SEI PENNSYLVANIA CLASSIC

September 11, 2002

Robert Allenby

TODD BUDNICK: We welcome Robert Allenby, defending tournament champion, SEI Pennsylvania Classic.

Robert's been having a great last few weeks as well as the year. He has got 3 top 10's in his last 3 events, including a T 2 at the WGC/NEC Invitational and a T 3 at the Air Canada championships. Coming in as defending champion playing well you have to be looking forward to this.

ROBERT ALLENBY: Yes, absolutely. I look forward to it even more if the wind died down by tomorrow. But I have been playing quite nicely. I had a nice week off last week and recharged the batteries. I feel very refreshed for this week. I'm pretty kean and ready to go.

TODD BUDNICK: What has it been the last 3 weeks, Robert, I know you were in contention in both of the events up in the northwest, is there something particularly going well with your game right now?

ROBERT ALLENBY: Pretty much my whole game is pretty good. I think I just need a little bit of luck on my side and I probably come through with a win. A little bit of luck in the last day of the NEC Tournament and it would have been a lot closer, and also a little bit of luck on the last day at Vancouver, I think, definitely would have gone my way. But you know that's golf. You need to take the good and the bad and all of the breaks you get. I'm not complaining one little bit. I'm playing well, And I know a win is only just around the corner. Whether it's here again this week, that would be fantastic. Whether it's next week, or a month down the track, I don't know.

All I can do is keep playing the way I'm playing and hopefully the top position will come my way. But my whole game at the moment is pretty solid.

TODD BUDNICK: Take some questions.

Q. Robert, did you play here two years ago?

ROBERT ALLENBY: No, I didn't. I've never been here. Yesterday was my first round.

Q. What did you think of the golf course?

ROBERT ALLENBY: I like it. It's real good, a good test of golf. Especially when it blows like it is today.

Q. How unusual is it to be a defending champion playing a course that you have never seen before yesterday?

ROBERT ALLENBY: It doesn't happen too often on this tour. It's doesn't happen too often anywhere, really, but, you know, it's always nice to be a defending champion. It means that you've won and played pretty well. It's nice to come back and to be the defending champion, no matter where it is. This is a great golf course and there are a lot of good golf courses up in this neck of the woods, so it's a pleasure to play.

Q. Robert, it looks like this event isn't coming back to Philadelphia for a while. Does that surprise you and do you think that Philadelphia was given enough of a chance to support a tournament?

ROBERT ALLENBY: You know this is the first I've heard of it, so I don't know. I guess I wouldn't know what to say. I mean it's my first time here. I haven't experienced a golf course in competition so I can't really give you a good answer to that. I can give you a good answer to Laurel Valley, but I don't make those decisions. I just play wherever the tournament is put, and I'm sure this week is going to be a great week and that's what we're here for now. We're here for this week. I can't comment on that question, I'm sorry. I've never been here before so I don't know.

Q. Okay.

TODD BUDNICK: Do we have some more?

Q. What about the field, do you guys look at the field and say a lot of the big names aren't here that gives me a better chancel; does that come into play?

ROBERT ALLENBY: I haven't even looked at the field. I don't know who is playing and who is not playing. I know what time I'm off and that's about it. You know what, if you asked me who I was playing with, I couldn't even tell you that. But I don't really take any notice of it, who is playing and who is not playing.

I guess in a way I do in some tournaments. I know if Tiger is playing or not playing, and if he is playing I want to play. Those are the tournaments I want to play in. But, you know, I can't explain it.

Q. What type of player and what type of play is going to happen this week in order to win? Is there a certain style or certain things that you have to do to go out there to be successful?

ROBERT ALLENBY: You have to hit a lot of fairways. The greens -- I think this week the guy that wins is going to be No. 1 in putting; is going to be No. 1 or No. 2 in putting. This is one of the most difficult golf courses as far as the greens are concerned.

Today I never had one straight put or, or one flat put putt, and that makes a huge difference when you play a tournament on a course like this.

If you're putting is not on this week, you are going to be miles away from the lead.

It's just the way the greens are shaped and the speed of the greens and some of the flag positions that they will put out there will make it real difficult.

I did see, when Chris DiMarco won here a couple of years ago, I did see he hit a lot of the fairways and he putted really well. I think he won by quite a few shots, too.

So, you know, I think, you are going to have to drive the ball very well, and you are going to have to putt very well.

The guy that wins will be the guy that virtually leads the fairways. There is the fairway stat and also be pretty close to leading the putting as well.

Q. What did you think of the 9th green?

ROBERT ALLENBY: The 9th green was fine. I nearly holed a 20-footer downhill so that was pretty good.

(Laughter.)

Q. How is the rough?

ROBERT ALLENBY: The roughs -- I think the rough is okay. I didn't really hit it in there today. I'm trying to think if I did. I hit it in there once. It was pretty thick. It was pretty thick. But, you know, it's fair. It's a good test. The whole golf course is a good test. From what I have seen 2 years ago, and the little bits that I saw on TV until this year, the course is a lot softer and the greens are a lot softer as well, so they are more receptive which makes it hard because there is so many slopes on the greens from back to front and you could spin it off a lot of these greens with shorts irons which makes it even tougher to win when it's firm.

Q. Robert, in your travels on the tour do you normally not look at who is in the field with you, or do you have a tendency to say, well, it's a shame that more good players aren't here? Or, gee, look at all of the great players that are here?

ROBERT ALLENBY: You know, as far as the good players, your instinct tells you that you know, roughly, what tournaments they're going to play and what time of the year they're going to take off and that sort of thing.

But as far as, you know, I don't mind who is playing and who is not playing. I do when Tiger is playing, because I want to beat him. He is the best in the world and that's who we all want to beat, and I'm not afraid to stand up to him.

I look forward to that challenge. That's what golf is all about. Golf at this level is sitting challenges. And if you finish in front of Tiger woods you've played pretty well. But as far as top players not coming to certain tournaments, I can't pick their schedules. I can only pick my own. I can't make excuses, and I can't say anything else about them. I can only control what I do.

Apart from winning last year I enjoyed the week I thought it was great. I think this whole state is a great place. You got a lot of great golf courses, and whichever golf course you play on, I'm sure it's going to be a good tournament.

TODD BUDNICK: Thank you, Robert, and good luck.

ROBERT ALLENBY: Thank you.

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