KRAFT NABISCO CHAMPIONSHIP

March 30, 2002

Rosie Jones

ROSIE JONES: All right. We'll start with some general comments from Rosie Jones.

NEAL REID: That's right. You know the drill.

ROSIE JONES: Wish I would have putted better today. Actually, I feel great where I'm at. One shot out, I think. Chasing some really good players. I'm playing good. Swinging good. I didn't actually put really good today. I think I was a little bit scared with my putter, I don't know why. Just didn't feel good in my hand. Setup just wasn't right and just didn't feel like you could go for some putts.

Got into a little trouble on the back nine with club selection. Knocked it over a couple of greens and had some tough lies into some tough pins going downhill. So missed about two 10-footers for par. And backing up from 6- to -- back to 3-under, and actually, I think I'm okay.

NEAL REID: Questions?

Q. Karrie was in here earlier and said she was grinding a little bit to get into that final group because she felt that might be a little bit of an advantage to her, being with Annika or whatever. Does it matter to you, first group, second group, or is one shot no big deal one way or the other?

ROSIE JONES: I really wanted to birdie the last hole to get into that final group. I don't know that even if I had birdied that final hole that I would have gotten in there because a lot of Lotte's birdie. Doesn't make much difference to me if I'm in the final group or not. I like to be. I like to be right there in the action.

On the other hand, sometimes it's a little less nerving to be in the group ahead of them. Post a number, you know, five minutes earlier or something, I don't know. It doesn't really matter to me, as long as I'm close to the leaders and remain that way, if I'm not pulling out coming down the stretch.

Q. 14 and 15 is where you were long on the green and then you made the bogeys?

ROSIE JONES: Right.

Q. Was that just the wind did something weird?

ROSIE JONES: You know, sometimes you just get pumped up. I didn't hit that 7-iron -- I hit a 7-iron and probably should have hit an 8-iron. The wind was to our back a little bit, and the greens are just getting really, really hard. So you're trying to just hit -- be so perfect with where this was coming down, and I pulled it just a touch, but enough to hit on top of that left side to where it was just going to take it.

From there, that little chip shot is straight downhill to that pin, and it's just not easy to have great touch out of that rough. I hit it a little bit hard, but I was happy. I was aggressive with it and I had a nice uphill putt at it.

Like I said, I wasn't comfortable really with my putter all day. All of those putts were not solid.

Q. How come you're playing so well at a stage where a lot of people would sort of be winding down; yet you seem to be getting better? How are you managing that?

ROSIE JONES: I matured older. I matured later in life. (Laughs).

I don't know. You know, because I'm not stronger. Maybe mentally, I'm stronger. Maybe emotionally, I'm stronger. I've always had a lot of confidence and belief in my ability to play out here and have never decided that I was done. I think I have a lot -- I think I have some stuff I want to finish up, and I have a time table that I'm looking at. I kind of -- I don't want to go out of this game playing bad. I want to go out playing good, and as long as I'm playing good, I'm going to keep playing, I think. I don't know how that's going to happen in the end, but this is what's happening right now.

Q. How are you able to forget about the way things ended today, look at the big picture and say, "I'm one shot out off the lead going into the last round"?

ROSIE JONES: I can't imagine being anyplace else right now. I feel really good one shot out. One shot out takes about two minutes to make up, or even seven seconds or something like that, with a putt falling on the first hole.

I don't know, I feel absolutely fine where I'm at. I played all 18 holes today the best I could and I got a couple birdies and I'm going to make a couple bogeys. You can't really believe that you are going to go out there and not make a couple bogeys, especially on a golf course like this one. I just feel like I'm playing good. I'm going to go out there and give it my best shot tomorrow.

Q. You kind of just answered this question, but at one point you were 6-under, playing obviously very well. Is it hard to get too excited about that, knowing the nature of the golf course, or was there a point saying, "Hey, I could really do something here, I could go to 8 or 9"?

ROSIE JONES: I didn't really know if I was leading -- In fact, I probably was leading. I was very comfortable with that. I was playing really good at the time I hit the 5-iron going into No. 12, and really thought I hit a pretty good shot and it came down just a little short into the bunker. Then when I came out of that bunker, it was a much easier bunker shot than I made it look, and I came out 12 feet past. Just really wasn't happy with my short game.

But for the most part, I'm playing really good, and, you know, those -- like I said, those chip shots, those pitch shots were out of pretty heavy rough to a sloping green and can't be disappointed that I was not aggressive enough with them, having a 10-footer coming back was probably on that type of shot.

As long as I keep my wits about my game tomorrow and think that -- like I always do, that I can make any putt I'm looking at, I'm going to play well.

Q. How surprised are you that you have not yet won a major championship?

ROSIE JONES: How surprised? Wow, that's a different question.

I think maybe other people might be surprised I haven't won a major. I'm mad. (Laughs) I haven't won a major. I'm disappointed I haven't won a major. You know, like I said yesterday, it's not going to make or break my career, but it sure would prove a lot, I think, to people out there that haven't thought maybe I had the game.

Probably just put, you know, the little cherry on top of the soda or something, I don't know what you call that. Sherry on ton of the icing, that's right.

Q. Can you swim?

ROSIE JONES: I can. I haven't swim since I was four years old, and I tell you, I'm ready. I'm ready for a swim.

NEAL REID: Let's go your scorecard card real quick.

Birdie on 7.

ROSIE JONES: Birdie on 7. Hit a 6-iron up from 155, I think it was, out. And had about 20 -- before a 20-footer for put.

Good par on 8.

Then on 9, I hit a sand wedge about, I don't know, 12 feet behind the hole there and made that for birdie.

10, I had a good par.

11 knocked it up there about six feet to the right of the pin. That was really kind of a tough pin to get to, but got it within six feet and made that for birdie -- actually, it was a 9-iron. I didn't catch my second shot the way I wanted to. It came down, I still had about 110 in there, uphill a little bit and I just kind of three-quartered a 9-iron in there.

Anyways, 12 I bogeyed. 12, I hit a 5-iron into the left bunker, came out about ten feet past it and missed the putt.

13, par.

14, 7-iron over the green, chipped up and had about a 12-footer.

15, hit a pretty good drive. Hit a 6-iron over the green. I couldn't really go for that pin. I was just trying to go for the middle of the green; and that green is just so hard, I probably should have just gone for the front edge, and bounced it up or something. Had a similar lie on the back with the rough and had to pitch out, again to a sloping green. It's really fast this time of day, and had another 10-footer and missed that.

16, I hit it up there behind the hole about 20 feet, 2-putt for par.

17, knocked a 9-wood up there about six feet and missed that for birdie. Probably my best shot of the week right there. It was pretty neat.

And then 18, I tried to squeeze a little bit more out of my sand wedge and left it shot short, about 18 feet and 2-putt for par.

Q. Sand wedge on 14 and 15?

ROSIE JONES: One was sand wedge, and one was my fat baby, 60-degree lob-wedge. Usually I use that one mostly around the green and in the heavy stuff. It just came out a little strong.

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