INGERSOLL-RAND SENIOR TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP

November 3, 1999

Bruce Fleisher

BRUCE FLEISHER: I grew up in Wilmington, North Carolina for those of you who are not familiar with that. Actually, the last time I saw this golf course was 1960. I was pulling the golf cart for my father, and I think he went for about 118. And the only hole I really remember was the 13th. So that's really the last I remember of Myrtle Beach. I have yet to play a practice round today. I get my practice round through the Pro-Am. I'm hoping to get good advice from my amateurs today.

BRUCE FLEISHER: Well, this year, every place being a new venue, that's a word I learned from Jim Kelly. You know, it's funny, as you try to analyze your year and look back, time seems to be more important, you know as we go along. So I've used both Pro-Am days as my practice days. We play five straight days week-in and week-out which is a lot of golf at this stage so I try to get a good mindset that you know Tuesdays, you rest up. Mondays you travel. Tuesdays you rest up, and you really try to save your energy. This is a -- this is a long hard week. One day may not be enough, but you know what I'm going to have four more days after that. If I certainly can't learn it by then, this will be it.

BRUCE FLEISHER: Does anybody like cold weather? I don't. I lived in south Florida for some years now. I did buy some hand warmers today. I went around town looking for hand warmers. All I had to do was go to the pro shop. I don't think anybody likes the cold. I don't think anybody has the advantage. But one shot at a time, do the best you can, and really, that's all you can ask for. And to be quite honest with you guys, this week is anticlimactic. It certainly would be wonderful to win. Go down maybe more in the record books. Last week seemed to be an important week and special, certainly in my mind. Like Phil said earlier, I think mathematically, nobody can pass me; is that correct?

BRUCE FLEISHER: As long as I don't break a lake or no one shoots me or don't get hurt in some crazy way. I'm going out there with a lot less eagerness as far as putting pressure on myself. I'm trying to have fun.

BRUCE FLEISHER: People ask me from time to time your goals, Player of the Year, you know, I sit here and smile because it's still, you know, we still have to pinch me to make me believe it. So I really haven't had time to digest it. I think when I get home in another three weeks, I'm going to sit back and do a lot of smiling. It's a wonderful, wonderful, you know, thing that we've done out here. I don't know how Hale feels. I know he says the title wasn't that important to him, leading money winner. That may or may not be true. But I think I'll be able to look back on 1999 and smile. And being 50, 51, isn't so bad after all.

BRUCE FLEISHER: Absolutely. That's why I played so much golf. I'm really a little golfed out or golf happy right now. I played much more than I anticipated to. But as time went on and as I continued to be right there in that position, I'm sure I would have felt the same way. I try to take off from time to time, but had a hard time doing it. But there was a point there, why not, why not go for it all.

BRUCE FLEISHER: No. I knew the name.

BRUCE FLEISHER: If you know anything about golf, which I assume we all did do, through the ball, he's as good as it gets. He's another Trevino. You can call him a freak of nature just by looking at him swing the golf club. But I said a couple weeks ago, he's the toughest competitor now, day-in, day-out. I want Allen Doyle on my team. He's gutsy, and he's not scared to play. And I think he's going to be around for some time. And I think he thinks he's going to be around for some time, too.

BRUCE FLEISHER: I think you guys out to take this and run. You've got an opportunity to take this and run. Or at least the Senior TOUR does. It's a great story. It's -- his story may be better than my store. Here's a guy that played amateur golf for most of his life and at 48 decided to turn pro. That's pretty remarkable and certainly gives a lot of people out there hope, a lot of hairdressers, manicurists, you know. Sportscasters. (Laughs) Furniture salesman. But I think Allen, whatever he set out to do, I mean, he's done it so -- playing with him at the school -- actually the first day I think I got paired with him on Saturday. I looked at this guy, and I'm just -- I can't believe this is happening. But as you get into the round, watch him the way he manages himself, the short game, I knew he would be tough this year.

BRUCE FLEISHER: Interesting. When I got off in '84, I took a club job. And I built up a tremendous amount of -- I was a big fish in a small pond in south Florida. I mean, I dominated the section year in year out. These things you don't read about because they are so small and local but. One year, I won -- when I won the club pro championship in 81, I won the Jamaican Open, I won the Panama Open, and I won the -- there was a tournament at Pinehurst and all the club pros and I won that. So I built up a lot of affirmation and a lot of confidence during that year, prior to quitting my job, wanting to go back on TOUR through the whole thing. So I built up a lot of confidence. Of course, my goal right through my 40s after I won the Bank of Boston was try to compete, stay competitive. I knew in my late 40s, even though I had actually a couple times to win at 49, I was realistic that, you know what, you're go good, but it's time to move on. And The SENIOR TOUR certainly is a venue that's very comfortable for me, the 54 holes or the way the courses are setup. I stayed active. I stayed competitive.

BRUCE FLEISHER: I don't think it was fun at all. If you ask my wife, she had to live with it. But I think as the year wore down, I got a little more comfortable. There were a couple times when I got through on Sunday where I wasn't that uptight today, but I was early on, no doubt. Most of the pressure obviously is self-induced. It's how you visualized yourself. Like I said, this week, I'm going to go out there with a lot of smiles and playing with Allen Doyle and Hale Irwin. I know they can't catch me unless I trip and fall.

BRUCE FLEISHER: Absolutely not. I'm still gullible, kind, loving (Laughter.). A little bit happier maybe. No, absolutely not. I think it makes a great story. It's a great one to write. I still don't know what I've done, to be honest with you. Certainly, if I go out next year and nothing happens then I'll realize, you know, maybe that was a great year. And that's how you balance and that's how you can certainly judge from one thing to another. But no, it hasn't changed me.

BRUCE FLEISHER: Last Sunday I was uptight. I had a chance to win last Sunday. I missed a 3-footer for birdie on 10 to take the lead, but I was so consumed by Irwin. I was watching the board seeing how he was doing. People said, "Well, what did you do that for?" Well, you know what, I didn't want to go into this week having to, you know -- to play so good that Hale could pass me if he won.

BRUCE FLEISHER: I hope it does. I hope I'll be a lot more relaxed and certainly a little more aggressive in spots than I would be, and that may work. It may not work, but I haven't really seen the golf course. Everyone is saying the course is playing very difficult, so hopefully the scoring will be not so low. What's been the winning score here in the past?

BRUCE FLEISHER: Have we gotten to double fingers?

BRUCE FLEISHER: Pretty low for saying that is this is the toughest course we play.

BRUCE FLEISHER: Pretty good. Pretty sharp. (Laughing).

BRUCE FLEISHER: I'll tell you, my tax lawyer called me up and said, "You'd better be ready". Absolutely. I'd love it. I'd love to win.

BRUCE FLEISHER: No, this would be the icing on the cake. I'm not going out there laying down, trust me. I'm going to be trying hard. Hopefully, it will warm up and I'll be on top of my game. I'm playing good; so I'm looking forward to the week. And I've got my mentor with me this week. When I go wrong, he'll bang me over the head. This is Sol Austruf (phonetic). And he's been my best friend more about seven years. He lives next door to me in Palm Beach, and he's the only guy that I allow to tomorrow around with me at home. The other members just don't understand it. And I let him play a few holes from time to time.

BRUCE FLEISHER: I've done that years ago. I think sports psychologists are good. I think kids needs that today. I think we're a little too far gone personally. That's debateable. Certainly at this stage, we're all looking for that perfect golf swing that maybe does or doesn't exist. I went through changes this year in the middle of the year. Some of you may know that. Some of you may not. But I actually -- during the NFL tournament, I actually met a professional golfer that I started working with and I thought I was on the right track and I've won three tournaments. I've won over $800,000. I never had the luxury in my life or in my golfing career to really have a golfing guru so to speak break down my golf swing and really make change. I was always trying to scramble and make a living trying to survive. I never had the luxury of having three months or six months of doing what I really thought I needed to do to get to that next level. And so this man, invented this apparatus that I still think today is the best teaching aid I've ever seen. But after about eight weeks, and I actually won a golf tournament, changing my golf swing this year. And I finished second in one. So I know it works, but the problem with it, I couldn't travel from week to week. It was too big and too heavy. I got to the Bank of Boston, which was a golf course you really have to work the ball, and I got so scared. I was hitting the ball all over the place. I said I'm going back to what brought me to the dance. So I started -- went back to my old winning swing, and I'm fine. But with the new swing, I was hitting the ball 20, 30 yards further. It was exciting because I'm kind of a short hitter at this stage.

BRUCE FLEISHER: They are trying to figure a way now. But again the problem with it that I see is if I was an astute golfer, and I have it at home now. I've got it hooked up against my wall. It's good. I think he's going to have a tough time.

BRUCE FLEISHER: Most golfing teachers, when they teach golf, they teach with words. Very, very difficult. I've taught. I don't know how many of you have took lessons in here, but golf is a million words to be said about the golf swing. This -- I've never seen anything that let's you feel what the correct swing feels like. I can tell you what it may look like, or try to get you in that position, but most people can't comprehend that. It's a very difficult -- when you're trying to explain, you know, the words, but this apparatus, you can actually put your club in and it will take you and put you in perfect position. And if you get a beginner, which would really catch on quick. I've seen them take a guy who slices the ball in 20 minutes get him to hook it. That's pretty strong. Because now they can not only feel it, but they can actually see it in their mind.

BRUCE FLEISHER: It's a big board and it's -- the way it's hooked up, it's not difficult. But again, it's big and it's awkward. If I was the teaching pro, I'd have it on the driving range. Every teaching pro should have it for teaching. It's going to save them half the time of teaching.

BRUCE FLEISHER: When I was teaching golf back at the club, I was horrible. I was horrible with words. In fact, I remember teaching Mrs. Schwartz, and Mrs. Schwartz was about 70 years old, and, "You know what, you're much too slow between your legs." And she drops her clubs and she says, "Bruce, my husband, poor Harvey died years ago and he told me that all my life." So I learned that you know you've got to be careful with words. But on a more serious note, and that did happen, I want to tell you. I was really I started reading, and that was 1985. I actually had changed my golf swing since I had gotten off the TOUR, through Hogan's book of what I connotatively understood in my mind. And I developed a lot of rotation in my arm swing, and the rotation develops a very consistative -- consistent move. They put you in a lot. But it's weak as we know it. It's hard to explain. It's a very weak left hand. You fan it and you release it, but it's very consistent and I've won a lot of money and a lot of success with it. Well, this apparatus, took away my rotation and kept the club square, okay, which there alone you probably -- see my driver, when I probably hit the ball, it's like a 3-wood when I get to the ball because of my grip and the way I hit it. But keeping that club more in play and a lot square, you can get a lot more clubhead speed. It's really body versus arms. And arm swing is a lot weaker than a body swing. It's like Tiger. Tiger just holds on. If you want to talk about golf swings.

BRUCE FLEISHER: A much bigger body turn. The problem that I have, I'm so used to being hands and arms, when I rotate, a slot in my mind, I feel that slot. When I took the rotation out, my hands were higher, in better position, and I never knew where I was, and it scared me and that's why I abandoned it. I may try it again in the off season. Because I know when I did it correctly, it was frightening how straight and how good I could hit it. I mean, I just thought I could shoot 50. I mean, Tiger, there's no secret to me why he shoots what he shoots. He's square and he's strong. He's an animal.

BRUCE FLEISHER: Absolutely. No reason why they may not play as much golf as you think they will. We welcome them. We need them. The TOUR needs them.

BRUCE FLEISHER: That's a pretty big --.

BRUCE FLEISHER: I don't necessarily agree with that. It certainly helps if you have control. You know, today the technology with video, and then what's out there as far as equipment, kids are bigger stronger and longer, you know, so -- we're working out here, too. So we're trying to keep our strength and our flexibility from week to week. I certainly hope I can continue.

BRUCE FLEISHER: Personally speaking, I don't buy that statement because I think he's looking in the wrong direction. I mean, if you -- I don't think you can compare this TOUR with that TOUR by any sense of the word. But I'm probably one of the shortest hitters out here, but yet I'm the leading money winner. What does that tell you> if you can't make it from six feet, 20 yards isn't going to help anybody. Jenkins is a great example of that one. This guy insides of a hundred yards gets it up-and-down 9 times out of 10. What's that going to do to your score? So hitting long is great, if you can control it, but you still have got to make those 3-footers and those 10-footers. If you look at -- look at the putting stats between Tiger and Davis. They are just light years.

BRUCE FLEISHER: People don't realize this guy makes a lot of putts. That's big. If I can hit it 20 more yards, it would be great. But again, if I knock a 6-iron up there six feet and miss it 8-iron six feet up will and miss it.

BRUCE FLEISHER: And he wants to swing harder next time. Where is this guy coming from? He was lucky he didn't hurt himself. Crazy. Macho.

BRUCE FLEISHER : I don't have remember trying to hit a rock to get to a golf ball. I try to avoid that. I'm a lover, not a fighter.

BRUCE FLEISHER: I remember the water. I remember it was a big horseshoe. They take about that this week. It must be a fun hole.

BRUCE FLEISHER: I grew up in Wilmington. I want to say '57 to '62. That's where I actually started golf. Start caddying when I was about seven.

BRUCE FLEISHER: Pine Valley. Pine Valley Country Club. It was so funny when I moved away, in '62, and when I came -- I came back from my brother's wedding in '72, I had my first hole-in-one. Really wild. I used to play every day and I left ten years to come back and have a hole-in-one.

BRUCE FLEISHER: Today is so different. These kids today -- I think you grow up a lot faster. I was always thrown in with older people; so I learned manners. I had a father that was a disciplinarian that would kick your ass from one end to the next. It's different times.

BRUCE FLEISHER: I think the attitude of understanding good and bad luck. I don't believe in either. So therefore, your emotions are a lot more even. You know, bad lie, so be it. Ball rolls in a divot, it's: "Let's see how good I can hit it," instead of -- you see so many guys pouting. And I've got it tell you it's no good because it wears on you; it overlaps to the next shot. So I would say being able to discipline, the way I manage myself. Not too many highs, not too many lows.

End of FastScripts….