PGA CHAMPIONSHIP

August 14, 2002

Curtis Strange

CURTIS STRANGE: Why do I see a lot of snickering out there?

CURTIS STRANGE: What's going on. (Smiling). We're getting close, anyway. Thank goodness. Any questions?

CURTIS STRANGE: The stress of being the captain isn't going to be, I don't think, a lot until the week of the matches. That's strictly because I'm in a position I've never been in before, not being in control or playing. I'm asked that a lot at clinics or dinners or whatever it might be about what's tougher to do, a major or play the Ryder Cup. They are both so different. Trying to win a major is pressure, but if you fail, you have one person to blame and one person to pat on the back if you do well. But the Ryder Cup, it's a different pressure because you represent a lot more than just yourself and your family, and with that comes pressure. But they are both tough. That's what we practice for. We do enjoy it. It's tough. It's not much fun sometimes, but we do enjoy it.

CURTIS STRANGE: Well, I just came from the beach since the British Open. I was just messing around. I tried to think up some little cute answer for you, but I haven't. So I just thought, you know, some of the older players have given me some grief and all of the young players like it. (Laughs).

CURTIS STRANGE: To answer your first question, I thought it was my responsibility to keep an open mind on any possibility that might be. Once we got the decision to delay a year, just to do what was right for the matches. And every time Julius and I talked, it always came back to it wasn't the right thing to do. It was the 2001 team now playing in the year 2002, and I kept an open mind. Nobody was ever going to be replaced to start with. But I kept an open mind for a while on possibly adding somebody. You know, it was a thought. A lot of you guys were writing about different case scenarios that could happen, and a lot of them were interesting and a lot of them could have worked. But it came back to, at the end of the day, the right thing to do was just keep the same team intact. There was nothing wrong with that. There was no -- there's no good reason for it. There's no good reason to change it. You've got to remember, as I keep saying, as the matches get closer, these guys are like family to me and I don't want to change the team. I don't want to add anybody because it would always be an asterisk spot on the 2001 team. Sam and I talked, as I drove across country on 9/13, that that was what he wanted to do, as well. Now, am I happy with the way everybody is playing, yes. On the whole, yes. Being a year later and what the game can do to players and how things can change and the games, I'm tickled to death. Everybody is playing, I think, pretty dog-gone well from what I've seen. Those who aren't, are coming around. I actually played, by coincidence yesterday, when we team-played together, I happened to play with Duval and Sutton yesterday, and that was not any reason for me to do that, other than just the way it fell. They are both coming around okay. It will be fine.

CURTIS STRANGE: I really haven't said much to them, other than a few logistics that have to be talked about as far as traveling. Remember, we'll be in Ireland the week before, so there had not been much to talk about. You have to remember -- let's go back a year -- everything was set in place. Once this week was over last year and I got my team together, everybody had been fitted, everybody was set in place. We were leaving in a matter of 10 or 12 days, whatever it was. Yesterday was just something I got together Monday morning. It was fun. We got just about everybody together. It was just a chance to spend some time together and play a practice round at a big tournament. That was the only reason. I just felt like I needed to do something, it's been such a long time now, it really has. It's been a year this team has been together. I just felt like I wanted to do something, and it was fun. Everybody thoroughly enjoyed it. It was a good idea.

CURTIS STRANGE: Well, right now Sarah and I just talking logistics and travel, really. See, I think playing in Ireland is very, very advantageous for this team, two reasons. One is that they are all going to play, or, I think, 11 out of 12, as we stand right now, are going to play in Ireland, and then we don't have to deal with jet lag during the week of the Ryder Cup Matches. So, as far as travel and plan over there, this is the best case scenario that could happen with us. But what we are talking about is just travel plans and when are you going and making sure that everybody knows how we are going down to The Belfry on Monday and things like that. But it's just stuff that's done through letters and things like that. You have to remember, they are busy this week at a big event. I try very hard not to ever intrude on their preparation for any tournament for the last year. Been hard not to, because it's in my mind all the time, but not in their mind all the time.

CURTIS STRANGE: I think it's picking up right now. I think it's been picking up for the last, you know, three or four weeks. I only get that sense from you guys and ladies talking about it, talking to me about it, asking about things. Everything is different this year because of the delay. We knew it was going to be different. We knew something was going to be different, and I think the first thing that came to mind was that there would not be the buzz for the players trying to make the team and for the two picks; who would that be? It's great writing. It's great bar room talk, for all of us. It was good for me and fun for me. But it's not this year, and that's fair enough. After this week, everything will be pretty much set in place, as it always would, and the team will be picked and it will pick up. I think everything will really pick up from after this week from the standpoint that this is the last major of the year and we now can look forward to the Ryder Cup. Over in Europe and England, I think it's the same thing after the British Open, pretty much. Not to disrespect this championship, but I think they pick it up after the British Open over there.

CURTIS STRANGE: It's none of your business. (Laughter.) No, actually it is your business. It's for me to know and you to find out. That's nicer, isn't it? I don't know. (Shrugs).

CURTIS STRANGE: Can I elaborate? I don't know. (Laughs).

CURTIS STRANGE: Well, first of all Hal and I talk about the golf swing and our games a lot because we have always swung the club similarly and we worked on similar things over the years. For a while, we had the same instructor. So, in that respect, yes, we have always talked, and we have talked in the last year or so. Not specifically about "Hal, what's your problem? Damn it, you've got to get your butt in gear," not stuff like that. I hope he starts playing better because -- for himself. You don't believe I say that, but I hope David Duval starts playing better, because it's tough for a world-class player such as both of them to go down and not play well for a while. It's a tough situation, both on and off the golf course. So it wears on you. It's something that is part of this game that people don't realize how tough it can be. So, from that respect, I hope they start playing better. Yes, I hope they start playing better for the matches, but you have to remember there are only eight guys who have to play in every match.

CURTIS STRANGE: Well, it's something we can't really speculate on because we just don't know. I think leading up to the matches we're going to remember why we're a year late. I hope we do, in fact, it's going to be part of all of our messages, I think, as we gear up for the next five to six weeks. We should never forget why we're playing this year. As far as over there, I think being our ally and Tony Blair, what he has done with our administration, it's been wonderful to see, so I expect them to realize the same thing and remember the same thing. But I've always said once the tee goes in the ground Friday morning, I think you're going to have a good, solid match, the way it's always been and I think you'll see a partisan crowd, which is the way it should be and I don't think you'll see much change at all.

CURTIS STRANGE: There's always one question. (Laughs). For me, personally, it's another year of being captain. The guys have been great to me. It's been a lot of fun. Every time you walk in and out of the locker room or on the practice tee -- I've thoroughly enjoyed it. They have been a lot of fun. I think it's probably been frustrating for some of the players that were really excited about playing, and I mean specifically the three guys who had not done it; Toms, Verplank, Cink, but it's coming closer and we'll play the Matches. Gosh, there's a lot of good things, hanging out with these guys over here for another year, working with the Matches, the work behind the scenes. It's been some time-consuming effort, but also, it's been a joy, too.

CURTIS STRANGE: We're working on some things, I think the main thing that we are going to do is do it our own way. What does that mean? We've certainly got some posters made up. I think it will certainly be part of my remarks before and after. I just don't think you have to remind people in a really loud fashion about why we are playing this year, I really don't. Certainly, behind the scenes, I can envision it being talked about between us, but I really haven't given it a whole lot of thought, other than we have had a couple of things done, just to remind people and things like that. I think you can also -- with that said, keeping it in mind, that you never wanted to use that, you know what I mean? After the fact, it becomes a point to where, are you reaping a benefit because of a terrible disaster, through it commercialism or something like that and I never wanted to do anything like that.

CURTIS STRANGE: Well, I personally will always remember that comment. I don't have a problem with what they are doing down there, I really don't.

CURTIS STRANGE: Well, if somebody dominated like that, it would certainly create a lost interest to see who might be the first guy to win it, other than that particular person, but I just don't think that's going to happen and we don't see it happening. He proves that he can't play superb golf all the time, and there's certainly some other players who are capable of beating him, even when he plays well. We haven't seen it yet too often, but it's still possible. I think everybody -- to me, everybody enjoyed the British Open. Not because Tiger -- people don't root against Tiger, but I think it proves to the fact that people do see that he is human, because sometimes I think we get beyond that; that he's going to win a bad shot and lose the tournament. But that he is human and there are people back there that can play some superb golf. One of them being Ernie Els and the other being Phil, eventually, and other players. I don't know if you're talking about the British or not, but we had a wonderful show on Sunday because there was any number of people who could have won that, once Ernie stubbed his toe once or twice there, was any number of people who could have won that. It was fun for me to do because it brought out some personalities and names to focus that I could talk about on ABC. It was good, but I think Tiger, getting back to him, he showed a lot of class, and whatever he showed by shooting 65 on Sunday, coming back and trying hard and doing what he did. I know what you're saying in your question, but I just don't think it's going to happen.

CURTIS STRANGE: That came there one of your veteran -- there's been a trend? (Laughter.)

CURTIS STRANGE: I did. Damn it, I did. No, I take it -- Sarah did most of it. Would you want to try to dress 12 men for a week by yourself?

CURTIS STRANGE: Well, khakis and white shirts, too. My guys will have some form of a red, white and blue every day. It won't be a red, white and blue flag every day, but it will be some form of red, white and blue every day. I think it's a patriotic thing and they should dress appropriately.

CURTIS STRANGE: Not at all. Zinger is back and he's fine now. Sutton says that his sleep apnea is something he's going to have to deal with his whole life. But it's not a problem at all right now. So, no, not at all. Everybody is pretty happy.

CURTIS STRANGE: A little bit. A little bit. And that's just human nature. That's the game. The game has done that. No personality has done that, no person has done that. The game has done that.

CURTIS STRANGE: Yeah, through my 40s, it's because I pretty much had enough. It was my 30s when I just got frustrated and didn't play well. My 40s, it's because I took the job with ABC and I never gave it the time and put in the effort. But the time from, say, '91 on, I just lost interest just a bit, I guess, and was looking for something else to do and all of the above.

CURTIS STRANGE: I do. If I look back, would I have done it differently? Damn right. I would have hung in there a little longer, kicked myself in the rear end a little bit more, and not given up so quickly. But I think that's human nature with any athlete -- I think that's human nature with any guy who does anything for any period of time as a profession. You always somewhat second-guess yourself.

CURTIS STRANGE: I pretty much know what I'm going to do right now, the first day. I know what I'm going to do the second day if it worked according to plan, which it never does. I haven't thought much about it since -- I had the pairings done before the first of September last year, and then obviously, it's changed a little bit because it's been a year. But very little difference. I had not thought much about it at all until recently because there's no reason to. It's nothing I can do because that will change when the games change, so there's nothing I can do about that. I just never feel like wasting my time -- that's not right. I just felt that I wasn't interested in it until we got closer, to see how everybody was playing and everybody was healthy and whatever reason you might not put somebody with somebody else. But I haven't put too much time in it. I don't think it's going to be anything like the Super Bowl. I think it will be a pretty good match.

CURTIS STRANGE: I think it's Hal who is outside the top world golf rankings.

CURTIS STRANGE: 50.

CURTIS STRANGE: Daily has not been on a team -- was that a Ryder Cup year? '91, yes.

CURTIS STRANGE: I'm more sad for him. And "sad" is the wrong word. I hate to see any professional -- I know what he's going through. It's tough. You've got to keep beating your head against that wall every day because it will turn around. Hopefully, it will. You hate to see any top-class player go through anything like that. It's tough.

CURTIS STRANGE: Well, let me ask you, how would I exploit that, since I can't pair against other people? There's no way I can do that. That's up to Sam and how he -- that's up to Sam Torrance and how he pairs his own team.

CURTIS STRANGE: Well, it's an interesting idea. Everybody has their own opinion. They haven't, to answered your question. They have not, but other people have. Hey, I don't miss much. I see what's going on and I hear what's going on and it could be from anybody. I'll listen because listening is not going to hurt anything. It comes down to me at the final minute and I'll make the ultimate decision. So, hopefully, I'll do all right. You know, if I don't use these 12 guys, they are my greatest resource in the world -- if I don't use them as a sounding board, then I'd be nuts, I really would. Now, I'm not going to do what every one of them says because they all have their own opinion and want to play with who they want to play with, but when it comes down to who will match better with the rest of the team. You know, if I put A and B together, that might be a wonderful pairing, but it might make F and G bad, so I have to look at the overall team as a whole. I can't make one pairing good and one pairing not so good.

CURTIS STRANGE: Absolutely, yeah. I don't have any problem, at all, with that.

CURTIS STRANGE: I don't know. Is that true?

CURTIS STRANGE: No. You have to remember, I think that would be bad that they would do that because they are worthy of representing their country because they made the team to start with. Just because their form went bad because of an attack on our country, then I think they still should be part of that team. You have to remember, as I said a few minutes ago, only 8 out of 12 have to play each match. You don't have to play all 12. So even if somebody is not in good form or if somebody gets the flu or something, they don't have to play until Sunday. That's part of the Matches, and I think that's part of the fun part of the Matches. You know, you don't go to battle with all 12 in perfect shape all the time, but you have to go to battle. I kind of like that.

CURTIS STRANGE: Well, I think we are all concerned -- I think that's a higher number than I've heard. I haven't heard of any tournament really losing a sponsor as of this date. They are some that still looking. Well, you're right. Lost a past sponsor. We are all concerned. You have to be. And I'm not concerned for myself right now because I don't play on a regular basis, but I'm concerned for the players who are regular on TOUR and I am concerned for the Tour itself and I'm concerned with why corporate America is not staying involved.

CURTIS STRANGE: Or more.

CURTIS STRANGE: I don't know. I'm not involved in that part of the Tour and never have been. So I don't know if that would help or not. I don't know why these -- I don't know exactly why these sponsors left; if it was just a change of chairman, that their money is going elsewhere, or if it's something wrong with the tour, or if it's too much money, I don't know.

CURTIS STRANGE: It's been the same -- well, actually, been less this time because everything was set in place. We were ready to go. We have not done much of anything this past year, up until the last month or so, just with, once again, arrangements of travel; if guys will be over in Ireland, so they are arranging their wives and girlfriends to get over to The Belfry, those who won't go to Ireland, things like that. It has not been a burden this year at all -- not that it was a burden before, but it has not been a burden this year.

CURTIS STRANGE: You might know better than I know. The ones that I know had pretty much similar philosophies on pairings. Mine might be a little different because I know this golf course pretty well. My team is such where their teams was 12 different players. I think it's all pretty much, you want your birdie machines to go out in best ball. You want guys who can make birdies to play together, and in alternate-shot, you want to make pretty much similar-type games play together. So that's pretty much the way I look at it. Very simply, that's the way I look at it, yeah.

CURTIS STRANGE: No.

CURTIS STRANGE: I could never see that, unless somebody was injured and couldn't go. If somebody got over there and was injured, and then, obviously, he would either try to play on Sunday -- I remember Fuzzy doing that in '83. Showed a lot of courage, went out first and tied Seve. If he can't go, it's a name that goes in the envelope.

CURTIS STRANGE: Well, there's never been a captain better than the next. They have all been good and their own personality, they have all been great fun. They all were different, but they all were thorough in what they did. They took it very seriously and there was no stone left unturned. I have no idea what type of captain I'm going to be because I haven't done this before. Hopefully, like that. I'll think things out. But, you know, I kind of like to go by feel. I know these players. They are friends of mine. I know the way they play, I know the way they act, I know the kind of attitudes they have. Then I'll react accordingly to what I see, earlier in the week and during the week.

CURTIS STRANGE: You know, let me just explain one thing: I did play with Hal yesterday and I think we bring up his name in a negative connotation a little bit too much. He's playing much better. I think he's going to be fine. Hal Sutton's game never gets so far off because he's a good striker of the ball, so we do bring his name up because he has fallen out of the Top-50 or 60 in the world. But he's the kind of guy you want on your team, I don't give a damn how he's playing. He was a rock in '99 and I expect him to be near the same thing in 2002. To me, it doesn't bother me that he's not at the top of his form because he's the kind of guy you always want to go to battle with, and so not getting on you, but just to kind of explain everything.

CURTIS STRANGE: You know what, my answer to that is when has the Ryder Cup ever been played with 24 of the best players in the world at that time? Probably never. Because you always have that six-week stretch between the PGA and the Ryder Cup Matches of that particular year. You always have somebody who has made the team, that made it predominantly on their play the year before and really is not playing well now, but is on the team. You know, you never have the 24 top, at that moment, in the world. So, that's my answer to that. I don't think -- will it take away from the Matches? Absolutely not. My gosh, I've still got a pretty strong team.

CURTIS STRANGE: Well, I haven't captained or been a part of any of his teams, so I pretty much only have a feel for that through what I've seen from the outside. I think wherever he goes, to start with, he's a leader, No. 1. But I think I can describe him as maybe a quiet leader; lead by example, is what I have seen from the outside.

CURTIS STRANGE: No. That was hard enough the first time. (Laughter.)

CURTIS STRANGE: I don't really understand your question, to be honest with you. I know that the comments, the "War at the Shore" was a title from somebody in '91.

CURTIS STRANGE: Absolutely not. Absolutely not. None whatsoever.

CURTIS STRANGE: Well, it's changed for everyone, but it's something you really should ask either Julius here or he might refer you to Jim Awtrey or Kerry Haigh because they, the European and British PGA, are in charge this year because we are over there this year and they are the ones handling all that. I promise it's going to be good, tight security.

CURTIS STRANGE: No. At this point, they are in charge.

CURTIS STRANGE: Yes, it's match-play, so it is different. It's match-play. I felt pressure that you had to make birdies from the start. All but the singles had a partner to hold up. You feel like I had pressure to hold up my end of the bargain with him. Yes, it was a lot different. I think you play more aggressively. I sometimes tended to get out of my game plan and try to play shots I'm capable of playing, things like that, things that match-play makes you do, things that this competition makes you do.

CURTIS STRANGE: Well, in a nutshell, I think it's similar to a lot of players out here. But he and I go around -- go about fixing the problem in a similar fashion, and that's that he just gets -- he almost gets a bit -- "lazy" is the wrong word, but it is the right word, lazy in that the club does not get in the proper position on the downswing, it gets too far on the inside. With his movement through the ball, that's kind of the kiss of death. So, he needs to stay on top of the ball. He needs for his club to be very much on his line coming on the downswing and stay on top of the ball, not get too much underneath, and stay more level, I should say, would simplify that. It's hard to describe. But that's pretty much it. Now, everybody gets their own little problem areas, but that's -- in a nutshell, that's what he and I work on all the time.

CURTIS STRANGE: I feel good about the possibility of them all playing pretty solid golf during the week and I feel good about their playing good right now, as a whole, and I feel good that they will be confident that if they play well, you know, the end result will be what they want. I'm not going to sit here and say win, lose or draw. We have to go play well. That's been proven. That's why the Matches are always close, and if we ever get ahead of ourselves, we'll get in trouble.

CURTIS STRANGE: No. No, I really don't think so. I think they are all grown men. I think they know mistakes have been made in the past, and I think they all understand that we'll be under a microscope this year. Not only because of what might have happened or did happen at the Country Club in '99, but I think it's -- I feel that it's more of a responsibility to represent yourself and your country in a manner in which everyone at home will be very proud, since September, and that since we were the first team that was delayed after the attacks, I think possibly the TV audience will be tremendous in size. When I say that, a cross of golfers and non-golfers watching, and I think we should know that and we should realize that, to act the way we are all brought up, is the way we should go about it. Which is what they do all the time, in general, to start with. But you know, as I answer that, and I keep saying on both sides, is that emotional is why everybody likes to watch this event so much. We play as robots every day of our lives out here. We think we play better, and we do, when we hold our emotions inside. In the Ryder Cup, it's okay to let your emotions run freely. I think it can be detrimental to you, but it's still the way you play the game in the Ryder Cup. Because of that, the fans like it, the TV audience likes it, everyone in this room enjoys it because of that, and I think it's a unique event in that respect; that you can let your emotions go and root for your team and win, lose or draw.

CURTIS STRANGE: Not individually, no. I think being proud of the 12 guys and doing my job, which is to, first of all, make it a grand week for them, and second of all, to prepare them to where they can play their best. So, it will be completely different. As I have said all along, the perfect case scenario for me is we go play well and win and my name is never mentioned, because they are the show. I'm not the show, Sam is not the show, these 24 players are the show and let them go play without controversy and may the best team win.

CURTIS STRANGE: Thank you.