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BOB HOPE CHRYSLER CLASSICJanuary 16, 2007George LopezLA QUINTA, CALIFORNIA JOAN vT ALEXANDER: Thank you, George for joining us. GEORGE LOPEZ: This was sent to me by (looking at flowers) it's a love bouquet from Chad Campbell. That was sent by Chad. Yes, how is everybody today? Good? It's wonderful for the PGA TOUR to erect a tent in the middle of the desert so that we may talk about golf. Near the 10 and in between an In-N-Out Burger and a Del Taco, four miles from an outlet mall. That's with a golf is all about, nine holes, a couple of nacho meat burritos. THE MODERATOR: Actually an outlet mall is good for us right now. There's a couple of us who through all night last night and showed up without luggage so we had the trains, planes and automobiles. GEORGE LOPEZ: Who is that, let's see what they are wearing. What did they wear to the airport? That's not bad. Who else? THE MODERATOR: Melissa, there she is. GEORGE LOPEZ: She went for the all-traditional -- THE MODERATOR: Stilettoes on a golf course are always good. GEORGE LOPEZ: I've seen women leaving hotels like that early in the morning. Careful you don't stand too close to them. (Laughter). THE MODERATOR: Thanks everybody for being here and good morning. Thank you, George, for coming and kicking this off for us. Four years ago, Chrysler with the Golf Publications Company kicked off this Chrysler Club Championship which we're here today to introduce. Two of our Chrysler Club Championship winners from 2006, we have sitting right here, we have Marci Zweifel and David Obst. Will you guys stand up? GEORGE LOPEZ: Hey, I saw them on the GOLF CHANNEL. Congratulations. Where did you guys win, from where, what cities, states? THE MODERATOR: Fort Lauderdale and Orlando. GEORGE LOPEZ: I think it's fixed. I don't think anybody from Wyoming won. THE MODERATOR: Because they can golf more than we can in Michigan. GEORGE LOPEZ: How many people started that competition? Because it was very -- it was large, right? It was a national competition. THE MODERATOR: We had over 80,000 players when we started at the beginning in 2006. So these folks are the last two of 80,000 players, and we had over 850 clubs participating. So congratulations. GEORGE LOPEZ: Congratulations. Isn't that amazing, out of 80,000 people, they have narrowed it down to these two. And if Tim Herron is sick, you can fill in for him. Same body type. Just change your hat. THE MODERATOR: So the Chrysler Club Championship is the fastest amateur golf program growing today. In 2008, we expect to even grow more. We expect to have over one 100,000 participants and over 1,000 clubs will participate. And I'd also like to introduce Lou Thaslo (ph) Golf Digest Publications. GEORGE LOPEZ: Stand up, what's that dead wave. This is an exciting press conference. Wherever you were I want to go there tonight. Looked like you had a good time last night. THE MODERATOR: Lou and his whole team helped put this together. GEORGE LOPEZ: May I add, I don't want to seem like I'm sucking up surrounded by the Chrysler logo, but can I add that in my association with the tournament that Chrysler has been nothing but first rate in their support of golf and their support of supplying my friends. I see Sam Jackson passed me on 111, must have been going about 110 in a Chrysler. So if you don't drive one, they move; ask Sam. But they have been great. And it's been a great association for me since we launched this whole hosting of the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic in August. They have been nothing but supportive to me and made the job of getting this off the ground and inviting people a lot easier. THE MODERATOR: And I do hear that you're driving the 300 SRT? GEORGE LOPEZ: I am. And I'm driving it all the time. I mean, really, I have other cars, but I ended up driving that all the time. THE MODERATOR: The thing goes fast. GEORGE LOPEZ: It's fast. And you know, Latinos are not used to going fast, so I like it. I've gotten it up to, you know, 55. (Laughter). THE MODERATOR: In 2008 we will have 48 states that will be able to participate in the Chrysler Club Championship. So all those clubs need to do is go to Chrysler.com or they can contact their local PGA rep and they can join in on hosting one of the Chrysler Club golf tournaments. Out of those 48 states, then we'll end up with eight regional playoffs and then after that will come down to the finals which will be held at the Merrill Lynch Shootout which is at the Ritz Carlton December 5-7 in Naples, Florida; once again, Florida. So we'll have 66 finalists, 32 men, 32 women that will compete in Naples, much like Marci and David here. GEORGE LOPEZ: Now can they defend their championship or is this it, a one-time. THE MODERATOR: They will be grandfathered into the regional round and they have to place in the top four. GEORGE LOPEZ: So they get a bye like Q-School. Great. You know, you don't get this from Saturn. I think they are offering an early-bird breakfast. One breakfast, national contest that somebody can win, I think it's silver dollar pancakes and juice or coffee. THE MODERATOR: Hope somebody got that one on tape. GEORGE LOPEZ: I'm sure they did. Look at these guys. THE MODERATOR: But we are very happy to have you, George, as our host for 2007 and of course in 2008. And we are very proud of our sponsorship of the Chrysler Club Championship. It's a great event for us. It's a great grass-roots event where it allows amateur golfers to compete on a pro level, and we get to talk to people who actually enjoy golfing and they fit well with the Chrysler brand. So it's a great fit for us and we look forward to the Merrill Lynch Shootout in December. And of course, the Bob Hope Chrysler class, in this case, 2008. GEORGE LOPEZ: That's right. THE MODERATOR: So with that, any questions? GEORGE LOPEZ: Yes, what time is your luggage supposed to get here? THE MODERATOR: They have to find it, first. GEORGE LOPEZ: That's why sometimes when people fly, they never put their name on the bag, just because they assume naturally that your luggage is going to show up. And then you have to go and choose your luggage from that big sheet, that kind of laminated thing that goes, well, it looks like that. THE MODERATOR: I love it when they say, "Well, what color is it?" "Black." GEORGE LOPEZ: It's black. That's why you see old people put a red string on it. You're like what the hell is that all about. Q. With all of the different celebrities that are playing golf now, which do you most like to play with and can you tell us what celebrities out there use the foot, wedge and sheet? GEORGE LOPEZ: I would say Cheech Marin has actually worn out the inside of his shoe from the foot wedge. But my thing with when I first started, I promised the Hope Board of Directors and Chrysler that I would increase the celebrity level, bump it up, and on Saturday, I got Clint Eastwood to play and return for the first time for 14 years. Don't tell him yet, I was going to break it to him Friday, but he will be here on Saturday, and also the guys who are here are very excited to play. Andy Garcia who has never been to the desert before, and Huey Lewis and Don Cheadle is here. I got a call from Oscar De La Hoya; he's excited about playing. So I've brought a higher-profile celebrity and I think that's what Bob did so well and that's what as long as I'm the host of the tournament, I will continue to do and really work on it all year and not just, you know, just a couple of months before the tournament. This is an all-year job for me. THE MODERATOR: That's great and that's great for us, too, of course. Q. I understand that you received a star on the Palm Springs Walk of Fame, how does that feel? GEORGE LOPEZ: Well, it feels -- you know, this whole process of playing golf and being rewarded by being a golfer is -- that's -- it's really overwhelming for me from somebody from my background and things. The Palm SpringS walk of Fame star is validation that I'm present -- when I play golf, I try to be present and be there. And I think it's infectious among the people that are there and they like that; that those ropes are not planes of glass, like you can cross it and touch people and give kids your hat and your glove. I think that's a validation that the four years that I've played in this tournament, that I've made every day a special day, for me and them. I'm really here for them. I mean, I'm just trying to not -- really not hit anyone, and then just, you know, I'm here for the fans actually. That's my thing. I'm not here really for golf, I will play. Q. You obviously had a good reception from celebrities in this tournament, but what's it like with some of the PGA TOUR players? GEORGE LOPEZ: That's a good question. You know what's really great, I think for the first time in a long time, golfers have asked to be included in the celebrity rotation. The guys that I've seen out here, Mike Weir, David Duval, Jason Gore, Olin Browne, Mathias Gronberg, Jesper Parnevik; all of these guys have asked, what can I do; Corey Pavin, if you need anything, what can I do to help. And I've never seen that before. So I've managed to make a nice bond between the golfers, the tournament and the celebrities and the fans, and I think that will show up once the ball is teed up and we're playing real golf. I think these guys obviously have a job to do, but I think this year it's going to be a lot more fun and the energy is going to be at a level than it's been in a few years. Q. Dolores hope said she admired you as one of the brightest young comediens. GEORGE LOPEZ: Well, if you're 45 and they consider you a young comedian, that's fantastic. That is an honor; the fact that Dolores has been so kind to me since the first time I met her in 2004 and that Bob was a fan of my comedy is validation. It would be like if the Pope sent you a letter and said: "You're a good Catholic, signed the Pope." So it's been great for me and it's been easy to know I have the sun port of the Hope family along with the Chrysler and the Board of Directors. Those guys really, you know, they remember -- they have been here when Bob was around and they ran the tournament with him and it's been great because they have actually been very supportive of this. It's never been crossed wires since we've been doing this. Q. Didn't you open for Bob Hope? GEORGE LOPEZ: Yes, I did in 1991 Bob Hope and I. Q. Weren't you in a limousine with Bob Hope? GEORGE LOPEZ: I was. I drove it. (Laughter). Yes, Bob Hope and I actually worked together in Walnut Creek in 1991. He and I were driving back to the hotel and he hit the -- he hit the light above me and it illuminated his face, which is like that, I mean, that's what it looked like, the logo. He said, "Hey, George, what do you think of that crowd tonight"? I said, "I thought they were a little slow and once you got them, they were good." And he said, "That's what I thought." And we talked about Desi Arnaz and comedy. I thought that would be the highlight, but that's amongst one of many that Bob Hope has allowed me to have. Q. There used to be a lot of tournaments with celebrity names attached and now there's none. How do you think it helps, or does it help to have a celebrity name attached to a tournament? GEORGE LOPEZ: I think it does because I think you need a face to go out there to shake hands, and it's much like what politicians do; you want to get the word out. You need to be out there. You need to have your face on a billboard. You need to actually be a walking, talking supporter of the tournament and golf. I love golf, it's helped me with my life, my life skills and become, you know, not a better golfer, but I think a better person, and I think that's really when you are getting something out of a sport. But the fact that you can walk into a restaurant and invite people to come to a tournament and invite them to come and watch their favorite celebrities or invite them to just partake in what's been a tradition for 46 years, you can only do that when you're the host and you're the recognizable face of the tournament. Q. So having your name on there doesn't detract from the corporate involvement or anything? GEORGE LOPEZ: No, absolutely, they go very well together. You say that and there used to be a handful of celebrity-run tournaments, Andy Williams and Glenn Campbell and Sammy Davis, Jr. And Dean Martin and Jackie Gleason and those things have gone away. In a sense, celebrity golf has dwindled a little bit. Ray Romano asked me a month ago -- he's coming to play on Friday and Saturday, why was I so involved with this. And Hollywood and golf and the PGA TOUR have always gone well hand-in-hand, and that hand grip is slipping a little bit and I want to make sure that it stays strong for a lot of years to come. Q. Can you describe the state of your own game at this time in time? GEORGE LOPEZ: Well, it actually was really strong until yesterday about the sixth hole. Mike Weir had his coach with him and it works well for Weirsy because he's a professional. But when the guy filmed three of my swings and he was telling me about my spine angle and I was raising my head and I wasn't getting the full turn and really after he spoke, the only thing I really looked at when I looked at the tape was whether I looked fat or not. (Laughter.) So I didn't really hear what I said. I was more looking at me sucking it in. You know, I've got to suck it in until Monday. Q. Also the history here is that all putts break towards Indio. If the wind keeps blowing, do you have any advice for the golfers? GEORGE LOPEZ: If the wind keeps blowing, all putts will break toward the outlet mall. Everything will break toward the Zegna store. Q. What's your handicap? GEORGE LOPEZ: My handicap is a 13. You know, there's flashes of brilliance there. It's beautiful and it's painful. Must have been what Whitney Houston went through being married to Bobby Brown. It at times can be the most beautiful thing in the world and yet at times be very painful to endure. But I won't be selling any of my stuff at an auction. Q. Yourself included, if you had three other people to play golf with what's your dream foursome? GEORGE LOPEZ: My dream foursome would be myself, Donald Trump and Rosie O'Donnell, and she would count as two. So I wouldn't actually need four. (Laughter). You knew I wasn't going to get out of here without getting in trouble. THE MODERATOR: Somebody is going to pick up on that. GEORGE LOPEZ: Good, I want in that fight. Yes, and Paula Abdul could not be here because her blood alcohol level was too high for the PGA TOUR and Chrysler wouldn't give her a courtesy car. There's two, I gave you two. What I really want to say is this is going to be a great week, I'm excited to be hosting the tournament. I started hitting balls in my backyard when I was 12 and never thought it would end up like this. Every day I'm out here and I see my friends that are celebrities and the professional golfers, it's a great day and it's going to be a great week and I'm happy to be involved and thank you for your attention and your support. JOAN vT ALEXANDER: Thank you for joining us and thank you for hosting. End of FastScripts |
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