WGC AMERICAN EXPRESS CHAMPIONSHIP

November 12, 2000

Mike Weir

MIKE WEIR: It feels fantastic. There were so many players with a chance to win today, I felt there would be a lot of swings back and forth. It's the kind of golf course it is. If you're playing well, you can make a lot of birdies. If you hit an error shot, you can be penalized in a big way out here. So my plan today was to just try to keep the ball solid, keep it in the fairway, and I did that for the most part today. So that's how I was kind of able to keep my composure.

MIKE WEIR: Yes. I did the first two parts right. I hit a good drive and laid it up right where I wanted to, and I was really surprised how far the ball flew on my third shot. Maybe there was a bit of adrenaline going there. I made a nice up-and-down from over the back of the green there.

MIKE WEIR: It's a huge win, a World Championship. With the quality of the field, that's what makes it so special, is that the quality of the players here this week, to come out on top is really special.

MIKE WEIR: Yeah, that's difficult. Mark and Tiger were having a little bit of difficulty on that hole. We did have to wait quite a bit on that, in between shots there on 17. But I think my third shot I had 77 yards to the hole, and a little bit downwind. I thought I hit an L-wedge. I only hit my L-wedge 80 yards at the most. With a little bit downwind, I thought I'd hit it, take some off it, have it go 85 yards. Well, it flew 95 yards. It really suurprised me how far that flew. But, again, I had a good lie in the back there and made a real good chip.

MIKE WEIR: No. No, there's no thought. I didn't have any thought of that. I was just planning on executing my shot. And I was very focused today all the way around, and those thoughts didn't really enter my mind at all today.

MIKE WEIR: Yeah, I didn't know everybody went in. But I know the two guys in front of me went into the water because I saw them dropping. It's just such a difficult hole. And it's so tough to judge, your -- either your second shot or even an 80-yard shot in there is very difficult to judge. So it's just a very dangerous hole.

MIKE WEIR: Well, yeah. Any time Tiger plays in the tournament you win, it makes you feel very good. Ask Darren Clarke, when he won early in the year the Match Play. It makes you feel great because, you know, he's far and away the best player in the game right now. And if he's in the field, he's always the man to beat. So to come out on top, especially -- I'm more happy with the way I rebounded from Friday really. I made 8 on 17, and I was really -- I guess I was 10 shots, 9 shots out of the lead going into the weekend. So that feels pretty good.

MIKE WEIR: It started to come around a little bit Friday afternoon as I was playing. 17 wasn't an indication, because I hit a very good drive and a 4-iron that was an inch short of making a 4 instead of an 8. I hit two good shots there; started to feel some momentum. Then I kind of went back to my room and did a little homework. Actually, I keep notes of certain tournaments that I play well, when my swing's feeling a certain way. I just kind of reviewed some of those. I hit on a key that this is my sixth tournament in a row, I think, my posture was getting a little sloppy. I just told myself, "Tomorrow," being Saturday, "Get a little bit taller with your posture." I came out early Saturday morning to try that theory, and started to see some results on the range with my ball-striking. Then I just carried it into the rest of the weekend.

MIKE WEIR: 17, I hit a very good drive down there; I hit a 4-iron to the green. I hit 4-iron the first day; hit it in the middle of the green. Then Friday, I was two yards closer. So I was thinking: 4-iron, worst-case scenario, hit it over the back of the green, because I was in between a 4- and a 5-iron. Hit a nice 4-iron with a cut coming into the pin. The winds must have pushed it down instead of carrying it, because it was downwind. It landed literally an inch short, right on the slope, then rolled back in the water. I dropped to the right, and pitched it. It was just kind of a gust, the wind blew it across the green, rolled down into the water again. Pitched it on the green; missed a 10-foot putt for 7.

MIKE WEIR: I think not only that -- I gained some confidence. Even though I lost the playoff in the Michelob Championship in Kingsmill, I shot 6-under on my back nine to get in that playoff under tough circumstances. I holed a nice 15-foot putt on the last hole, knowing I needed to make that. Whenever you do those kind of things, I think it feeds your confidence. Then the Presidents Cup a couple weeks later, playing as well as I did, gave me a good feeling coming into this week that something might happen. After Friday, I wasn't too sure. But I found a few things for Saturday and Sunday.

MIKE WEIR: No, I didn't. I told my caddie, Brennan Little, that I wasn't going to pay attention, because I decided to focus on my game, and the only time I knew was on 17. I stood up there and hit my drive, and I said, you know, "What are we at?" He said, "We're two up." The decision was made for me to lay it up. If I may have been two behind at that point, you know, may have taken a shot at it. But with that pin, it's a dicy shot.

MIKE WEIR: Any one. (Laughing.) My favorite major... You know, I don't know if I really have a favorite major. I think possibly the British Open would mean a lot, because I think it's -- that and the US Open brings the best from around the world. Everybody has a chance to qualify from all over the world. And it might be the type of golf course that suits my game maybe a little better than any other golf courses. Augusta, usually the high ball hitters have a little bit better chance there. I hit the ball fairly low. But I think the British Open would be one. Any one would be great. Time-wise, I'm just trying to get better and hopefully put myself in a position next year to win.

MIKE WEIR: Well, Vancouver was big at the time. You know, I came off, you know, a tough two weeks before at the PGA where I struggled the last day. And then to come into Vancouver, which is a lot of pressure for me, because it's a lot of people pulling for me there -- to shoot back-to-back 64s to win gave me a lot of confidence. But this week with the quality of the field and, you know, kind of bouncing back from a little adversity Friday again, and pulling this out today, will, I think, give me a lot of confidence.

MIKE WEIR: You're right. I played a very good round today. Early in the day, I lipped it out on 1. Left it short in the hole on 2. Left it short right in the hole on 3. I seemed to roll a few other putts right over the hole. It was a real test of my patience, I guess, today to just put that behind me and just keep hitting solid shots. It would have been an easy day to be frustrated, because I rolled a lot of putts over the edge today.

MIKE WEIR: The shots I did pick up, I guess was -- No. 4 was the first one. I hit a good drive. Was debating whether to go for that green. The wind just wasn't quite right for me. I didn't want to -- I was in between a 5-wood and 3-wood, and decided to lay it up. I hit a wedge behind the hole maybe 12 feet, 15 feet; made that putt. Then I hit it probably 7, 8 feet the next hole; made that putt. I 2-putted No. 7 for birdie. Then No. 8, I hit it in about 4 feet; made that putt. Then almost chipped in for eagle on 11. Rolled it right over the edge to about two inches away. So that was -- those were my birdies. Then I hit a very nice shot into -- well, the next two holes, I lipped up to make little putts. 15 was the first bogey I made. Hit a nice 5-wood right where I wanted to. I thought it would land about 10 yards short and curl to the right. I carried it a little bit too far to the rough, got kind of a bad line, chipped it 10 feet by; missed that putt. Then 18, hit it, you know, a good drive, which I thought was down the left side. Just hit the top of the tree, I guess, and hit it over the back of the green; chipped up about 6 feet.

MIKE WEIR: I get to say it's a very precise golf course. You have to hit it in the fairway, and your misses are very -- they're just compounded. I mean, if you hit one off-line, you're usually penalized quite a bit for them. So, you know, I think the player that's precise will usually do well, pretty well here.

MIKE WEIR: I do like the golf course, yeah. Great greens. The 17th hole is a very difficult hole. Controversial hole, I guess. But it adds to the flavor of this event and this golf course. I think it's a good golf course.

MIKE WEIR: No. Well, the way I was playing Thursday and Friday, I was just hoping to get back some momentum for the weekend. But as I said, I hit on a key with my golf swing; started feeling really good.

MIKE WEIR: Before the week? I felt like going into this week I had a chance to win, yeah.