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JOHNNIE WALKER CLASSIC

March 3, 2007

Richard Sterne

PHUKET, THAILAND

GORDON SIMPSON: Richard, 64s on Friday and Saturday to lead at the moment alongside Oliver Wilson. I'm sure you fancy your title chances more than you probably did on Thursday.
RICHARD STERNE: Yeah, after shooting 3-over, I'd actually brought my bags to the golf course Friday because the flight was at 8.00, so I wouldn't have made it going back to the hotel. Yeah, a bit of a change around, but played good golf and I made good putts and that sort of makes a big difference.
GORDON SIMPSON: Why the turnaround, is it just golf, the way things are sometimes or something specific that happened.
RICHARD STERNE: Well, I've come off two good tournaments in South Africa (1st Vodacom Championship; 2nd Telkom PGA Championship). I won and finished second there, so my confidence was high. Thursday things just didn't go my way. Last two days, they have. So no bogeys, I think 16 birdies, just sort of ended up nicely.
GORDON SIMPSON: Do you remember shooting as low as that consecutive days, 64-64?
RICHARD STERNE: No, that's pretty much the lowest I think in professional golf.

Q. How important is it to not pick up any bogeys at this stage of the tournament, getting down to the crucial stage?
RICHARD STERNE: Obviously making bogeys is not quite what you want to be doing. But finishing 17, 18 and 14 especially are potentially difficult holes. You know, anything could happen there, and I played them very well, so I'm pleased about that. Not dropping shots coming in gives me confidence going in for the next day.

Q. The run home with the three birdies in four holes at the end?
RICHARD STERNE: Yeah, on those holes I'm pretty happy with. I hit good shots and made a couple of good putts.
GORDON SIMPSON: You had a lovely chip at 16, didn't you, to a few feet?
RICHARD STERNE: Yeah, it was not actually very easy. I went for the chip with a wedge and just bounced it up because sand wedge would have spun too much. I found a couple of pins were quite tricky today. I haven't looked at any of the scoring but I couldn't imagine there was such great scoring out there today.

Q. You were planning to leave Friday; did that make you take any more risks?
RICHARD STERNE: I wasn't really planning on leaving. I just didn't have much of a choice to be honest. I can't go back to the hotel. So I was actually feeling pretty comfortable with my game and the last two days have proven that. So hopefully tomorrow things keep going my way and we'll be talking again.

Q. Did you manage to get your old hotel room back or did you have to go book into another hotel?
RICHARD STERNE: No, same hotel. They charged me for the night but I had no choice.

Q. If you had to pick one shot out of what must have been quite a few good ones, does one stand out?
RICHARD STERNE: Probably the 6-iron on 17. You know, that's a tough hole. That's probably the -- it was that and 14, toughest holes on the golf course today. I had a 6-iron.

Q. What do you do now, you're going into tomorrow, you're going to be on the cusp of winning a big tournament, how do you sort of prepare for that final round mentally?
RICHARD STERNE: I've been in the position a couple of times, and with the experience I've had back home now the last two weeks, I'll rely on that. Just you learn and try and take it as another day.
I'm quite excited because I'm playing pretty well. You know, anything can happen. You can go out there and shoot another 64; you can go out there and shoot 74. Just hopefully handle it well and take whatever comes. I don't get my hopes up too much. This game can change around very quickly.
GORDON SIMPSON: You've already won on The European Tour as you know, do you feel now you're ready to make the next step forward?
RICHARD STERNE: Yeah, I'm only 25 now but I feel like I've been out here for a long time. I think it's my fifth year now on this tour, and I feel like I have underachieved a bit to my capability.
But, you know, with more experience and as time goes by, I'll start improving a lot more and competing to win tournaments. That's what it's about. You don't want to come out here and finish 30th. It really isn't that much fun doing that, so I always want to win tournaments.
GORDON SIMPSON: All of the young guys in South Africa seem to be doing well at the moment.
RICHARD STERNE: Yeah, we've had a couple of good tournaments and we've got some great golfers. I think there's even more that just need to get out there and take the chance and get over to Europe or wherever. Asia is becoming big now as well. They have got the possibility to do it, so just do it.

Q. Do you know Anton Haig?
RICHARD STERNE: Yeah, I know him pretty well, well enough. He's very talented. He's only 20, you know. I think he's doing well today, to be in the last group on a Saturday is never easy, and I think he's around level today which I think he'll be happy with a good finish around level par today.

Q. Who takes the money in the practise rounds?
RICHARD STERNE: I actually don't play for money in practise rounds. I'm about the only one.

Q. Were you in the last group when you won in Spain?
RICHARD STERNE: No, actually I wasn't -- or was I last group. I actually can't remember.
GORDON SIMPSON: You don't mind either way.
RICHARD STERNE: I don't mind either way, whatever happens. As long as I have a chance going into the back nine tomorrow, I know I'll have a chance of finishing it off.

Q. How long have you been playing golf? Did you have a good amateur career?
RICHARD STERNE: Yes, I started when I was four.
Yeah, amateur golf in South Africa, I won pretty much everything there was to win, SA Amateur, both SA Juniors and Amateurs and Mens.

Q. Eisenhower Trophy?
RICHARD STERNE: I actually never looked into that, although it was very controversial not to get into that.
GORDON SIMPSON: Who played that year?
RICHARD STERNE: None of them are actually doing too well. You wouldn't know any of them playing in South Africa. Only about one that's doing fairly decently., Jakob Van Zyl, in the States.

Q. What are your ultimate ambitions in golf?
RICHARD STERNE: This year my goal is to get to the Top-50 in the world. I need to get to the States eventually. I've always wanted to end up there. Hopefully by the end of next year I'll be on the U.S. Tour, which is about the right age for me.
GORDON SIMPSON: Trevor has had a few wins.
RICHARD STERNE: Yeah, I think you've got to learn to win, especially we have tough fields here as well. So if you can win over here, I think it just gives you a lot of confidence going over to that side. It always difficult moving somewhere else, and I've never actually played in the States as a professional.
GORDON SIMPSON: This may get you into the Bridgestone?
RICHARD STERNE: I'm into the Bridgestone by winning the one in South Africa, so that's pretty nice.

Q. From your first day here, how do you perceive Thailand these days, in any aspect you want to talk about, our scenery, our people anything about Thailand?
RICHARD STERNE: Yeah, actually my first time to Thailand, and it's a lot of fun, beautiful. The hotel we are staying at is great, the food is good and the people are very friendly, so it's a nice place to travel.
You know, I don't really see it from the side of a holiday at the moment. You know, your mind isn't really as relaxed as it should be when you come here as most people do, I suppose. Maybe I'll come back on holiday for a week or two.

Q. So you are enjoying your stay here so far?
RICHARD STERNE: Yeah, very good.

Q. Have you been outside of Phuket yet?
RICHARD STERNE: Not really, just to the hotel or restaurant and that's about it really.
GORDON SIMPSON: Are you heading straight back to SA?
RICHARD STERNE: Yeah, I'm going home tomorrow night, five weeks' break and then back to China.
GORDON SIMPSON: Thank you very much and well played yesterday and today.

End of FastScripts

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