter, for one. The ball goes farther into the deep stuff, too, when you mis-hit it. And the rough, you pay the price for it in the rough out here, no doubt. It's spotty. It's bad. You get some naturally lies out there.
PHIL STAMBAUGH: Just take us through the round real quick with your birdies.
CRAIG STADLER: 4, I hit driver, 8-iron about eight feet. Made that.
7, I hit 7-iron to the front fringe about 30 feet and hit that.
9, I hit driver, sand wedge in the left fringe about 20 feet.
12, driver, 8-iron about three feet.
13, I hit driver, 4-iron about 40 feet past the hole and 2-putted.
11 I hit in the left rough and left it short of the green in the rough with a sand wedge and chipped it about eight feet and missed it for bogey there.
16, I hit 4-iron about 30 feet and 3-putted.
18, I drove it in the first cut of rough, the fringe rough, with an 8-iron about 40 feet short and 3-putted.
Q. How is your energy level right now, very eventful year, are you sick of golf or are you fired up right now?
CRAIG STADLER: No. It's fine. Played last week, had two weeks off before that, two very enjoyable weeks packing boxes; we moved. I was probably a lot more tired at home than I am out here.
But no, I never get tired, physically, mentally you don't get tired. You get tired of a ton of traveling at the end of the year, after 10, 12, 11 months. But I'm looking forward to this week. I have four more tournaments left after that this. So chomp around the mountains next week in Idaho. It will be a full fall.
Q. Do you hunt up there?
CRAIG STADLER: Yeah.
Q. What do you hunt?
CRAIG STADLER: Elk.
Q. Did you move to a different town in Colorado?
CRAIG STADLER: No. We haven't moved yet. We are homeless at the moment. We have moved out but we haven't moved in.
Q. New place?
CRAIG STADLER: It's about 30 miles away. It's just on the front range, up at Evergreen.
End of FastScripts.
