U.S. AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP

August 23, 2001

Daniel Summerhays

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: Thank you.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: Bruce is my you uncle, my dad's brother.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: First of all, just my match play approach is just play it like a stroke play round and just try to hit fairways and greens and just do what you're usually doing. You kind of set a score out there that you want to shoot for. And if you get that, then there's no regrets out there. If you're 3-up through 12 holes or something, like I was today, I just knew that I had to keep hitting fairways and hitting greens and not like, okay, I can let down a little bit, but just keep going. Just the U.S. junior and Match Play tournaments, and I played in our State Amateur and just gained a lot of experience in that. And just about the same as stroke play. I played a lot of tournaments this summer and you can dig deep into the well and just remember a good shot that you've hit. And you can go off that. And it's just really great to have my dad also to give me some -- just every time he just reminds me to keep staying through it and just don't worry about going left or anything. Just there for support. Just a lot of help. And it's really great.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: I birdied 7. Actually, he made like a 30-footer down the hill. And then I made a 6 -, 7-footer for birdie to tie that hole. And I birdied 9 and 10 and then 13. And just won some holes in between there. So that was just a stretch where I started hitting some fairways and making some putts.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: I'm a senior, I'll be a senior starting Monday.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: At Davis high school in Kaysville, Utah.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: It's just five minutes away. Just two small cities.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: K-a-y-s-v-i-l-l-e.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: He's good. He's a real good competitor. And we go out and have fun. We have family tournaments and we -- it's always competitive. And it's really fun to play together.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: We have seven. Four boys and three girls.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: Bruce has 8 kids.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: Yeah. My brother Boyd is a very fine player. He's going to -- he's just working on his game right now, and probably turn pro here in the next little while. We have some really good family matches between the two families. So it's really fun.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: Yes. That's my goal. I would love to do that. That's what I love to do.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: Right now probably BYU. It has a lot of things that are just closer to home, and I like the coach and the teammates and stuff like that. Probably BYU.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: Probably. But I think most people know I'm kind of set on there. So, hopefully, I can just make that decision and not have to worry about that too much.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: I haven't measured for awhile. I don't want to guess. I think I'm probably about five-six, five-seven. Five-seven, probably.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: Thank you.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: Yes, sir.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: Yes, sir.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: It's tough, but you just have to set your priorities and school is first. And then you go out and practice. During the school year you just go out, and after school, and just practice and then come home and study and that. In the summer, that's when I play most of my golf when there's no school. It is tough to balance, but you can find time. There's always time for that.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: Yes, sir.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: It's a not a commitment, but it's a choice, really. For the boys, most of the boys go on missions when they're 19. So it's a mission. They go out and preach what they believe. And I'll go do a year of college, probably, and then go.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: Yeah. My brother.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: Yeah, I mean it's a struggle with golf. But it's so much better for the person. And you learn so much. Boyd will be definitely a great, great player because he did that, I believe. And I think just the mentality and the emotional maturity that you gain on a two-year mission like that. That's what you think about, that would really help you in the long run. So although the results right now don't show, they will pay off.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: I know ^ Ty Tryon pretty well, but I just -- I mean, if that's what he wants to do, he can go and do that. I'm not really going to take a side on that, really. If that's what you wants to do, he should go for it. But for me, I wouldn't want to do that, because I love high school and I love being with my friends and just going out and having a good time. Playing some basketball with them. So I just don't want to miss that. I think you just need to take each step as they go. And just learn from every part of your life that comes to you.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: Definitely exceeded, so far. I know that my game is a lot stronger than it has been. I'm just climbing, climbing to where I'm gaining quite a bit of confidence and it's definitely beyond my expectations. I was just hoping to get into match play and just give that a shot, and just try to go out there. But there's no pressure on me. It's just fun to go out and play East Lake. And that's just play the course and that's what we're having fun doing.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: I just threw it in the suitcase. Just like the shirt. It's really light. It works good.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: Nope.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: Not really, no. I just play basketball with my friends. Just pick up games and stuff like that. I love basketball.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: Yeah, it's Davis High School, Davis is the county name. It's just seven minutes away from my house.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: This summer I've practiced quite a bit, probably six or seven hours a day with my brother Boyd because he moved back from college. And so we would go down and practice together. And that's been a real blessing for me. He's really been a strength to my game and every time we go out and play nine holes, there's something that will be as competitive as it is out here because we both want to beat each other. So that has been a really, really great strength to my game just learning and growing with and from him.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: Not much. Especially, I practice quite a bit this last winter and spring. This year I'm just going to try, after high school, golf in the fall is over, I'm just going to try to settle down and work on some academics. Just add four AP classes and just try to work on that and see if I can pass those and get some college credits. So just going to try to take a month or two off and that's good. Because in the winter in Utah it is pretty cold and you can't really play in the snow, but we try sometimes. Once that one or two months is over, you come back with that new fire ready to play. So I think that's really good for my game. That will give me some time for my school.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: No. Not really. Because I think that he has learned so much in the two years of college that he went to that I am not there yet. I still have a lot to learn. I just I'm looking forward in my schooling because if I don't want to do golf I can go back on that. And I can go work with my dad at his business or do what I love to do. So it just depends. I would love to get a college degree and then have something to fall back on if I chose not to play golf.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: Biggest surprise, I just would say the hospitality and just the people here are amazing. I never expected how kind and just how giving they are. How much they put in, how much effort they put in. That's just been amazing to me to watch. And it's so easy to say thank you to everybody here for all that they do for this tournament. Because without them, you wouldn't be, I wouldn't be playing in the U.S. Amateur and wouldn't be having such a wonderful time.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: Probably. Quarter-finals of the U.S. Amateur, that's a dream come true.

DANIEL SUMMERHAYS: All right. Thanks.