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THE INTERNATIONAL

August 10, 2006

Tom Pernice, Jr.

CASTLE ROCK, COLORADO

THE MODERATOR: After the first round of the INTERNATIONAL, you're on the leaderboard with 11 points. Good day for you. Some opening

THE MODERATOR: Past champion at the INTERNATIONAL. Thank for joining us. 11 points, a lot of golfers are still out on the course, but a good position going into tomorrow.

TOM PERNICE, JR.: It's always good to get off to a good start. I got off to a good start early and made three birdies on 1, 2, and 3. So that set the tone kind of for the day.

Snuck around there and hit some close, good shots and didn't make any. Then hit about five feet at 8 for birdie, and missed it. Then I came back and made a nice putt from about 12, 15 feet at 9. So that kind of kept the round going, I felt like.

Got in there close at 12. Hit it just over the green with an L wedge at 15 and didn't get up and down, but then I holed it out of the bunker at 16. Then I 3 putted 17 for par, so I felt like I kept left a couple there. But all in all, I played pretty steady and good.

Q. You played well last week at the Buick Open where you've had some success as well. So you must be striking pretty well right now.

TOM PERNICE, JR.: Yeah, I mean, I played well at the British. I hit even par at the British. I played late on Friday in the wind and missed the cut by a couple people. But I thought all in all I played pretty well there. I decided to play Milwaukee because I was playing well. Finished 20th or so there and played well. So the game is pretty good right now. So just trying to plug away.

THE MODERATOR: Questions?

Q. Does this place still have pleasant echoes and memories for you?

TOM PERNICE, JR.: I think this place will always have pleasant echoes and memories. I think this is a great spot for anybody that comes here on the Tour. What people do for us is above and beyond what's necessary, and they really treat us great.

I think this is a special plays for all the players but for me, yes, it's a very special spot?

Q. Why is it special for you? Is it just the championship or

TOM PERNICE, JR.: Well, yeah, pretty much. To win here in '01 and to have my family with me, that was a special moment.

Q. Is your wife here?

TOM PERNICE, JR.: She's here. Doing great. Absolutely wonderful.

Q. Can you just talk about the course? And is it ideal conditions that you're seeing year today, and do you expect to continue to see this kind of scoring?

TOM PERNICE, JR.: The greens were quite a bit quicker today. They were much in better condition in the Pro Am I though. The wind started to blow the last two or three holes, so if that continues that might make it a little more difficult. But, yeah, it's a beautiful day to play golf.

Like I said, I thought the greens seemed a little quicker and a little smoother today in the morning. Now, in the afternoon I don't know how it's going to be. The fairways seemed to dry out and the ball is running little bit more than it was the last two days that we played.

So yeah, the course is playing nice. You can see the scores are good, I mean...

Q. On 16, were you in the collection bunker or a different one?

TOM PERNICE, JR.: I was over in the right bunker. Just a long bunker and just trickled right ion.

Q. How long was that?

TOM PERNICE, JR.: I don't know, Tim was over on the left and I was on the right, so you know. 50, 60 feet bunker shot.

THE MODERATOR: Anything else?

Q. Do you feel anymore or less bad about making a bogey here than you do at another golf tournament?

TOM PERNICE, JR.: No. Maybe a little less here, actually, because you know if you can bounce back it's not so bad. So yeah, I think it's probably a little easier to take sometimes. Sometimes it's never easy to take a bogey.

I was not too thrilled making a bogey at 15 after hitting a perfect driver and an L wedge. But if you stay in it and bounce back you can overcome a bogey pretty quickly.

Q. Certain guys think of themselves more as guys who play steadier. Some guys think of themselves as don't make bogeys but they'll make a lot of birdies.

TOM PERNICE, JR.: I'm more steady. I would say Calcavecchia and Mikelson are going to make a lot of bogeys and birdies. I try to play a little bit more by control and hit good quality iron shots, and hopefully let the putter do the work.

Q. (Indiscernible.)

TOM PERNICE, JR.: I don't think so. I still say if you go look at all the champions and look at their scorecards and add up the scores, good chance that they probably had the low 70s for the four days. A large percentage of them probably would.

So I don't think anybody plays that erratic out here.

Q. Are there one or two words that, if you thought about them, would describe you as a golfer, the kind of competitor you are out on the golf course?

TOM PERNICE, JR.: Oh, methodical, tough, and hard worker.

THE MODERATOR: Anymore questions? Okay Tom, thank you very much.

End of FastScripts.

comments.

STUART APPLEBY: Interesting slowish front nine. Finished a slow front nine. I start off with some birdies there to get some plus twos on the card. But certainly let the (indiscernible.) Almost made a birdie by hitting the flag and just dribbling close but you really need to birdie to Par 5. And then nine I hit a poor drive in the water and made a bogey there. So certainly nothing sweet going in the back nine. Mentally I was thinking four birdies in the back nine gets me 8 points and that turns the round around. Didn't get my 4 birdies which really gives a good bonus and ended up with 9 points on the back for 11 total. The beauty of the points system being that you make eagles and you get a free birdie and a half.

THE MODERATOR: Questions? . Thank you.

Q. Is there anything special you have to do because the at attitude any extra training?

STUART APPLEBY: I haven't yeah I tried at 93 feet above sea level in Orlando. That really helped me. I was in a golf cart most of the time.

No, it was physically a tough course. You do find yourself having to calm down a bit on the tees because you just more stuff than normally are getting to them. But you know, there are yardage differences you get into. The toughest (indiscernible) the wind was blowing 30, 40 in the afternoon, and that was unbelievable. You have percentages to take into account, the wind, the downhill lie, uphill shot.

It was the most confusing golf I've ever seen here. Normally we don't get much wind and it's just a percentage, and I think I've been here, this is my 11th year straight, so I understand what's going on.

Q. (No microphone)

STUART APPLEBY: It is. I think they have had a bit of rain more than normal, so it's bit softer. But if we can get the heat is supposed to be hotter than normal, too. So we should get the course, by weekend, hopefully firm. The greens with are typically perfect.

Q. Do you prefer faster than it is

STUART APPLEBY: I don't see this course firm very often. It tends to get blue very easy, so it's a fine line. No you don't have to hit as much club, or maybe hit the 3 wood off the tee and things like that.

To answer your question, seemed like a while since I played, but British Open was the last time I played. Not today I am not as happy as I have been hitting it. So I need to hit it just a little better and putt it a little bit better.

But you can mask average rounds with you know, eagle helps, but today, without the eagle, that would have been a nice competitive opening round, but I need to sort of do that and more...

Q. (No microphone)

THE MODERATOR: We need to use the mic for the transcription services.

Q. You got some very good finishes here in the past. Is it the format or the course that sets up well for you?

STUART APPLEBY: Well, I'm not one of the highest birdie makers per round on Tour average, so I guess that any guy that fits into this bill is making four plus birdies a round would love this.

It's a long course, but the free yardage we get the course can play a lot of short holes a lot of birdies and par 5s and plenty of short Par 4s.

I played well here I know it, the course hasn't changed. It's there to be, you know, scored upon. The winners are shooting in the 40s, so you're talking about 8 to 12 everyday if the weather stays predicable.

I know the course. I haven't played well here for a while. I was second in '97 and some other nice performances, but...

Q. Talk about your performance at two Opens. How disappointed were you with them?

STUART APPLEBY: The opens, yeah. Yeah, disappointed. Definitely disappointed with the British Open. I felt like I had some more game. Had something there, but just managed to not be able to swing it good enough with my short iron. I didn't actually drive the ball a lot. I just wasn't able to put the club in a good position with my short iron. Just a little fault I have in my swing. That just put too much stress on the rest of the game.

I had a chance to definitely play a lot better. But if you're just not feeling good, you tend to get the worst bounces and everything goes against you. If you're playing well you get the right stuff. I felt like British Open is the tournament I can play the best at.

But I guess when I won Houston I played average in Augusta too, but I said, I'm going to work this thing out in my swing, and I did, I won Houston. But the game is a funny thing. What you do and what you feel aren't always the same thing.

In Houston I had the right feeling the whole week. I felt like the swing was doing what I wanted it to. Sometimes it does what it's supposed to but doesn't feel like it.

That's the beauty of the game. You don't get the same feel every week. Top then next week would be good. Feels like that's what my game can do.

Q. Can you tell us about the eagle?

STUART APPLEBY: Hit driver, 2 iron longish right into the back right trap. Had a very easy shot to get down to the flag, but probably not easy to stop it. I just hit it and it looked perfect all the way. Ran probably about 30 feet straight into the hole. It was a good shot. 4 wood is definitely what I was looking for, but 3 was a big bonus.

THE MODERATOR: Could we go through your round?

STUART APPLEBY: Okay. Laid up second shot knocked it to about five feet, made it. Second two put from about 40.

3, made about a fifteen footer for birdie. Par 3, two putted from about 35.

Two putted from about 25 to 30 on the next.

6, I missed a good chance there from about fifteen feet behind the hole.

Bogeyed the 7th tee shot. Not a great chip and putt. Made it lipped that chipped it into the flag and stayed out on 8.

And 9, I hit it in the drink, and then pitched and putted for 5.

10, poor drive right into the rough. Hit a miraculous shot out of the well, lucky. You can call it miraculous. I call it lucky. To about 15 feet and made that for birdie.

Two putted on 11 from about 35.

12, up and down out of the trap to about 3, 4 feet.

13, just missed the green to about fifteen feet, two putted. Par 5 driver, 2 iron, sand wedge or L wedge in the hole.

15, 3 wood, cut wedge to about 8 feet and made it.

16, great tee shot there at about 12 feet. Just misread it for par.

17, hit a bad tee shot but got a really great break and should have made a 4. Made a 5.

18, got up and down from about 40 yards short of the hole.

THE MODERATOR: So 9, hit 3 wood off the tee there?

STUART APPLEBY: No, I hit driver.

THE MODERATOR: Anymore questions?

Q. What would it mean for you to win this tournament?

STUART APPLEBY: I'd love to win this tournament. It's one of the events that I probably played nonstop since I turned pro. I've come close. It's a very dynamic tournament. Probably nothing like it around.

I think when Rich Beem won here it looked like he was giving birth on the back of the 18th green when he saw Steve Lowery coming it. He looked a mental wreck. I've just never seen a guy look so worried.

But, yeah, look what Steve did. He had no chance to lose the tournament really and he had it snagged out of his hands with a five and an eight?

Q. Yeah.

STUART APPLEBY: So that's just ridiculous. I'd love to win this tournament. Yeah. I can't say anything else.

THE MODERATOR: Okay. All right, Stuart, thanks.

End of FastScripts.

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