DORAL-RYDER OPEN

March 7, 1998

Michael Bradley

MICHAEL BRADLEY: It was awfully windy, obviously. I just hope I can play like I have the last three days tomorrow, I'll have a good chance to win. I haven't really heard the weather forecast, I've heard it's supposed to be kind of windy tomorrow.

MICHAEL BRADLEY: I'm going to go out and rock and roll for 18 holes, and whatever happens, happens.

MICHAEL BRADLEY: It's -- well, beginning of the year I was really in a lot of pain. It was tough for me to even sit; flying, in a car, I had an MRI done last week in LA and I have a herniated disk. I'm on a trunk stabilization program to try and get my back and stomach stronger.

MICHAEL BRADLEY: I've got some exercises and I'm working out in the fitness trailer to try to strengthen it, or I'll have to have surgery on it. And it's not a guarantee that just by me working out it's going to get better. I figured I'd try that first and if it doesn't, it's either quit playing golf or have surgery.

MICHAEL BRADLEY: Well, as the round goes on, my back gets fatigued and it's tough for me sometimes just with my lower body, trying to -- it gets tired, and a lot of times it will slow up and a lot of times when it gets tired it just kinds of quits. And I can hit it this way (indicating), it gets fatigued and it doesn't have the strength. But it wasn't that bad today. A little bit coming in, I had what I thought were easy shots, and I could feel my lower body just kind of quitting, because I was just getting fatigued. But I was trying not to think about it when I was out there.

MICHAEL BRADLEY: No sense in worrying. That's kind of my philosophy. I'll go out tomorrow and like I said I'll give it 110 percent, and whatever that may be, so be it. Whether that's winning, or finishing 10th or finishing 5th or 40th, there's not much I can do. I'd like to shoot four or five under and win by a bunch, but if I don't, at least hopefully I'll finish second. If I don't finish second I'll finish third and vice-versa.

MICHAEL BRADLEY: Really it has. I haven't hit a practice ball this week. And really yesterday was the first time I putted, just because I'm trying to save my back, for the repetition of doing that, I'm trying to hit as few amount of balls as I can to try to keep my back from getting fatigued. It's not an option I want, I'd rather go out and practice. But I figure if I do it might make my back worse.

MICHAEL BRADLEY: Sure, I'll go out and I'll hit 30, 40 balls, just to get loose. But --

MICHAEL BRADLEY: No. Lately I haven't, just because of that reason. I'm trying to work out for a while and try to get my back stronger and then try to get back in my practice regimen. But as of right now, I don't think it's smart for me to go out and beat balls for an hour or two after I get done playing. The wear and tear on my back, it won't hold up right now.

MICHAEL BRADLEY: Well, my right side gets short for some reason, I get uneven, and that's usually been my problem. It was usually my lower back that was bothering me, because I'd get uneven. But the beginning of this year I started having sciatic nerve problems in my side where I couldn't even sit down. But that occurred probably the beginning of the year, before the Tour started, that was new to me. I always had lower back problems, but the sciatic nerve problems was new at the beginning of this year, and that was, I think, in part because of the disk being herniated.

MICHAEL BRADLEY: It does, it helps. I felt good playing, like I said, when I talked to you yesterday, was the first time I'd played with Greg since I've been on Tour. And he's the No. 1 player in the world for years, and he's No. 2 now, and it was nice to go out and to perform and play well in front of him, not that his praise -- I need that to perform, but it was just nice to play with somebody who's had all the success he's had, and just to watch him and just to play with him, it was fun. And I think that might have helped a little bit today, given me a little more confidence. I'd been hitting it all right on the West Coast, but putting terrible. So I guess the putting was a little better the last couple of days. And I've just been fortunate to hit some fairways, been hitting on the greens, 2-putting, not making any dumb mistakes. When it gets windy like this, a bad shot is magnified ten fold, especially if you get crosswinds, if you get the ball going one way or another. I've been fortunate where I haven't done anything stupid.

MICHAEL BRADLEY: I hit a little punch 7-iron.

MICHAEL BRADLEY: 8 feet behind the hole.

MICHAEL BRADLEY: 152.

MICHAEL BRADLEY: I think 70 is a great score tomorrow. I think conditions like today, I think par is even a good score. But like I said, it's just one of those things, hopefully you'll get off to a good start. If you get off to 1, 2, 3 over after the first few holes, it can make for a long day, because there's not a lot of birdie holes out there. It sounds funny, but with the wind conditions it's tough to putt, 6, 7 footers when you've got a 30 mile an hour wind blowing, the putter is zigzagging and it's tough to hit solid putts. And if you drive it in the fairway you've got a medium to short iron in. You could maybe consider that maybe a fairly good chance. But this 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 coming in and 15, 16, 17, 18 coming in are basically into the wind, and I don't think you're going to get many birdies coming in. So you better get under early or you could end up having a long day.

MICHAEL BRADLEY: You know, I've been fortunate to where I've led at one given point during the 4th round in my career. Obviously I've won once, but I've led in the fourth round the times in previous tournaments. I've been there before. But it's tough. David Duval was there umpteen times and the next thing you know he wins four times in the span of what, two, three months. There's a lot of guys out here that I think once they breakthrough and get the confidence and they do it under the gun, I think it gives them the confidence and now they know they can do it. Billy Mayfair last week, second on the money list, 1.5 million, hadn't won in a couple of years. Now he's 6-under par. It's a funny game.

MICHAEL BRADLEY: Yeah, it's not like I'm facing a gun squad or something tomorrow. I'm playing golf. What's the worst thing that could happen? Really. What's the worst thing that going to happen to me?

MICHAEL BRADLEY: It would be nice. If you asked me that question five or six years ago I would have said yeah; but now, no. I live with whatever happens. That's kind of I guess as I've gotten told older, that's kind of been my philosophy.

MICHAEL BRADLEY: I always felt like I had the physical talent to play out here, but mentally I felt like I've been a little lax. I don't think I've conducted myself as well as I should have or could have, I guess. I don't want to say a really negative attitude, but not really focusing in, too many little bad things creeping in your mind, just stuff like that, nerves. I'm pretty calm, if you watch me on the outside walking around, I look like I'm just -- I'm out there just floating on air, but inside, I'm turning inside, I think it's natural. But it's kind of like my golf coach said it's kind of like the duck on the pond, you see him on top, and he's gliding, but underneath his feet are just churning, that's how I am. Exterior I look like I'm calm as can be, but inside I'm grinding.

MICHAEL BRADLEY: I first saw Bob, it's been a couple of years now. I went to his house for a few days. And for the most part it's all common sense. I think it's more application, but most of the stuff he tells us, it's common sense. I think it's just applying it, is where he can help you.

LEE PATTERSON: Go over your birdies for us, then.

MICHAEL BRADLEY: 2, hit a driver, and a wedge about 20 feet, made a birdie. 4, I hit it in the left hand bunker and 2-putted for bogey. 5 I hit driver, sand wedge for about 2 feet and made birdie. 6, drove it in the middle and hit in the middle of the bunker, pitched out about 15 feet and made bogey. 13 I hit a really good 2-iron. I never saw it, it was right into the sun, never saw it and it ended up about 25 feet short of the hole, and I made it. 18 was a driver and 7-iron about 8 feet behind the hole and made it.