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BMW CHAMPIONSHIP

May 25, 2006

Luke Donald

VIRGINIA WATERS, ENGLAND

STEVEN FRANKLIN: Ladies and gentlemen, Luke Donald is here with us. Thank you, Luke, for coming in. 67 gives you the lead at the moment, tied lead. Give us your thoughts on that. You must be happy.

LUKE DONALD: Yeah, very happy, really with the way I played today. I really didn't do much wrong tee to green. I believe I hit every green out there. So it was I was very happy with the way I played. My driving was pretty good and my iron play was very good today. I didn't make too many putts. I think the longest birdie putt I made was on 7 which was only about 15 feet.

So could have been better, but really a solid start and just the way I wanted to get off to this week.

STEVEN FRANKLIN: How do you think the course played with the changes under tournament conditions?

LUKE DONALD: Well, it felt likes The European Tour were very what's the word I'm trying to think of the word, I had it. They were cautious in the way they set up the course today. 3 was well up. A few other tees were at the front of the tee boxes. I didn't feel like it played a lot longer out there. Really didn't seem to play too difficult. Obviously we caught a very nice day today. The conditions were perfect and ideal. The ball wasn't rolling much. It was quite soft, the course, from the rain yesterday. It really didn't there wasn't too many holes that the changes made a difference on today.

STEVEN FRANKLIN: Let's do your card and we'll open up to questions. You birdied the 2nd?

LUKE DONALD: Yeah, I hit an 8 iron to about 15 feet.

6, drive and a 7 iron to about six feet.

Two fire, 8 iron to about 15 feet on 7.

14 was a 5 iron to about six feet again.

18, drive and a 2 iron and two putts from about 40 feet.

Q. The suggestion there is that you wouldn't have expected the same in America?

LUKE DONALD: Well, you know, I felt like the forecast today was going to be okay. I didn't think they were forecasting wind or too much rain, the odd shower maybe.

You know, I think you wouldn't have seen that in America, no. You would have seen I think people on the whole are excited with the changes. It was going to be a tough test. A few times negated that by putting the tees up.

Q. Were you in any bunkers today?

LUKE DONALD: No bunkers.

Q. How often would you hit all 18 greens in regulation?

LUKE DONALD: No, not too often. I think obviously the pick and place helped, and the soft conditions. The ball was just it was target golf today. That helped.

I can't remember the last time. I might have done it last year sometime, but I think that's the first time this year.

Q. How much easier was it today than when you played the Pro Am yesterday?

LUKE DONALD: Well, weather conditions were obviously a lot more favorable. There's hardly any wind out there, no rain. Yesterday wasn't too bad. It was a little windier and colder. But today was a couple shots easier, that's for sure.

Q. For example on the third, what did you hit yesterday and what did you hit today?

LUKE DONALD: The third was a driver and 2 iron. Today I didn't hit a very good drive and I hit a 5 iron. I think a lot of people are hitting short irons into that hole.

Q. Surprised that 67 leads?

LUKE DONALD: I think the course is there to make a few birdies. As always, it's hard to hole putts on these greens. I think, you know, they are a good surface, but with them being so wet and so spongy, you know, late in the day the greens were getting very tough to hole putts on those. A lot of kind of indentations from footprints, and these greens just in general are very subtle. They are very hard to read. They have little breaks that you don't see, and I think that you'll see that a lot this week because a few people missing some short putts and it's not really down to bad putting. I think they are just hard greens to hole putts on, and I think that's what held the scores back a little bit today.

Q. Colin Montgomerie and Paul McGinley have said in the past that they think the sets ups are easier here and perhaps that's one of the factors why Europeans haven't won a major championship.

LUKE DONALD: Well, when you look at the U.S. Open, I think that's the won that we haven't won for the longest, is that correct?

LUKE DONALD: And I was thinking that come be down 18 today. I feel like when I do play in Europe, the courses generally are a little more generous off the tee, the rough isn't quite as thick, and the pin positions, they don't tuck them quite as much as they do on the U.S. Tour. You can short side yourself out here and still get up and down and make par and it's not too big of a deal. At the U.S. Open, you're not going to get away with that. I think that is part of the reason why we haven't been very successful in majors, especially the U.S. Open.

Q. Do you expect them to toughen it over the next three days?

LUKE DONALD: I think they have just got to be wary of what the weather is going to do. If they are forecasting high winds and they know what direction it is, maybe put a few of those tees up just a little bit.

I think obviously the English weather is hard to predict, but I would help they would put the tees back a little bit more.

STEVEN FRANKLIN: Thank you, luck.

End of FastScripts.

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