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JOHNNIE WALKER CLASSIC

February 8, 2006

Michael Campbell

PERTH, WESTERN AUSTRALIA

GORDON SIMPSON: Michael, welcome back to the Vines, very familiar place for you and very fond memories, I'd imagine.

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: Oh, absolutely. Last time I was here was about five years ago I think it was, 2001. Winning twice before is obviously a golf course I really understand and do well in, apart from I believe the first nine holes have been changed, is that right? So besides that, I think the last nine holes at the Vines is one of the finest nine holes in Australian golf, especially the last three holes, toughest three holes in Australian golf. On 16 near the par 3, tuck the pin on the right hand side there and just over the water and it's a tough par 3, and you have a very daunting tee shot on 17, and 18 is a great par 5.

So it's great to be here and it's great to be back in western Australia. I think the last time we were here as a tournament with a group of players playing was three years ago, two years ago where Goosey won and it's great to be back in Australia and playing again.

Q. You were talking you have not played, what have you been doing, you mentioned what you've been doing, moving house?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: Moving house and renewed my wedding vows with my wife, Julie.

Q. When was that?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: It was about a couple weeks ago.

Q. Where?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: In Auckland, Kauri Cliffs.

Q. So you renewed your wedding vows?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: Renewed our wedding vows, watched some TV, played one round of golf in four weeks, and still enjoying the moment of being the U.S. Open Champion.

Q. So you might not have any great expectations this week?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: Absolutely. Absolutely. I played a round of golf with friends of mine last week at an Australian golf course and it was horrendous.

Q. So what exactly are your expectations this week?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: Who knows? I mean, I expected nothing the week of Mercedes. I took three weeks off before playing there and I finished fourth. I had a chance to win. So my preparation for that tournament wasn't great, and nor is this week, either.

But I think for me it's like riding a bike. You know, it takes a couple of minutes to get on the seat and ride again. I'm sure it will be fine. The thing that you really lose is around the greens and your feel around the putting green and chipping. Besides that, it's pretty much simple stuff.

Q. Are you still riding a wave of being US Open Champion?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: Touch wood, it's been a great little journey so far. I think the reason why it's happened is because I've kept the same ingredients going, same recipe going. I haven't changed anything at all, which is nice. I signed a nice deal with Callaway using their golf ball and T3 driver once again, and also employing my psychologist, Nick Hastings, and also Jonathan Yarwood for the five years, my coach.

So yeah, I think the hardest thing I think for humans is stop searching, stop searching for the X factor, and I think I've found what works for me. And so I'm not looking on the Internet right now and searching for what's next around the corner.

Q. What's your build up to the Masters?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: I purposely cut back this year. I think I'll be playing three times in three months.

Q. Which ones?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: Match Play and then I don't remember what's after that Bay Hill, TPC and Augusta.

So I went through my schedule for the next three months or four months and I'm playing probably like about six times. I could have played last week, but I needed a complete break away from this game. My body, my mind was pretty shot coming towards Tiger's event end of last year, December. I knew that I had enough of the game and the last thing I wanted to see was another golf course or a golf club.

I played Mercedes, I qualified for it the first time, but I was there and my family was there so it was more of a family holiday.

Q. You can't play more than ten events on the PGA Tour this year, can you?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: Yeah, well, not, unfortunately, due to my category or status, I only can play ten events in America, unless I join, of course, the U.S. Tour and that's fine, I can play whatever I want to play.

Once again, I want to keep the same recipe going, which means playing in Europe more so than America, and I want to play 12 events in America, but they wouldn't let me.

Q. How many can you play in America?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: 15 or 10. I'm not sure how far I want to go with this conversation, but

Q. Did you receive any invitations from sponsors?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: You wouldn't believe, you wouldn't believe.

Q. How many?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: Ten.

Q. Which ones, what events did you receive invites?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: Byron Nelson, Jack's tournament, Memorial, Colonial, Doral, Honda, Barclays, the list goes on. My response through my management group, IMG, is I can't because of my status.

And I know that the rules and the regulations are there to protect the PGA TOUR in America, but we had a meeting about two months ago about it and we locked a little bit with the tour.

Q. With Finchem?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: No. It was his understudies, Sid Wilson, was one. I said to them: What happens if Jack Nicklaus writes a letter and says, "Michael, please come to play my tournament?" I would love to play his tournament. I've love to play the Memorial. I've love to go and play, apparently what the guys are saying is one of the best golf courses and best tournaments we ever play in. I say, well, I can't because of my status. It's a shame it's come to this. I think I tried to keep it quiet but I think I let loose one press conference about a month ago and everyone knows about it.

But, you know, I might think of joining the Tour in 2007 but right now for 2006 I wanted to go the week before and play Westchester, which is half an hour drive from Winged Foot and prepare for the U.S. Open. To not give me an opportunity to actually perform my best this year next year is different. I might join in 2007, but right now 2006 is my year. Sometimes I feel like my wings are being clipped a little bit. It feels like that I'm my own boss and I believe that I can do what I want, and obviously what I did three years ago, not competing if my 15 events on the U.S. Tour, has really suffered my 2006 schedule, really. It's a shame.

Q. So you've got three World Championships?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: Yeah, and four majors. And three invites. And that's it. Obviously I qualified for Mercedes; that's one. Bay Hill, towards Augusta and the other one is TPC. So that's it. It's all gone.

Q. Your decision to play predominantly on the European Tour - is that mainly for lifestyle reasons?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: I think it's the combination of a lifestyle. I've got two kids now. They go to school in England. Last thing I want to do is uplift them and bring them over to America. Their friends are there.

I can play the U.S. Tour but it's pretty tough. You ask Retief, ask you Adam Scott, ask one of those guys, it's pretty hard to play. To have family around, it would be even extra hard. That's one reason, lifestyle.

The other reason is that I want to keep the same routine going. As I say, I've got a great recipe going right now, and why change why introduce a new one, a new ingredient.

Q. Was there no flexibility in their stance when you met them?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: None. Absolute none whatsoever.

Q. On the U.S. Tour?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: I shake my head. I mean, I just can't believe what they they are sitting in front of me saying these things to me, and I'm thinking, this is not right.

Logically, if you think about it, logically sponsors want the U.S. Open Champion to play their tournament. The exposure I've had in America is wonderful and the people in America are wonderful. The support I've had from America is great. The players there are great. The golf courses, it's the major stage of golf and I would love to play two more extra tournaments there.

They said to me, why don't you play three extra more so make it 15. I said, "I can't find three weeks, extra weeks for you guys to play 15 events instead of 12 because of my schedule in Europe." I want to go back and win the European my main goal, really, I believe, for me to win the The European Tour Order of Merit is to play pretty much full time this year, 2006.

So this is my main, one of my goals. I placed last year after Monty but I feel this year is going to be a better year than last year, so I want to commit fully on The European Tour.

Q. How many will you play on The European Tour?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: It will be about just under maybe 22 or 23 events.

Q. Do you think they should consider your position as the US Open Champion in terms of finding more opportunities for you to play there?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: That's a tough question. I'm asking as a favor from the U.S. Tour to be more flexible. I know that rules are there for a reason. I know that for a fact. Rules and regulations are there to protect the game. I can't change that.

I thought two extra tournaments, not a big deal, two extra tournaments and it wasn't possible.

GORDON SIMPSON: You won't be able to play from the BMW at Wentworth to your defense of the U.S. Open title?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: Yeah, pretty much.

Q. Have you thought about speaking to Finchem directly about it?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: Yeah, I think Tim is a very busy man. I spoke to him briefly the week of NEC last year about it. He seemed pretty much a guy he soaked up a little bit of information and said, "Michael, let's talk about it in a month's time," and that was the end of conversation that I had with Tim.

As I said, I don't want to cause any animosity between myself and the PGA Tour. Hopefully I'll be joining the Tour next year in 2007, so I want to go in there feeling welcome by the players and the officials.

But I would say I'm a little bit disappointed. Sometimes I think it's important to voice your opinion, and now since being the U.S. Open Champion, my opinion matters. Before it was like, oh, doesn't matter what Michael Campbell says. But now it's like, you know, people listen now.

Q. Are there any other players who have couldn't play more than ten tournaments?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: I'm not sure. I'm sure there is. I think Finchy, Ian Baker Finch had the same problem.

Q. How many did you play in 2003?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: I only played 11, 11 events. You have to play 15 events. That's the only reason why if I played 15 events that year in 2003, I would have been fine. I would have had my extended invites, not three. But because I fell short of the requirement, and I couldn't join because of all the other things, too, basically I couldn't join for five years, a ban from the U.S. Tour. The best thing to do is probably ring up some guy about rules and regulations on exactly why.

Q. Here are the Vines - do you feel that gives you a couple of shots of a head start over the field?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: Yeah, I mean, I feel that I've got 15 clubs in my bag, definitely, 15th club in the sense of being a confidence club. I think that this week is a great week for me. I'm fresh, I haven't played, but my mind and my body, it feels pretty good. I'm looking forward to getting back into it again.

Last week I was watching a bit of golf on TV there and I could feel my fingers tapping, my feet tapping as well because I'm ready to go now. I spent four weeks and not playing golf, and especially the Vines, and I've got family here, and so does Julie, my wife. So there will be a lot of people with the Cambo shirts on walking around, so it's going to be pretty exciting.

Q. Are you planning your campaign around the (British) Open?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: Yeah, yeah, I think so. To be honest, I was surprised I won the U.S. Open. I think my best shot at a major was probably the Open. I think it's great to go back to a golf course we haven't played before; 40 years, I think last time we played a major championship, 42. So nobody has played it. Everyone is on a fresh page there.

I actually feel that I have a better chance to win at an Open rather than a U.S. Open. '95, I've been a close a few times also since then. I'm looking forward to working around the major championship at Liverpool there. It's one of my major focal points right now is July.

Q. Inaudible?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: Well, it's the first time I've defended a title. It's one thing that I found a little bit different when I won those tournaments is that I found it hard to defend. Didn't know how to. And when I won back to back, it was a different mindset, basically.

The thing that I know mentally was I was going out to try to win it, not defend it. I suppose it's like American football, a defensive team and an offensive team. When you have a different frame of mind of trying to win a tournament, you're trying to win. Defending to win is always pulling the reins on a horse, you're racing a horse, and that's one thing I try it get over that is to try to go there and win rather than defend.

Q. Is that the way you feel about the US Open defence?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: Absolutely, yes. Same attitude, same sort of mindset, I'll just go out and try to win it, rather than not to defend the U.S. Open.

Q. Is that where Nick comes in?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: Yeah, he's been a huge contribution to my success last year. That's the first time we worked together was May last year and we had immediate success. So he's on board once again this year as my psychologist. We get on great as friends, as well. That's one thing I've actually noticed is people around me in business, friendships are quite special as well. So he's on board this year and looking forward to working with him again.

Q. When did it sink in that you were US Open Champion?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: To be honest, it still flashes back. I had flashes the last four weeks. I had to get over it really quickly after winning over there at St. Andrews, because I believe to get your mind back on track, you have to think like a champion and so it gave me four or five weeks to get over there and to refocus on my next tournament which is the Open at St. Andrews.

The first couple of weeks, I was up at 3 o'clock in the morning, walking down to my office and looking at the trophy for two or three hours. I couldn't sleep, my mind was racing a thousand miles an hour, but now I've been sleeping very soundly at nighttime.

Q. Looking forward to going home for the Hallberg Awards?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: I think 2005, wonderful year in sports globally. You get the rugby league players, the first time in 40 years we've won a tri nation and then rugby, cycling, canoeing, it's just been going on and on.

I was watching in actual fact, I was watching the homecoming tour of the Cyprus guy, what's his name, Marcus Baghdatis, and one of my little stints back home in New Zealand how he had the ticker tape parade and stuff like that and he was on top of the bus he got money from the government there. It's just one of those things where it's a very special occasion, and I think I'm not being cocky about it, but there's a lot of fine athletes back home, world champions.

Q. Nice to be New Zealand's Sportsman of the Year?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: I think it would be nice to close the chapter and move on to be honest. I think play this week and go home and the awards and hopefully do well there and hopefully close that book and it's time to move on. I'm ready to move on in 2006 and looking forward to a great year for me. I think the Hallberg awards, will be the end of the line, 2005 is gone, it's a great memory, but it's now on to the future, 2006.

Q. How does Tiger Woods keep doing it?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: I think he's been practicing a little bit, hasn't he. I've been playing with him I played with him a lot, I played with him at the Dunlop Phoenix, I played with him in China, I played with him at the Grand Slam event, not with him, but next to him at Tiger's event. And I'm always trying to make an observation on his swing, and I've seen it get tighter and a lot better than it was two or three years ago.

I was talking to Stevie Williams about it and he said that he's getting there slowly, and now I think he's had a bit of time off and away from the game. He's obviously recharged and rested and he's ready to go. He's making a lot of changes in his swing and I can see that his better shots now are closer and his worse shots are not as bad. (Laughing). That's a scary thought, isn't it.

Q. Is he that far ahead of everybody else in the World Rankings?

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: I don't know, what's the difference I think it's a true indication, he's like nine points ahead or ten points ahead, something massive. It's a big, big difference there. Everything is a true indication, I'm not sure how that works, that whole World Ranking business works, but you know

Q. He is as far ahead of second as second is of 42nd.

MICHAEL CAMPBELL: Who's 42nd in the world. Interesting.

GORDON SIMPSON: Well done, Michael. Thank you very much for coming in.

End of FastScripts.

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