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THE PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP

March 21, 2006

J.B. Holmes

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, FLORIDA

JOEL SCHUCHMANN: J.B. Holmes, thanks for joining us, lone rookie of the year in this field at THE PLAYERS Championship. You won the FBR Open earlier this year, maybe some opening comments about the golf course that you got to play just now.

J.B. HOLMES: I liked the golf course today. It sets up pretty good for me. Greens are a little soft. I hope they get a little bit firmer, I think they will during the week, but the course is in great shape. Should be a lot of fun out there this week.

Q. Talk a little about what your life has been like since Phoenix, not only did you win, but you won it in spectacular fashion with long drives and all that, what's it been like since then?

J.B. HOLMES: Just kind of been a little crazy, hard to adjust. Since the tournament, a different lifestyle, just changes, everything, from tee times and everything on the TOUR to more media, more fans, just more time. So it's more recognizable, it's all good things, but, you know, I'm real young and last year I was in college. So it's all been a real big change really fast for me and I'm still trying to adjust.

Q. Did you watch it on TV last year?

J.B. HOLMES: The FBR or THE PLAYERS?

Q. THE PLAYERS.

J.B. HOLMES: I watched the last round.

Q. Do you remember who won?

J.B. HOLMES: Funk.

Q. That was a test. (Laughter)?

J.B. HOLMES: I passed.

Q. It's been pretty quick, but since just four months ago, you were at Q School and now you're in a position to try to play your way into the Masters if you get into the Top 10 this week. Is that something on your mind when you're playing in this tournament and can that make it harder than it already is?

J.B. HOLMES: I can't really focus on that. If I get to play in the Masters this year, great. If not, I'm sure I'll make it in there before my career is over with.

You know, that's something it would be phenomenal to play it. I've always wanted to play in the Masters, and if I make it this year, great, and if it doesn't, I'll go for it next year.

Q. Have you been at all frustrated the last two or three weeks, whether it's putting or ball striking or whatever has kept you kind of in the middle of the pack?

J.B. HOLMES: I've just been adapting from the win and everything else. It's been a bunch of things. It has not just been struggling with golf. It's just trying to adjust right now. I'm just trying to find my rhythm out on TOUR. It's a completely different lifestyle, a lot of free time. Just trying to adjust to find the rhythm and practice routine, something that fits my style.

Q. Has winning changed that adjustment? You mentioned the preferred tee times and extra media.

J.B. HOLMES: Winning changes it. It definitely changes it changes everything. You have more focus on you and more eyes on you and stuff like that. I'm just trying to adjust.

I was real tired end of the FBR. Before that started, I was telling my caddie before the tournament started, I was ready for a break. It was four or five weeks out there in a row for me. I have already played more golf this year than I have ever before this date. So it's a lot of golf for me real quick, and of course everything else changing, so it's not just golf that's on my mind; I have a bunch of other stuff.

Q. I read where you have made your varsity high school golf team in the third grade, could you explain how that happened and what that was like?

J.B. HOLMES: That was a long time ago. (Laughter).

Q. How big was the high school?

J.B. HOLMES: There was like 700 or something. It wasn't real big. Maybe there wasn't that many. I don't really know. It was a long time ago.

My dad just called the coach, and there wasn't a whole lot of people playing golf then. He said, "Well, what do you need to shoot to play on the team?"

He said he needs to shoot 50 on nine holes, and I said "I can do that." I went out there and played and gradually got better. I think I was either 1 or 2 man by the time I was fifth or sixth grade. I got not strong enough to hit it further but I think I averaged 52 on nine holes or something like that.

Q. Can you give us the progression of your scores starting in third grade, when you broke 90, broke 80?

J.B. HOLMES: I couldn't tell you.

Q. Ballpark?

J.B. HOLMES: I shot in the 60s the first time when I was I think I first broke 80 when I was just turned 13. I shot in the 60s by the time I was 14. Just kept getting lower. My average my senior year in high school I think was 35.8 or something on nine holes, and just I can basically tell you the last one and the first one, I don't really know.

Q. What do you remember about being the little kid in that group of older kids?

J.B. HOLMES: I got picked on quite a bit.

Q. That's a huge age difference.

J.B. HOLMES: Yeah. I struggled with it a little bit when I was younger, but it helped me to be able to adjust to other things in my life. You know, life is not easy on everybody. You have to work through some stuff.

I started at an early age working through stuff and it's helped me mature over the years and helped me for it's helped me even since I've been out here. It was tough at the time, but in the end, I think it was good for me.

Q. Did you hear from any of those guys that you played after you won?

J.B. HOLMES: No, not a whole lot of them. Just the ones I played with in high school, my age.

Q. They will be asking for Masters tickets in a couple of years.

J.B. HOLMES: Yeah. (Laughter).

Q. What is the worst thing that happened to you about being the young kid, what was the worst thing?

J.B. HOLMES: Just little things. It wasn't anything. It wasn't like there was one dramatic time that ruined my life or anything like that. It was just a bunch of little things, being around older kids, little things, picking on you and stuff like that. I had dyslexia at the time and so I didn't read real good. I'd go in the restaurant try to look at the menu, they'd pick, "Oh, you can't read," stuff like that. Just little immature high school stuff.

Q. Wedgies, things like that?

J.B. HOLMES: No, they didn't go that far. (Laughter).

Q. On that same line for a moment, wasn't there some bit of awe from these guys looking at you being so young and being so good?

J.B. HOLMES: Awe? No. High schoolers. You're talking about high schoolers here. (Laughter).

Q. Did it make you swing harder? Is that one of the reasons?

J.B. HOLMES: I always swung hard when I was younger. I don't know, that might have had something to do with it. I always swung as hard as I could. Did it all the way up until I was probably 15 or 16 and realized I didn't have to swing as hard as I could every time. It's always easier to gear it back than it is to gear it up.

Q. When you were in college, I don't know what the rules are in college, but as golfers, are you exposed to drug testing at all in college?

J.B. HOLMES: Yeah. They have the drug testing, what was it, they had two people from the golf team each week. Sometimes you might get it twice a semester and sometimes you might get it five times a semester.

Q. They have talked about that issue in golf a little bit about developing a doping policy, wonder what your thoughts are on that?

J.B. HOLMES: Oh, me? I don't care. I mean, I don't I don't really see why anybody would use that stuff for golf. I mean, if they want to do that, that's fine with me, I don't care.

Q. Is there ever any question that this could become an issue in golf? It seems like every other sport it is.

J.B. HOLMES: Every other sport is. Sometimes it leaks into others. I don't think it's a problem in golf. I don't think anybody here is taking or using that stuff.

Q. When you took the test in college, though, was there a bit of nervousness? Were you wondering if you take Sudafed or something like that?

J.B. HOLMES: A little bit, just, you know, for like really for no reason, but you don't know what Sudafed or something like that or Tylenol, you wouldn't think anything like that. But you're always worried because then you won't get to play or something like that. But it's usually not that big of a deal.

Q. Just off the beaten path a little bit, with regard to the ending of this past week's tournament with Greg Owen with the shorts putts there, wondering as a fellow player when you see that, do you cringe, is there a certain amount of empathy?

J.B. HOLMES: Yeah, you don't want to see anybody do that. That's tough on anybody. And it happens to everybody.

You know it's tough to see a guy win like that or lose like that. This game's not fair.

Q. Just curious how you got hooked up with a veteran caddie like you did?

J.B. HOLMES: My agent new him and just called him before Q School and was trying to find somebody to get a pro caddie for me for Q School and called him. Got through first stage and asked him to do the rest of Q School with me and he said yeah and kind of went on from there.

Q. Has he been a big help to you?

J.B. HOLMES: Definitely. It's nice having somebody on the bag that's been here and knows where everything is at. Doesn't just know the golf courses; he knows the surrounding areas and tells me where to go and stuff that's going on. So it's a big benefit to have somebody like Mike around.

Q. Have you ever gotten a chance to play this course before this week?

J.B. HOLMES: I played the back nine last year. We had a tournament across the street at Sawgrass Country Club in college so, after a practice round, we came over here and got to play the back nine.

Q. What did you think of those holes you had seen on TV for a long time and how did you do on 17 the first time you played it?

J.B. HOLMES: I think I made par. It was fun. And it was, you know, I played the video game a lot on it, so I knew it looked similar. (Laughter).

TV always makes stuff look different and you don't realize how much slope is on the green. Basically just the slope on the green is what it really takes away, TV does. It's a fun golf course.

Q. Lob wedge on 17?

J.B. HOLMES: No. I think I hit punch 8 iron, 9 iron today.

Q. What is your general approach to this course? Can you hit driver a lot out here?

J.B. HOLMES: I don't hit it probably as much as I'd like to. I can hit it a fair bit. You know, there's some holes where you need to lay up and some holes where you can take some chances on. Just depends how I hit my drive. If I'm hitting good, I might be more, aggressive and if I'm not, I might lay back and hit more 3 woods and 2 irons and stuff like that.

Q. In your short time here, can you see why this course has given up winners like Tiger and Davis and Norman and also Fred Funk?

J.B. HOLMES: Yeah, I see that. It's a putting contest a lot of them, you have the ball striking and everything, but you have to putt good out here. The greens are going to be fast. There's a lot of slope to them. You're going to have a lot of 5 , 6 , 7 footers and good putters get there, you get the good ball strikers and putting good, I can see anybody win on this golf course. So it's a good test.

Q. Did you watch a lot of golf growing up and did you consider this a big tournament or how did you feel about THE PLAYERS Championship?

J.B. HOLMES: I didn't really watch a whole lot of it. I would kind of check in on Sunday and see who would win, see what was going on, but I didn't sit there and watch a ton of it. By I always really liked this tournament, I thought it was a very big tournament, the fifth major is what they call it. But yeah, it's a big tournament.

Q. You talked about how everything has changed since Phoenix, is there anything that you didn't handle very well, and who helped you handle it?

J.B. HOLMES: This is kind of a bunch I guess it was just a bunch of I guess relief was taken off, it was kind of a letdown afterwards. Q School, I had to play good, have to do this, have to do this, to keep playing and get on TOUR. Got to play good for the shuffle whatever like that and keep going, keep doing going, try to do that, win, and then kind of go, everything happens so quick, so now it's kind of like, now what do I do.

You know, I needed a big break. I didn't take enough break as I needed to. But I'm adjusting. I mean, I'm young and it's a big lifestyle change for from eating ramen noodles every night, traveling around by myself a lot. So it's just been a big adjustment for me.

Q. What are we eating now?

J.B. HOLMES: Whatever I want. (Laughter).

Q. What was the favorite ramen noodles, which one?

J.B. HOLMES: I think chicken.

Q. Have you set your schedule or thought how far out have you thought?

J.B. HOLMES: I haven't thought past The Masters.

Q. Your name and Camilo and Bubba seem to be grouped together a lot in stories and things like that and all of the attention that you've generated. Are you amused by all of it or are you surprised or did you expect it to be like this?

J.B. HOLMES: I didn't expect it quite as much as it is. That's a little bit amusing. Everything thinks we can just hit it a mile. You've got to putt out here. I mean, you can hit it a long ways, but being able to putt is the biggest advantage. You know when you putt good, look every week who wins the tournaments; the person that's putts the best. You've got to have a short game, you can't just hit it long. You have to hit it long and straight. People don't realize that sometimes. Sometimes they think, hit it a long ways, hit it a long ways. If you hit it a long ways and way right, you're not any good and you're not going to make the cut, so you have to hit it long and straight.

Q. Talking about long hitters, do you ever sense any if resentment is the right word, but envy of some of the guys who have been out here a while who don't hit it as far as you guys hit it?

J.B. HOLMES: I wouldn't say that. Everybody's been pretty nice. They joke with you, oh, you hit it so far and stuff like that. Everybody's been real nice out here so far.

Q. With leading the driving distance and being in that long hitter group, have you noticed that people look at you maybe even a little differently after the win, or don't look at you just as a long hitter?

J.B. HOLMES: I haven't really thought about it. But I guess, you know, if you get more oohhs and aahhs from the drivers than I do from 15 foot putts.

Q. You talked having played the back nine here before, I just wonder how much for lack of a better word, is there an intimidation factor on holes like 17, 18 with the water, and how do you approach those?

J.B. HOLMES: I'm just playing. I don't really think too much about the intimidation or whatever. It's just a golf hole. Like every other week, there's always a tough hole on the golf course and happens to be 17 and 18 are pretty tough.

17 is a pretty big green. I guess the wind can get messing with it a little bit. At my home course in college, we had a hole that was 200 yards and the green is half the size of that and it was an island. So that one doesn't look too bad to me. 6 iron into a green half that size and I'm hitting wedge and 9 iron. So it was a lot easier than the one I've been playing for a few years.

Q. Do you ever get the same demons that hackers do when they have water shots?

J.B. HOLMES: I mean, you get some bad thoughts, but you've just got to get rid of them or back off. You can't think about stuff like that. I would guess, no. Yeah, little things, but I don't know if there's water on the next hole or anything like that.

Q. Weren't there stories about you sitting on the couch with your dad watching golf when you were a kid?

J.B. HOLMES: Yeah, when I was young.

Q. How young?

J.B. HOLMES: Three. I would sit there for hours and watch it with him when I was three.

Q. That would have put you right about '86, wouldn't it?

J.B. HOLMES: Yeah.

Q. Do you remember at all, is it fair to ask a three year old if you remember the '86 Masters?

J.B. HOLMES: I didn't remember a whole lot from third grade. You think I'm going to remember when I'm three? (Laughter). Not a whole lot.

Q. Can't you just make up a good story for us?

J.B. HOLMES: I won a tournament. Is that not good enough? (Laughter).

Q. There's been talk among some of those folks along the same lines of the distance you hit it off the tee, but Augusta National has now lengthened their course a couple of times. Arnold Palmer was talked about lengthening Bay Hill after last week, and some people say that long hitters like you are almost changing the game or revolutionizing the game. Do you believe that, and if so, how do you feel about it?

J.B. HOLMES: I mean, I don't know. I guess if everybody is lengthening the golf courses because of a few guys, it's not like everybody is hitting it a long ways now. There's what, 10, 15 guys. I think some people are getting out of hand with that, and, oh, we have to lengthen it, and, oh, we have to lengthen it. The thing is, the more you lengthen it, the more advantage you're giving to those 15 or 20 guys. Everybody is hitting it far enough. It's turning heads and there's a lot of pipe about it, a lot of people are changing courses like that. So you could say that.

Q. Do you think they are overreacting, the courses?

J.B. HOLMES: A few places. I think because one guy does it, doesn't mean you have to change everything. If you change everything, it's going to be more advantage for the longer hitters. If they make every course out here 8,000 yards, that's fine with me, but everybody is not going to feel that way.

Q. Bay Hill, did you play Bay Hill last week?

J.B. HOLMES: Mm hmm.

Q. What did you do on 6 and what type of line did you take on that?

J.B. HOLMES: Depending on the wind, last I think I took it at the tower it was a carry, carry was around 300 or something. The wind was kind of into you. It was to the right more. It was nothing special.

Q. The one on Sunday, they showed Bubba's drive like 350. Could you drive that green if it was downwind?

J.B. HOLMES: With the right wind maybe.

Q. Did you try?

J.B. HOLMES: No. It was always into the wind when I played.

Q. Your swing, self taught? Dad?

J.B. HOLMES: Yeah, my dad said it's the same since the first time I picked a club up; it hasn't changed. It's natural. I haven't changed anything.

Q. You look at Daly and to an extent Bubba well Daly is very far past parallel, Bubba dips quite a bit, too, you are not, could you ever picture yourself getting into Daly's

J.B. HOLMES: No, no way. If I go much longer than what I do now, I hit it off the map.

Q. Has anyone ever tried to tell you to get it to parallel?

J.B. HOLMES: No. Everybody has liked the shorter swing. I hit it straighter. I've gotten to the point where I'll go that much further than what I do now and I hit it everywhere. I've got to be careful sometimes with it. It's still not even close to parallel. Long for me is not even close to parallel.

If I get that long, I can't control it.

Q. As a college kid, since we can't go back to the third grade here, is there any swings that you find yourself watching and liking? Whose swing do you like out here?

J.B. HOLMES: You know, I have my own swing and don't really pay that much attention to everybody's swing. I don't know a whole lot about the golf swing. I've just always been able to hit the golf ball and I've just went with that.

Q. Sort of facetious here, we've got Daly and you and Bubba and Lucas Glover from South Carolina; is this a southern thing with all this length?

J.B. HOLMES: I guess so. I don't know what's in the water down here.

Q. All the Bubbas are hitting it so long?

J.B. HOLMES: I guess those farm boys are just coming up swinging hard.

JOEL SCHUCHMANN: J.B., thank you.

End of FastScripts.

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