home

jobs

	products recent interviews FastScripts archive about ASAP Sports

Our Clients:

Browse by Sport

Find us on

Subscribe to RSS

Click to go to
Asaptext.com

View our
e-Brochure

THE PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP

March 25, 2004

Kevin Sutherland

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, FLORIDA

TODD BUDNICK: 6-under, 66 has you one back of the leaders through round one. It's your third round in the 60s here in 19 rounds and your best round at the TPC course. Why don't you talk a little about that.

KEVIN SUTHERLAND: I didn't know I shot in the 60s. That's refreshing, actually. You know, I played obviously very well. That's -- that goes without saying, really. Go through the birdies and bogeys, is that what you want to do?

TODD BUDNICK: We can do that later.

KEVIN SUTHERLAND: I hit the ball very well. I hit my irons really well. I putted beautifully. I didn't really make anything of tremendous length, but -- with the exception of the one par putt on 7, I just about made every putt I had to make within eight, ten feet of the hole. I putted tremendously.

But I think I need to drive the ball a little better than I did today. I got away with a few drives throughout the week that may come back to hurt you. If there's any aspect of the game that I think I would like to improve on, it would be my driving. I seemed to struggle with that today.

I started on 10 and I parred the first five holes.

I birdied -- hit a 8-iron out of the first cut of rough on 15. I can't imagine I was more than three feet.

I parred 16.

17, I hit a 9-iron, probably about five feet, and I made that.

I hit a good drive on 18 and a 8-iron in the 12-foot area and made that.

I parred 1.

2, I hit a 3-wood and a 4-iron, just -- I hit a beautiful 4-iron, just trickled -- didn't get to the rough, in the cut area, chipped it back about four or five feet and made that.

The best shot of the day for me was probably on No. 4. I hit a drive in the right bunker, a 3-wood. And I had 90 yards out of the sand in the right bunker, and I hit it two feet over the water. That brings a smile to your face when you hit a shot like that. That was easily the best shot of the day for me.

Then 5, I hit a good driver and a 6-iron probably about five feet, made that.

My only bogey of the day was on No. 7. I hit a good drive but then a hit a 7-iron, and I was kind of trying to hit a low shot into the wind. I wasn't sure it was enough club, and I hit it a little too hard and hit over it and hit it left. And then actually I hit a good shot from the -- actually I was in the cut area and I putted it up over a big mound, six feet from the hole, but it didn't go in.

Parred 8.

9, hit a bad drive actually on 9 into the left rough. I had a decent lie. I wasn't sure -- I tried to clear the creek, and I went ahead and tried to hit a 5-wood out of there and hit it great. I hit a wedge three or four feet and made that. And that was the end of the round.

TODD BUDNICK: You've made five or six cuts and just one Top 10. Are you happy with the start of your year?

KEVIN SUTHERLAND: Yeah, sort of. I don't know how to answer that question. No and yes. I'm happy -- I feel like I drove the ball really well. I was hitting the irons solidly, putting terribly. As a result I played mediocre golf. I'm optimistic with the way I was hitting the ball, but I wasn't happy with the results I was getting. So I'm not sure how to answer that question.

Q. Did you not have a conventional-sized putter in your golf bag yesterday?

KEVIN SUTHERLAND: Yeah, I didn't.

Q. A short experiment?

KEVIN SUTHERLAND: No, actually I was home for three weeks, and I didn't putt with a long putter once. I used a short putter the whole time. And Doug saw me there, I was putting on the golf course with -- I was putting with the short putter, and I was putting just okay. And I had the long putter in my locker and I took it after I got done with the nine holes of golf in the morning, I took it out to the putting green, and it felt great. I told my caddy, John, it felt great. And I putted great today. I guess practice doesn't mean a lot, because I didn't use it for a good solid three and a half weeks, I didn't use it on the golf course at all, and I felt great today.

Q. How tough was it to play in the afternoon?

KEVIN SUTHERLAND: I thought it played hard. I played Frank Lickliter, who played great, too. We were making a lot of birdies. I thought it played hard. The greens are about to die, it looks like. They've got that brownish, shiny thing going. And they're about to turn blue, I think. So I'm sure they're going to throw a little bit of water on them tonight just to keep them alive, but they're not going to get any softer. So I thought it played hard. It was receptive if you hit good shots. If you're playing well on this course you can hit good scores, you can make birdies, but if you're not it's going to get you.

Q. When you were using that short putter, what was the problem with that? Were you hitting the ball off-line or both ways or --

KEVIN SUTHERLAND: It didn't feel bad. I had used a short putter, and actually I was optimistic about using it. It didn't feel that bad. It wasn't like oh, my God, I'm putting terrible with this thing. But I don't know, for whatever reason, it was sitting in the locker -- I saw it in the locker, pulled it out, and I said I'm going to hit a couple of putts with this thing. I'm not sure why, it wasn't like I had any intention of ever using it. In fact I stuck it in the bag in my garage, just to protect my drivers, for protecting my drivers on travel, so it would protect my drivers. I swear to God, that's why I brought it, so I just thought I'm going to turn it upside down to cover my driver. It's the putter I used pretty much the whole year.

It wasn't like it was a completely different putter. I used it all -- for a good part of last year. And I just -- I hit a couple of putts on the putting green with it, and I said, God, this thing feels great. And I kind of pulled out the short putter and said this feels okay, this one feels really good. And I went with the one that feels really good. And today I putted really beautifully.

Q. What kind of putter is it?

KEVIN SUTHERLAND: Ping putter, long putter. It's a 48-inch putter, a long putter. It's a Ping putter.

Q. It is, for you, a long putter?

KEVIN SUTHERLAND: Yes. For some 48 inches is a belly putter.

Q. When you look at some of the things that have gone on today, John Daly, no bogeys, Retief Goosen, three double bogeys, Davis shoots 77, don't bet on golf, but is it the course that can cause some of these crazy things to happen?

KEVIN SUTHERLAND: Yeah, and then there's a fine line between success on a hole and a bogey, or whatever you want to call it, I don't want to say failure. If you're hitting really good shots, you know, you can make some birdies. And you can kind of get the round just kind of rolling along. But if you're struggling a little bit, a little bit off, it doesn't take much. The rough is very long. It's thick, not necessarily long, it's really thick. And the greens are tough. You're hitting out of the first cut of rough, you're not hitting crisp iron shots, they're not receptive. But if you're hitting the ball solidly and landing the ball soft, you can make a few birdies. I think that's the way it is.

I don't know -- I don't know what -- I wasn't watching what everybody else was doing. But it's just that's the type of course this is. If you're missing the greens in the wrong stop, the ball rolls 25, 30 feet by, and it's an easy bogey. And obviously there's a lot of water out there to make a double.

Q. By the way, they're showing some of the best shots of the day and they haven't shown your bunker shot.

KEVIN SUTHERLAND: I said it was my best shot, not everybody's best shot. It was easily my best shot of the day, a long bunker shot over water. You know, it was -- it was a shot that I don't want to go back and try to hit again. I hit it perfectly, and it turned out great.

TODD BUDNICK: What club did you hit?

KEVIN SUTHERLAND: Sand wedge.

Q. What did you think when he announced $8 million in the player meeting Tuesday night?

KEVIN SUTHERLAND: I didn't know they were talking about this week (laughter) when they said that, I thought they were talking about next year. I didn't know, because I kind of figured the purse had already been set for this week. I didn't know it was a change. So it wasn't until someone said something -- I think it was Wednesday that the purse was $8 million. So when they said that, I thought they were talking about next year. That's how close I was paying attention. I thought they were talking about next year.

Q. What's your relationship with this golf course? Have you not liked it or not played it well?

KEVIN SUTHERLAND: I love the course. I don't know -- I don't think I've ever had a great deal of success as far as a week. I've had -- like I said, I didn't know I shot a couple of rounds in the 60s, that must have been --

TODD BUDNICK: Last two years.

KEVIN SUTHERLAND: David actually plays well here. I remember one 69 a while ago, or was it last year?

TODD BUDNICK: Last year and the year before.

Q. Any reason for that or the time of year, you're not necessarily playing well, or the greens?

KEVIN SUTHERLAND: I don't know, I like the course. I think it's a great golf course. I think it's just -- I think -- it's tough, I think it's fair. I think if you're hitting good shots, you can get rewarded. If you're hitting bad shots you can definitely get penalized. But I don't know why I haven't had a great deal of success. I think because I haven't been playing well.

Q. Why not just take it off the schedule?

KEVIN SUTHERLAND: I don't think that would go over very well.

Q. Talk about your decision to skip the first three weeks of the Florida Swing.

KEVIN SUTHERLAND: You know, after the West Coast I was pretty tired. I was really tired, actually. I played six in a row. And I was definitely going to take the first two off, Doral and Honda, because I needed a break, and I said I'll throw another one, Bay Hill, and I came back, and I feel really fresh. I feel like I've got a lot of energy. And I know at the end, when I was playing the last couple of weeks on the West Coast, I definitely didn't have a lot of energy.

Those tournaments on the West Coast, like AT&T, it's a long week, it's a tiring week, it takes a lot out of you. And so I think I got a little bit worn down on the West Coast. I just needed a break. I just needed a chance to recharge the batteries.

Q. You've got to get up early on the West Coast.

KEVIN SUTHERLAND: I know. Every time I get out there, I see you out at 5:30.

Q. 6:00.

KEVIN SUTHERLAND: 6:00, okay, I exaggerate.

End of FastScripts.

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297